Comments on: Please don’t talk about a social media ‘revolution’. Not just yet.

By: FreshNetworks Blog » Blog Archive » A history of marketing, advertising and brands (a video)

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 19:53:29 +0000

[...] really what we’re seeing through the changes the video highlights. There is much talk about a social media revolution (and we’ve written before about why that’s not quite the right word), whereas what we [...]

By: Calvin Jones

Calvin Jones — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 10:54:16 +0000

Hi Matt,

Thanks for the link back the the “Social Media Rules of Engagement” post on the SOHO Solo West Cork blog.

You’re absolutely right, of course… people have always talked about their experiences and perception of brands. The real shift now is that instead of talking to five or six of their mates down the local pub they’re discussing those experiences and perceptions with tens, hundreds, maybe even thousands online. And so what was a small scale local phenomenon now has the potential to transcend the traditional boundaries of geography and culture.

People often get hung up on technology when discussing social media and other channels for online marketing and consumer engagement. What they tend to forget is that all of this technology is just an enabler. It’s not about the technology at all, it’s still just people talking to other people.

Social media may not have revolutionised marketing just yet — but it certainly has the potential to change things fairly radically. We’re moving from a traditional show-and-tell model of product promotion to a much more inclusive and collaborative approach. Like any period of transition there are tremendous opportunities out there, particularly for smaller businesses that are nimble, flexible and daring enough to adapt. Change can be painful for large organisations — which means smaller businesses have the chance to take advantage the constantly evolving challenges of online marketing and steal a march on their larger competition.

Whether they actually do so in significant numbers remains to be seen… but the potential is certainly there.

Interesting times, I guess

Calvin!

By: Tom Vanlerberghe

Tom Vanlerberghe — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:01:33 +0000

Hi Matt,
On the other hand people use the term ‘revolution’ when they feel that something has to change. And maybe the dominance of traditional media has to change? Maybe the way CEO’s think about ‘that thing online’? I agree that it isn’t a revolution yet, but something is changing in the way we look at how we have to communicate to customers. Like Simon said, mass media became more important after WWII, but I think it settled itself in a fake state of ease, and maybe this (social media) is the counterrevolution?
And maybe ‘revolution’ is just a term marketers made their own and we all overused it and made it meaningless.

grtz
Tom

By: Simon Young

Simon Young — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 01:10:31 +0000

Nice post Matt. I agree that social media hasn’t caused a revolution, the revolution has been going on for much longer. Social media is a symptom.

The move towards social media started as early as the 1940s, when traditional community started changing, and mass media became more important. (More thoughts on that here: http://ijump.co.nz/rob-kozinets-on-the-origin-of-online-communities/)