This is a discussion piece that was born when me and Niclas Strandh, who I collaborate with in workshops about social media and blogging, analyzed what we had experienced and decided to research how thoughts where developing around the financial crisis concerning social media. Our thinking grew to a extended post at JMW as well as a debate-piece in the Swedish marcom-magazine Dagens Media.
The recession hit the world hard this week. It is time to point out that companies can grow during the recession by diverting more of their marketing budgets to social media. Consumer generated media supports one of the core values of being human: the possibility to share values, experiences and standpoints in a constant, ongoing dialogue. Social media has emerged as a technological tool that supports this profoundly human behaviour. No matter of age, gender, geographic location, cultural or social background or political values. Social media cuts through all this. It is our responsibility to help companies embrace this.
We as communication consultants and brand strategists need to be pedagogues and visualize the benefits of social media clearer in the times ahead of us. We need to focus more on inspiring and giving companies the courage to integrate and initiate a dialogue with consumers. Many companies still hesitate. At a time when consumers need to feel that promises are kept and that they are given thorough support in their decision-making a honest and open dialogue with consumers is important and is given by participating in the conversation through social media channels. This is the way to find your invaluable brand advocates.
The map for marketing communication is becoming more and more invalid for every new social media channel there is. The map needs to be re-drawn by us constantly and communicated to CXOs. We are not suggesting that everything should be removed but digital media marketing channels—but the focus must be on building communication starting from the ongoing dialogue. Integration must be more default in marketing choices and will lead to that even traditional media choices will become more efficient, better optimized and thus cheaper.
Undoubtedly, social media carries two great opportunities during depression. Purchasing decisions made by customers in bad times, whether they are in the consumer segment, or in the B2B segment, need even greater decision-making and the need to discuss with each other before making a purchase. The core of social media is based upon exactly this dialogue. The second possibility that social media carries is that it consists of extremely fast and cost-effective tools to be used as support in crisis management.
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