Social Media: fad or revolution?


It is certainly not the social media companies themselves, media companies or agencies that are leading people down this social garden path. Actually it’s people’s thirst for information, friends, acceptance etc (and a plethora of other sociological and anthropological aspects) that is resulting in people driving down more like a seven lane superhighway at breakneck speed resulting in these unprecedented engagement levels.

And when you are driving down a motorway and see a lorry parked side on in an adjoining field with a large ad on the side, do you remember the URL or phone number on the ad when you arrive at your destination? (If you’ve written it down whilst driving – shame on you!)

Yes, you nearly crash into the car in front of you trying to read the ad or slowed down so much that the motorcyclist behind you is now headbutting your number plate, but that’s just it. You read it and it’s gone. No hook, no memory. It’s a bit like an ad on the London Underground using an SMS number as the call to action.

Some of the facts presented in the video are so colossal that it has got everyone scratching their heads in bewilderment. It tempts companies and marketers to conjure traditional questions such as:

  • How do we hook these users in?

  • How are we going to make money from them?

  • What’s it worth?

From my perspective however, these questions are totally missing the point and currently demonstrate a lack of understanding and empathy of what these users are demanding.

  1. They demand speed.

  2. They demand choice.

  3. They demand engagement on their terms.

  4. They choose when anything happens.

  5. They demand free content.

However there is no one size fits all solution here. As with all user groups, understanding the demographics of the target audience will define the answers to questions such as:

  1. What is important to the user, what do they want?

  2. How do we actively engage these users?

  3. How do we tempt them?

  4. Why do they need us?

So, slice and dice your data and understand your target audience better. Yes it would be great to target all 300m users of but it’s not realistic as not all of them want what you’ve got.

And understand the user purchasing journey for these demographics, as you will find that social media hooks will create a longer lag time to purchase than some other channels.

So if you give the user what they want when they want it and engage them in the right way, the money will follow. And this is where another revolution needs to occur. The present landscape demands that companies and marketers address and engage their audience in an entirely different and new way. We have gone from the industrial to the digital revolution. Now, all hail the social revolution.


Topics: Social
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Reader comments (12)

  1. Karl Havard Karl Havard Small Business

    Chief Strategy Officer at Communisis

    10:26AM on 11th September 2009


    Nice piece! People are definitely thirsty for info' and use the social web to research and seek insights from fellow consumers and brands themselves. I believe the winners will be those organisations who can build and enhance consumer trust incorporating social media to do so. This means opening yourself up (being accessible), listening and interacting in an open and honest way....and of course delivering to expectation.

    If businesses fail to recognise this potential, they are closing a very big communications channel. A bit like ignoring all the phones when they ring.

    Thanks again. Good post.


  2. Avatar-blank-50x50 Jacob Wright

    12:10PM on 11th September 2009

    This video and post are a stunning example of the precise problem around the debate about social media.

    Of course social media is popular.  That is not under debate.  Urinating, telling jokes, playing chess and drinking lager are also popular.  But popularity does not equal being a good medium for marketing.  If you believe that social media is a great medium for marketing show me a case study for a brand that was built using social media, with the amount of rigour and attention to return on investment that any responsible client would demand of a case study using television advertising.

    Secondly, just because you can make an argument from analogy does not make it right.  Saying that social media is a conversation and that therefore marketing should be about conversation is not a proof, it's a theory.  For hundreds of years medicine was crippled by believable but ultimately false analogies about the human body (the four humours etc.)  If you want to convince grown-up marketers of the value of your services you need to move beyond lazy analogies and engage with WHAT MAKES PEOPLE BUY STUFF.  Just because we can use social media for marketing DOES NOT MEAN THAT WE SHOULD.

    Finally, I'm sick and tired of seeing that ridiculous statistic about word of mouth and advertising.  If any of the thousands of people writing these facile decks and perpetuating this ridiculous dogma had actually bothered to study and understand 'traditional' marketing they'd know that people have always CLAIMED to not be influenced by ads, but have always been PROVEN to actually BE influenced by them despite this.  Which is a textbook example of what psychologists know as 'the introspection fallacy' i.e. that people don't really understand their own psychology and that the things they SAY do not equate with the things they DO.

