garykoelling

I gave this presentation at Conclave 2009, a conference for radio folks. This was different than most presentations I do because of my enduring fondness for radio - it was personal.

Below the slideshow you will find the script that I read from.

Steve Bendt and I are trying to get straight how what we've learned over the last three years in the world of social technology (bsn , giftag , etc ) can be put to use across more broadly. We've been fiddling around with some thoughts, trying to get it to make sense for our employer - Best Buy. Below is a slide share of where we are topline - each slide has specifics that will be attached.

What if you want to implement an open, social brand strategy ? (They go great together, open and social). Here’s a place to start.

The word, social, usually gets mashed up with another word that tends to steal the show. Like social+network or social+media. So I guess it strikes me that before we even start talking about strategy we should explore the concept of social. What comes to mind? It’s stuff humans do with each other - each other. We’re not social with machines or animals or with plants or rocks. Social happens between humans. This is called a ‘relationship.’ Communities. Clubs. Congregations. Friends. Companions. Buddies. Shared interests. Shared problems. And the glue? Mostly, trust.

Michael Gass ,  who advises ad agencies on how to land new business, wrote “Four Ways Social Media is Changing Advertising Agencies New Business.” I won’t go into all four of them, you can read them in their entirety here . Anyway, three of the four ways seem harmless enough but the fourth one is interesting. But does it square?

Let’s take a look.

   4. The growth of new media mandates agencies participation. Social media is now mainstream, your agency’s credibility is suspect if it isn’t walking the walk, not just talking the talk. I can’t imagine ever advising a client to deal with an advertising, PR, or interactive team that doesn’t get social media. One of the best ways to demonstrate your agency’s participation is to incorporate new media into your new business program.

First, I’m not sure that the growth of new media, presumably social media, mandates agency participation. At least not the agencies I’m familiar with. I say this partly because social media isn’t the kind of media you can buy. Oh, there are plenty of places that will gladly sell you social media, but you are not buying social media, you are buying mass media.

Secondly, I’m not sure social media is mainstream yet. A show of hands. Who’s mom is on Twitter? Okay, now who’s mom has an email account? Interactive yardstick: Email = mainstream.

Third, do not fear the agency (advertising, public relations, interactive or otherwise) who does not get social media. That is, unless they tell you they do. Most of them don’t and many of them won’t for quite some time. It’s okay. Your ad agency should get advertising, which is enough of a stretch for most of them. There is still tons of value in creating great advertising and great brands. Good agencies know how to tell good stories - a timeless currency.

Lastly, if your agency has social media in their pitch deck, ignore it. They want to experiment and you don’t want to volunteer for that. Experimenting is fine as long as it’s cheap and low risk. That’s something you and they can and should do on your own, not on each other. Hell, it’s practically free. Just go to wordpress.com or blogger.com or tumblr.com or twitter.com and give it a whirl. The fact that it’s so cheap is what makes it such a phenomenon - anyone can do it. Here in lies the other reason I don’t believe agencies have a mandate to participate. The ‘social’ in social media means you get to socialize. Like a real person. Like when your agency takes you out for dinner and drinks - kinda.

Anyway, I’m not trying to take the piss out of Mr. Gass, I’m sure he’s a great guy. My point here, rather, is to bring some perspective to all this, to quell the panic a bit. Social media is important and it’s getting more important. But if you try to buy it, you’re just giving away the learning you’re going have to do eventually anyway. Worse, you’re paying for someone else to learn. Just feel your way with it. This is one of those instances where you kinda have to dress yourself. You have to wear your own clothes as ill-fitting as they may be. But if you don’t, if you dip into the agency wardrobe, dapper as it may be, it’ll show. And people will know. They’ll call you out.

Look, this is everyday stuff. Day in and day out. It’s going to challenge and change the culture of your brand. But you gotta stand in there and grow. Remember junior high. That’s what this is - ugly but necessary. You may not get it right the first time. Or the second or third or fourth time. It’s possible your company or your brand isn’t ready yet. Fine. The thing is though your agency can’t do it for you. You just have to try it. Try. And try it again. But whatever you do, don’t buy it.