Shiny Shiny Syndrome

Why do brands that spend gazillions and employ teams of econometricians to ascertain the specific nuances of demographic reach and frequency in traditional media throw all of that out of the window when it comes to digital?  I’m sure you’ve been there.  The brand manager who pours over TGI, BARB and planning schedules to wring an extra juicy rating or nudge up an index by a few points throws all caution to the wind when it comes to online channels.  ‘Just make it go viral,’ or ‘we’ll need an app for that,’ is as far as the analysis sometimes goes.  This can lead to the unbecoming site of a stampede of brands running from one web service to another, driven purely by trend and fashion.  A world view I refer to as ‘Shiny Shiny Syndrome' (SSS).  For example, a few years ago, when Second Life was in its ascendency, there was a trend for big brands to open shops in the metaverse.  The fact that Second Life was created by a bunch of people who were trying to get away from the restrictions of what they saw as an overtly commercial First Life was ignored.  Also, the reality that the avatar-driven, bizarre world of cyber-geeks and punks was only accessible to a tiny group of people with super-fast machines and chunky bandwidth was lost in the rush to be first.  More recently a similar view seems to have held sway when it comes to the iPhone or anything that comes from the Whiter, Brighter and Lighter Church where Steve Jobs reigns supreme.  Companies and brands who in the morning were waterboarding their above-the-line media agencies in a vat of latte to drive their TV spots harder, spent the afternoon launching an application into the AppStore, ignoring the fact that none of their customers own, or maybe have even heard of, an iPhone.  Of course, this isn’t true of all marketers.   Many obsess about the latest SEO techniques and the ROI from their Paid Search campaigns. However, SSS is still not an uncommon mindset.   I think the reason for this is an excessive focus on technology.  We’re all prone to losing our sense when High Priest Jobs gets on stage and starts waving his latest creation around.  However, only when you get back to first principles, focusing on your customers and how they are using technology in their lives to find brands they can trust and services that offer good value can you create helpful market insights.

Comments

[Jon Howard]

Amen indeed. Been there many times. And it's often the digital agencies who do nothing to curb a client's excessive enthusiasm that you want to have a word with. But who can blame them I guess - got to make your money why you can!

[James Cherkoff]

Thanks Jon. As you say, it's hard to blame the digital agencies. Everyone is pitching to brands. However, the mystery of SSS is that hard-headed brand executives sign up for digital communications channels without thought to the audience or user.

Maybe Steve Jobs really does have a Reality Distortion Field... ;-)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_distortion_field

[Brad Bell]

"Companies and brands who in the morning were waterboarding their above-the-line media agencies in a vat of latte to drive their TV spots harder..."

:-) Good one.

On the one hand, the figurative use of 'waterboarding' should be encouraged for the sake of memory, guilt and humour. I want to use it. On the other hand, I tried ironically employing the word 'evil' when G.W. Bush was elected and it backfired. At first it was ironic, humorous, folksy nonsense. Over time, the humour fell away. Eventually, I started to think of it like a real word that referred to actual people. And I began to wonder if - in the fight against evil - enhanced interrogation techniques were really so bad after all.

[James Cherkoff]

Hey Brad...point taken. ;-)