Below are three theses that really struck a chord with me:
“#12 There are no secrets. The networked market knows more than companies do about their own products. And whether the news is good or bad, they tell everyone.”
#12 reminds me that we as consumers have a voice and, thanks to the internet, it has the opportunity be a loud voice. Good news travels, but bad news travels fast. Sites exist that easily allow users to rate restaurants, professors, and many other goods or services. A company’s identity can thrive or flounder because of this. Doing well is good, but floundering is possible when a company does not respond to feedback or otherwise alienates its community. Take MCI and the NPR story for example.
“#25 Companies need to come down from their Ivory Towers and talk to the people with whom they hope to create relationships.”
One example of what happens when companies realize they are not connected to their consumers occurred after Digg removed a controversial blog entry from their website. The entry contained an encryption key and was removed under pressure from the AACS. Digg also banned several members for posting it. Digg users, in response, staged a mass revolt and posted the key. Digg heard this collective outcry and vowed to never bow to the big guys again. I bet the users of Digg are more loyal now that they know the site operators listen to them.
#86 When we’re not busy being your “target market,” many of us are your people. We’d rather be talking to friends online than watching the clock. That would get your name around better than your entire million dollar web site. But you tell us speaking to the market is Marketing’s job.
Has this ever happened to you: first you email a company’s customer service through the “contact us” link and receive no response. Then, you spend way too long waiting on hold due “the high volume of traffic,” and then your call gets disconnected shortly after a live person greets you. The process is repeated until either your problem is solved or you realize you are helpless. Then, you see a commercial for the company that promotes how happy and friendly they are to the consumer. This experience always makes me want to punch a Care Bear.
The company is using the commercial to project their ideas of how I should feel. Unlike the cybersexually active 16 year-old in Turkle’s Identity on the Screen, the company is so caught up in fantasy that they are ignoring the fact that this is a two-way relationship and I have needs, too. The company has alienated me, and I don’t identify myself as the company’s target market. Honestly, I am not going to tell my friends how great the commercial was, or that they have great marketing. I am instead going to tell my friends that the company has turned me into a threat to the Care Bear community, with the entire species guarding their sensitive tummy symbols. And in my community, that message is more powerful than a smiling model engineered to appeal to 25-34 year olds.
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