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I have gotten a number of emails from people asking me about how the presentation went that I did last week when I spoke at the Triangle’s American Marketers Association lunch. We had a great turnout, I think we had well over 100 people show up and I think at least from the feedback that I have received, all went well.
What I tried to convey in my presentation was two main points. First, that in today’s fractured media environment, it is no longer about products, services or even brands; it is about the people. The customers, the clients, the users, the people, we as marketers, are trying very hard to reach. But today it is not just about getting attention, it is about connecting users with a brand as well as connecting users to other users with similar interests.
My second point discussed the question about control and that again, we as marketers, have very little if any control compared to years past. This includes utilizing more traditional marketing techniques like TV, radio and print. As marketers, we not only need to accept this, but I believe we need to embrace it. The days of talking points and controlling the message is over. And the sooner we accept it, the sooner we can realize that this is not bad news, but on the contrary, this is incredibly exciting news with great possibilities if understood and done correctly.
If you are interested, I have included my presentation below for you to look over. As always, I welcome any and all thoughts.
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Cord,
This looks like a great presentation. I’m sad I missed it.
There is one thing I didn’t see in the slides that I personally think is a huge part of what this new user empowered movement means for companies.
Giving up control of the message is one thing. Learning to listen to the marketplace and empower users with your product is another thing all together.
Learning to give up control without learning to empower audiences around your product is what its all about. The wii had some great buzz and had a fantastic product launch.
It wasn’t a successful campaign because the marketing department did a good job, it was because the designers listened to users and focused on satisfying their need for fun.
Then all they had to do was show it to people.
(steps off soapbox)
Thanks for starting another great conversation and keep me posted on the next speaking engagement.