    So yes people talk about brands on social media.  But I can change what they say on social media by doing things like tv ads, or even tv ads in rich media banners.  This is proven.  Prove to me that you can affect people AT SCALE with a concrete methodology.  Don't just witter on about trends.  Show us the money.  Read and understand some basic human psychology texts, engage with traditional marketing instead of criticising some straw-man version of it that only exists in your head.  And finally propose a concrete solution instead of grabbing some numbers off google and expecting the world to fall at your feet.

  3. Karl Havard Karl Havard Small Business

    Chief Strategy Officer at Communisis

    12:27PM on 11th September 2009


    I believe I can take you through a methodology based upon trust dynamics that works. Nothing to do with marketing, or social media surprisingly. However, it can be applied by marketing, customer service etc. and incorporate the social web as part of an overall communications approach (receive and transmit). Focusing on buying stuff is completely missing the point, but if you can encourage people to talk to others and say positive things about you (advocacy) en-masse...then you have something.

    Let me know if your interested. Your post doesn't allow for contacting you.


  4. Avatar-blank-50x50 erik qualman

    5:10PM on 12th September 2009


    Great post and thanks for the positive vibes on my video.  I especially like your points here:

    1. They demand speed.

    2. They demand choice.

    3. They demand engagement on their terms.

    4. They choose when anything happens.

    5. They demand free content.

    Best, Erik Qualman

    Author of Socialnomics

  5. Avatar-blank-50x50 Will Burden

    7:43PM on 12th September 2009

    From my experience, the key understanding around SMMarketing is that is not about demo-defined mass markets -- it is about segmented, self-identified individuals and groups. The successful use of SM tools depends on creating a critical mass of relationships (conversations) with individuals who themselves are networked with discrete and interlocked groups. It's the niche that counts, and any marketing "message" must be sufficiently personalized to be authentic and meaningful for the target individual/audience.

    At least that's my take.


  6. Avatar-blank-50x50 Phil Raynor

    5:13PM on 16th September 2009

    It's the emperor’s new clothes. Every year marketing or ecommerce come out with the ‘next big thing’. Does anyone remember WAP – ‘mobile marketing’s the future, I’ve seen it!’ It has taken five years and even now it’s in its infancy.

    Social media will be a useful tool for marketing, ecomms and corporations in general. Unlike affiliates, I don’t see me making millions out of it.

    It’s a fantastic channel to firstly discover, uncover, listen and then communicate with your audience...but only on THEIR terms.

    As I always say: You don’t walk into a pub; sit at a table of strangers; buy a round of drinks for all and then expect them to become your advocates. What if they don’t like you or find you offensive.  Worse still, sit down and be one of those ‘friends’ we all have: ‘yes, that’s very interesting, but now let’s talk about me.’

    What we need is perspective here. As with all new forms of communication channels, it will take time to really understand how to truly leverage your business within the social arena. At the moment, we are all grasping and learning as we go. Even Erik Qualman is discovering new factors each day!

    PS: Erik. Your Socialnomics book arrived today from Amazon: maybe after reading your usually persuasive text, I will change my mind!

  7. Avatar-blank-50x50 Jeff Paul Scam

    11:48AM on 17th October 2009


  8. SEO Services Expert Company SEO Services Expert Company

    Search Engine Optimization Expert at SEO Services Company

    7:08PM on 21st November 2009

    Social media promotion is the latest fad in SEO marketing.

  9. Avatar-blank-50x50 Videoly

    2:57PM on 23rd November 2009

    Social media promotion is major part of SEO optimization. it cant pass over...

  10. Avatar-blank-50x50 kyle ward

    8:59AM on 21st March 2011


  11. Avatar-blank-50x50 prmarketing

    4:55PM on 17th May 2011

    Providing relevant content is a key to win trust of your target customers which reinforces and strengthens the relationship between both the parties.

  12. Avatar-blank-50x50 Sahet Secol

    5:28AM on 24th November 2011

    It is so easy to forget that our audience is human sometimes, as we sit at our computers and stare at a screen instead of another human being.

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