Start a Conversation Today!

Speak now or forever hold your peace…

As marketers, we spend our professional lives trying to understand our consumer and yet when the first genuine opportunities for online conversation arise – we run a hundred kilometres…

Jaffe asks “Why Are We So Afraid of Conversation?”

It seems one-way broadcast marketing has created a mindset of treating customers as alien beings to be viewed only through one-way mirrors at focus groups. And perhaps it is this mindset that is the biggest barrier to harnessing the extraordinary opportunities that the online channel presents!

So where do these fears come from? And how do we resolve them?

Lets examine some of the common barriers that we hear to making a start…

Loss of control

Starting a conversation will open the flood gates, the chaos will be unbearable…

The good news: there are ways of framing conversations, calibrating the speed of conversations and several other techniques that keep some influence if not control with the brand.

The bad news: get used to it – a little creative chaos is inevitable and might be good for the brand!   

“The more in control we are, the more out of touch we become. But the more willing we are to let go a little, the more we’re finding we get in touch (with consumers).”

-  A.G. Lafley, CEO, Proctor & Gamble, ANA Conference

Embarrassment!

What if I make a fool of myself? What if I am criticised? On the public record forever!

Well here is a fundamental human fear!

Sorry, it doesn’t matter. If you don’t join the conversation, it will happen without you. Don’t take the criticism personally. So long as you are truthful – there should be nothing to fear in public discourse. 

Don’t know what we don’t know! 

I just don’t know enough about this social media stuff yet! 

Sorry, consumers can’t wait. Sure it’s overwhelming – it’s akin to drinking from a fire-hose! Particularly for those of us that are not of the digital generation. But jump on board its an exciting ride!

Keeping-up with those pesky consumers

What if we set expectations with our consumers that we can’t live up to? 

Conversing with your customers should be a managed process where expectations are set carefully and where honesty and integrity are fundamental. Honest mistakes will be accepted by consumers if trust has been built over time. 

Brands today have to be OPEN;

• On-demand
• Personal
• Engaging
• Networked  

At the end of the day, participating in this brave new world of marketing cannot be done in half measures. Consumers will see to that and events will overtake us. Inertia – driven by the reasons cited above – will be the biggest challenge.

And remember, brands don’t have to be perfect. Start a conversation today!