There’s a revolution brewing in the digital world today. Most of us know it in the back of our minds, but we choose to ignore it. Some of us choose to blog about it.
First, some background information. In case you haven’t already heard, Facebook’s got “Presence” [physical objects, when attached with RFID tags, can be transformed...into digital objects] and StickyBits has…well, StickyBits.
Now lets talk about this revolution shall we.
The ‘digital universe’ is changing. Not only are almost all types of media becoming social, but physical objects are also gradually beginning to move into the social realm. You can already add meta data to almost any physical object and transpose it into the digital world. Going forward, you will be able to not only add on layers of information to physical objects, but also use those layers to interact with others.
The end result of this digital revolution will be that items with meta data, items that are social, will end up carrying more value. A used book with the thoughts of the previous reader will be considered more valuable as it will bring together numerous readers who share a common interest in that particular book/topic.
As used and recycled physical objects become more valuable than new ones, there will be a largely positive effect on sustainability! This revolution will be priceless to this planet. Ultimately, this movement will change the way organizations fundamentally do business.
Now that I’ve said what I had to, I want to hear your thoughts on the matter. What do you think? How far are we from such a revolution? Should we already be thinking of newer business models that fit/support such a future?
Marketing Commentary by .
Source: Flickr: Franco Folini "Graffiti on a truck: renuer"
Throughout history, the development of technology has always sparked counter-cultural movements that have looked to subvert popular culture and societal norms.
Many of these movements were inspired by the situationist movement of the 1960s. However, all these movements did have 2 common underlying motives. They all looked to improve personal empowerment and encouraged the building and growth of communities.
One such movement led to the use of print media to create the “Whole Earth Catalog“. This catalog promoted openness, user-generated content (yes!..back in the late 60s) and stood for the democratization of information and collective consciousness. Out of this catalog was born a message board called Whole Earth Lectronic Link (WELL) in 1985. This online message board looked to again subvert culture by attempting to use technological tools (initially built for societal control) to bring about Personal Empowerment and a sense of community. Of course, I don’t need to remind you that the same underlying motives form the foundation of Social Media and the web 2.0 world as we know it.
I therefore strongly feel the success of innovation in the Social Media world will be heavily dependent on whether or not newer ideas take the fulfillment of these very motives/ideals a step further. Yes, I know there are many other factors that will influence success, but I believe that these cultural motives are critical to laying a foundation that can withstand growth.
I think a good example is Foursquare (and of course other similar location based services) because it looks to improve personal empowerment by giving businesses the ability to better cater to their customers’ needs. Are there other examples of innovation in social media that adhere to these two principles? Your input will make this post and my follow-up a lot more interesting.
References: www.virtualcampfire.org
I recently came across Zoocasa.com as I was doing some research on companies that are really finding innovative ways to use social media and build strong customer communities.
Following a model similar to FreshBooks, Zoocasa is slowly building up a very strong online community of its own. To get a better understanding of what sort of a thought process went into some of the marketing activities at the company, I decided to have a quick chat with Saul Colt (Head of Magic at Zoocasa).
I was initially thinking of making this a conversational blog post but looking through my notes made me realize that Saul gave me two critical pieces of advice that I thought I’d rather share with you.
1. You don’t have to treat marketing activities as programs (with a start and an end). Building an affective bond with consumers is a continuous process. A process that doesn’t necessarily have a start and an end but certainly has milestones and interim goals that constantly reassure you that you’re on the right track. Saul likes to refer back to the 4E process that he found very useful while he was at FreshBooks - Execute on Extraordinary Experiences Everyday.
2. Treat your community as a pretty girl – Building a community is sort of like building a relationship. Its a constant struggle, and you always need to pay attention to what your customers are saying. In Saul’s words “sometimes you need to spice things up a bit, and shave that beard”!
Here’s one of Saul’s presentation’s from the Zoocasa blog. Enjoy!
Marketing Commentary by .
Sep 10
28
Online, identity is king.
Identity is the single most critical factor governing our behaviour online.
Source: Flickr User: DaveBleasdale
In fact, identity is so important that we tend to consume, create and share content that allows us to build and then communicate that identity to the outside world. For example, I may identify myself as a bit of a punk, as someone who goes against the norms of popular culture. I may go nowhere without my converse shoes, even if I’m wearing a suit. I may live a modest lifestyle, practise yoga religiously and listen to rock n’ roll music. All these behavioural patterns give me an identity. And I will find ways to communicate that in the online space through the things I share – tweets, pictures, status updates on Facebook, blog posts, etc.
Identity is king. And organizations who’re looking to build highly engaged, self-sustaining communities of their own, need to understand this more than anyone else.
For organizations, I see three critical things to keep in mind before venturing into the online community space.
First, making sure you understand identity in the context of your brand. Ask yourself the question: If I were to build a community of my most passionate customers/prospects, what would they identify themselves as? Would there be a sense of belonging – to a common purpose, cause or role in society? When trying to answer these questions, you may realize that you probably don’t have a strong enough understanding of your own brand identity. And that’s fine. It just requires you to take a few steps back in the process and lay some groundwork.
Second, the identity you define must be broad enough to allow people to relate to it and also form sub-communities within. For example, Converse Shoes may have a community that brings together people who are heavily influenced by punk and DIY culture. Since this foundation is broad enough, it would provide enough room for people to congregate around certain areas of interest and form sub-communities within the overarching Converse community. So you might have groups of audiences converging around libertarian political sentiments and also have groups converging around more liberal attitudes. And while these may seem as quite distinct camps, they are all brought together by a broadly established set of shared beliefs and values.
Third, giving your community the ability to communicate identity to the outside world. We all enjoy being a part of communities. We enjoy standing out in a crowd and we enjoy having a sense of purpose. But the loop isn’t complete unless we inform others of our identities, of our beliefs. The easier you make communicating identity (typically in the form of content) to the external online world, the more your chances of continued success.
References:
A semiotic approach to online communities: Belonging, interest and identity in websites
Identity in Online Communities: Social Networking Sites
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