New Rules of Marketing & PR

Posted by admin on Mar 17, 2010 in Creative, Social Media, SXSW | 0 comments

Presenter: David Meerman Scott, New Rules of Marketing & PR

No one doubts that the rules have changed and social media has made it necessary for businesses to interact with and engage with customers and potential customers.  If companies want to be successful in this new world, Meerman suggests a few principles they’ll have to abide by.

Lose control – Brands don’t just have to adapt and change to their customers’ wants/needs, but they should let their customers help them shape the brand.  It lets them feel most engaged with the brand and makes them more likely to evangelists of your brand.

Be human – Customers are individuals and they want to be dealt with on a one-on-one basis.  They want to deal with a person, not a big faceless corporation, and they want to be genuinely listened to.

Nobody cares about your products except you – People care what they do for them (make their lives easier, better, etc.).  Highlight the benefits and services you provide and don’t use big, fancy, or irrelevant language to talk about them (See The Gobbledygook Manifesto).  Find out the information people are looking for – which you are an expert in – and give them content.  Every brand should be constantly putting out content that illustrates its values and is relevant and interesting to their target consumers (Brand Journalism).

Create triggers that encourage people to share – If people love what you provide them, give them a way to share it with others.  Give them both a method and very subtle reminders to do so.

No coercion required – If people love you, they’ll want to share your message or talk about your brand.  Strive to be the type of brand people want to tell others about – Apple, HP (video), etc.

Stop making excuses – These are the new rules, and the only reasons not to follow them are self-imposed.  It doesn’t matter what your product/service/industry is, anyone can follow these rules.