Howling at the moon: an internet meme

But Charlie Balch on the airI (Association of Internet Researchers) mailing list notes the pitfalls of word of mouth marketing. "We need a new term. Viral marketing doesn't fit" says Charlie, referring to a report in the Washington Post late last week. Amazon.com customer reviewers ran hilariously wild with the life-changing powers of a t-shirt featuring three wolves. Customers can be wise to all this "engagement" and "marketing is a conversation" rhetoric. The shirt is so kitsch it's cool to an online audience that appreciates irony. "Anybody, or any group, armed with a Web browser can anonymously game the system and manipulate the marketplace at sites inviting user feedback" says Mike Musgrove in the Washington Post.
Turns out the manufacturer of the Three Wolf Moon shirt isn't all that happy, calling the spate of ironic reviews "a viral assault" in the BBC News, while the art designer Michael McGloin reckons "we'll take ironic fashion any day."

Kiwi & Proud

This week the PR Institute of NZ (PRiNZ) conference, Kiwi & Proud, foregrounded the role of social media and Web 2.0 in the work of PR practitioners, steering toward a theme of how the PR industry can assist Brand NZ. John Bell of Ogilvy PR, a keynote videoconferenced in, was a dynamic start to the day. It’s an exciting and slightly scary world. Enthused about ramping up my activities by finally registering with Twitter and reading more blogs each day, as well as writing more of course, I worry too about where to carve the time from. The excitement so far outweighs the anxiety. Quit moaning, you’ve just got to do it, they say.

Increasingly the marketing and communications functions are blurred, Bell tolled us :)- PR people are now in marcomms. Not sure I'm comfortable with that. The influence of social media is seen for example in computer brand Lenovo, an Olympics sponsor, aggregating blogs and vlogs (video blogs) from 100 athletes at the Beijing Olympics to a Lenovo website: an alternative to TV coverage. Thus, now, brands as media companies…and marketing as a ‘conversation’. Individuals can build a worldwide movement around their identity, and manage it themselves: at “Livestrong”, Lance Armstrong , prolific Twitterer, shows he understands the reach of social media. Buzzwords here are “engagement”, “empowering influencers to take ownership”, “co-creation driving loyalty and advocacy”, “treat new influencers like colleagues.”

As the president of WOMMA, the word of mouth marketing association, Bell was keen to drive home the message that the most trustworthy source for purchase ideas is word of mouth….and because we have what he calls a ‘personal message shield’ (to ward off the bulk of the 3500 messages we are exposed to in one day) high relevance is needed, as well as engagement value, aka “what is the value we can provide people so they will actually give a crap and want to spend time and energy with us?”

Conversation, not just messaging. Manage communities. Look for affinities: read blogs. Practice digital media relations.