Comments on: What’s your Story?

By: Anthony Marco

Anthony Marco — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 04:44:29 +0000

Understanding people as stories is most enjoyable through Social Media because, while my mind will always attempt to fill in the blanks about someone, more data defines the difference between a personal ad and a novel. If nature abhors a vacuum, our minds likewise churn to fill gaps in information. How often I find my brain leaping to meaningfully connect a series of tweets to an avatar.

Over the next couple of months I have to try to convince the powers that be, behind an organization of 60,000 members comprised mostly of people aged 25-45, that SM is an essential way to reach out to disengaged members. Pictures and names of a select handful of people cannot galvanize organizational leadership or inclusiveness from a thousand miles away without Social Media.

The leadership of our organization follows the Field of Dreams tenet that if they build it (a website)… well, you know the rest. Their fears lie in control over engaging in open messaging without realizing their static message has become devalued by disinterest. Not to get all McLuhan-esque here, but maximizing the medium is far more important than any single message, and fostering relationships to make our members care about the people delivering the content will start to make the messages (which are mostly rote and expected anyway) meaningful because of the provider.

Thanks for the incentive for a little introspective word wank. Sorry for any incoherent non-sequiturs. Helps to galvanize my ideas if I type it out.

By: Keith Burtis

Keith Burtis — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 02:44:26 +0000

Shannon, you rock! How much shall I pay you for a guest blog post??? heck, that comment is worth a re-post! I say Amen to that sister!

By: Shannon Boudjema

Shannon Boudjema — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 01:10:13 +0000

Can I get an amen? The Social Media conundrum, second para: This is not marketing the way your daddy did it. This is unmarketing. Smart marketers follow their consumers… they stay on top of emerging trends, market trends and the evolution of consumer behavior. This space belongs to the people… you play by their rules or you get blocked. Bringing your advertising, or one way messages and tools that fudge what this space is really all about is not going to save your bottom line. And it’s not cool to use this approach and then when it doesn’t work, dismiss SM as a overrated fad.

Small is the new big. I think Seth Godin said it first… and I’ve heard it many many times since. There are a new set of rules.

Playing in this space is kind of like arriving at a cocktail party not really knowing anyone… observe, listen, when it’s right, engage the conversation – this is not your queue to promote you, your product or business for the next 15 minutes … or guess what? Your audience will quickly find that they need a refill… or the loo! And you will be enjoying the rest of the evening on your own.

Well said Keith. Great post.