Many marketers are addicted to what they think is valuable but what the rest of the organization knows is not.  Case in point: ’social media.’  It’s so important that “it will change everything…” so broad that it includes just about everything and so profound that nothing can measure it.  To infinity and beyond!  Sound familiar?  When it comes to Twitter, there’s no shortage of nonsensical justification for investment.  Yet there’s never been a better time to put poorly thought-out, wasteful marketing habits to bed.  I say start at the top — question the core value system that marketers use.  Twitter provides fertile ground.  CEOs and CFOs must tell marketers “no, that’s not valuable and here’s why.”   It’s time for tough love.  

Most digital marketers believe Twitter to be tremendously valuable although they cannot tell you, concretely, why.  Sound familiar?  It gets more crazy.  Now Twitter is the #1 most important Web marketing initiative this year — bar none.  Why?  Psshaw… do we need an answer really?  I’m afraid we do, Mr./Ms. CMO.  Here’s why I’m continuing to call bullshit on Twittermainia:

Twitter’s value perception is kept high by marketer’s disconnection with (denial of?) the way people actually use it.

No surprise — just like how most brands have no idea, really, how people consume traditional / mass communications media.  The true value of Twitter, for most brands, is endlessly unknown… and it’s best kept that way so far as we’re concerned because that supports the perception of high value.  Just like the old days… but marketers get to claim that it’s shiny, new, digital and relevant to the business.  Why?  Because it’s… well… it’s the Internet silly.

But this doesn’t earn marketers respect in the C-Suite.  So, marketers, please listen up to the following advice.

With every additional person you follow on Twitter the average ‘attention value per followed person’ decreases.

This is simple math.  It’s math that the CFO can do and, hence, you must answer to that.  The number of Twitter followers is not a score — it’s a statistic.   It’s like ‘minutes used on your phone plan’ or ‘number of claimed dependents.’  Why would a marketer treat it as a score — a measure of social media success?

Perhaps because doing so is based on a decades-old system of valuing what we think is real… think is actually happening with customers.   The world of “brand advertising.”  We must dismantle this value system if we’re to survive.

We must stop getting excited about how many followers we’ve managed to corral with such little effort… and stop believing there is value in ‘follower count’ based purely on what amounts to votes.

We tend to believe, “not only are these followers essentially voting for us they’re LISTENING to brand messages.  By golly this is great!  They’re not tuning out, they’re tuning in!”  But here’s the problem.

Most people that follow Tweeters MISS what they’re saying — they’re not listening!

True.  Why?  Due to the volume of tweets and no real time monitoring device.

Your Twitter followers are nearly worthless because they’re not following, nor loyal.

I’ll prove it.  Think about how your company’s followers actually use Twitter.  How you use it.  How your CEO and CFO use it!

• The average follower does not use any real-time tweet monitoring device (they’re not HEARING tweets)
• It’s easy to follow — yet SERIOUS work to un-follow (they look interested but they’re not)

Can you, personally, relate to the above as a Twitter follower?  I can… and I only follow a couple dozen people and use multiple real-time monitoring tools.

Most people that follow brands don’t have serious interest in what they are saying.

Brands often translate follower “votes” into “attentive listeners”.    In fact brands love using that that word “followers” — loyalists!  Right?  Wrong.   They were, one day, curious onlookers — most of which find your tweets rather useless.

On average business Tweeters are extremely self-centered — handing out coupons, talking about their latest blog posts.   Brand marketers will claim these loyalists like that kinda stuff — kinda like when you go to your best friend’s party and he/she won’t shut up about themselves.  ????

The proof they offer?  Dell’s million dollars.  Need more proof that I’m wrong?  Followers remain followers of the brand — so who can argue right?  Wrong.  I’m arguing: Nobody is listening (remember).  Secondly, followers will rarely if ever “un-vote” by un-following.

Rarely will they EVER un-follow ANYONE no matter how annoying.  Why?  They’re just like you — too busy living life to pour through the dozens if not hundreds of people not worth following — like your brand.  They’ll just take the easy way out: abandon Twitter (and most do just that).  This, too, is well documented yet somehow marketers igonore the facts.

I urge marketers to consider thinking more critically and analytically about Twitter and other ’social media’ when it comes to measurement of effectiveness.  Resist faux value terms like “engagement” that revert to simplistic and dis-connected (from business outcomes) metrics like “time spent on site.”

While I’m at it, I’ll call on Andy Sernovitz to consider under-glorifying Twitter.  This is a fruitless appeal I’m sure but here’s a recent example of  the celebration of PF Chang and it’s “awesomeness”.  Let me just say — more power to Kelly Morehead and her experimentation with Twitter.  Less power to the gratuitous glorification of what amounts to be a barely interesting anicdote.

Here’s a guy who’s hard core when it comes to soft selling.Meet Rok Hrastnik, International Web Director for Direct TV Goliath, Studio Moderna (think infomercial / home shopping company Guthy Renker of Eastern Europe).  One day Rok got tired of watching his Web sales just puttering along or — for some brands — dwindling due to competitors intercepting his customers (while on way to making purchase) using search ads.

His response was nothing short of becoming a full fledged publisher to the masses — people who he knew wouldn’t be customers in near term.  His bet paid off – as they began to BUY when he mixed  direct calls to action into his content marketing fold.

Rok is a guy who comes from a world where selling takes 30 minutes.  Think about that for a minute.  Talk about opportunities for customers to tune out!  Rok’s industry (informercials) has mastered the TV-delivered, content-focused sale.  Period.  Now Rok and his crew are mastering the Web — like no other direct tv company I’ve found here States-side.  Listen and learn from Rok, a true innovator and entertainer!

Learn more about how to get started TODAY in content marketing by checking our my Content Marketing White Paper (PDF).

RSS is a means to transport information across the Web — just like how HTTP works with browsers to publish and receive HTML pages.

It’s important to marketers because it can be used to cut costs, increase content-based transactions that lead to purchase, deliver ANY kind of content reliably, enhance search engine optimization and conduct market research.

Who’s the ‘RSS for Marketers’ Expert?

Ok, ok… so it’s not me.  The hands down leading expert on RSS for marketers is Rok Hrastnik, a good friend.  I’ll be publishing a series of “how to” videos, transcripts and audio podcasts with Rok shortly so be sure to subscribe to my RSS feed — you”ll be alerted to its availability instantly.  You can also subscribe via email of course (see the footer of this story).

I’ll publish the full, unedited transcript of Rok spilling the beans on how to apply RSS throughout an organization — including driving sales and increasing engagement with customers inside the marketing discipline.  It’s all material contained in his new, yet-to-be-released book (he’s already written the first book on RSS for marketers!).

Where Can I Get a Good List of RSS Tools?

Here’s one of the best, most comprehensive lists of RSS tools, by category, that can be found today.  Thanks to Christina Laun!  As an example, here are some categories.

Readers: Read your RSS feeds through these helpful programs.
Personalized Homepages (like iGoogle): Make an RSS feed part of your homepage by checking out these great applications.
Browser Extensions: These extensions can help prime your browser to work easily with RSS.
Blog Tools and Plugins: Those putting RSS feeds out there for their blogs can get the most out of these tools.
RSS Directories: Find every kind of RSS feed you could be interested in with these directories.
Mobile Tools: These tools allow you to take RSS on the go with you no matter where you are.
RSS Email Tools: Combine the power of RSS with email using these tools.
Feed Validators: RSS Feed Editors
… and more!

How Has RSS Changed Your Life, Jeff?

Well, the good news is that it has.  Not like having my son, Nolan, of course but it has added to my ability to spend more time with him while commuting to the office.  It’s simple, I use Viigo to read all of my most important news, information and entertainment feeds — everything I read on a daily basis.  It’s all done on my Blackberry.  No more scanning all those piles of email newsletters.  What a feeling it was to un-subscribe from ALL the newsletters — replacing with RSS feeds on Viigo.  If I see an item that’s worthy of my attention I simply email it to myself or my colleagues in a click!

Want to learn more specifics?  Here’s an interview on Entrepreneur Magazine’s eBiz Show.

Links:
Full interview transcript on how marketers can use RSS.
Listen to the interview on how marketers can use RSS.

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This presentation was given to the Business Networking Chicago IT S.I.G on June 16, 2008.

The Web is all about interaction… and interaction forces experience. More than anything else customers are experiencing through their interactivity. Will their experience be fun, frustrating or confusing? As a marketer, the answer is up to you.

Here’s how another company is using video to create experiential marketing that results in customer acquisition and retention. It’s a great example of a best practice in social marketing or what’s being called “consumer empowerment.”

Jeff Jarvis of Buzzmachine.com agrees. The sense of empowerment that consumers receive when participating in a “crowdsourcing” model feeds on what marketers should be taking notice of (and applying!).

Let’s look at how one big company does this: Progressive auto insurance. Watch the video above for this and more examples of how pioneering marketers are taking charge by giving customers unrestricted control over CHOICE — creating powerful bonds that drive brand loyalty.

The key to success in today’s digital, multichannel shopping world is a bold, new mindset. This foundation is rooted in new, non-traditional concepts. In fact, some say these concepts are NOT marketing at all.

Bottom line: This customer-centric framework is being forced by a hyper-connected, always-on interactive ecosystem. Success in this brave new world is about recognizing and ACTING on this shift.

And, yes, sooner or later you’ll need to get in the game at some level! Click the video to learn more.

Back in March, I discussed how experiential marketing is changing the game for Web marketers of all colors. Now that we’ve spent time understanding how and why marketers can make the decision to experiment with social media/marketing campaigns I’m going further.

In the June edition of Target Marketing I uncover the low hanging fruit — what marketers can do TODAY to begin experimenting in social marketing. Interviewed were leading experts including Sam Decker of Bazaarvoice, Brian Clark of GMD Studios and “RSS for marketers” guru, Rok Hrastnik of Studio Moderna (Eastern Europe’s largest Direct TV retailer).

When I challenged him by suggesting that interruptive (traditional) advertising may be on its deathbed Mr. Hrastnik replied…

“I’m working in the most interruptive ad industry of them all. My idea of ‘cool’ marketing would be injecting the latest infomercial directly into the consumer’s vein.”

“Seriously … I can tell you that direct response TV advertising is not only alive but kicking, thriving more and more every month.”

I stand corrected!

Attention Web Marketers:
Intercepting customers during buying processes is no longer enough!

Fundamental elements of the customer/marketer relationship are changing. The Web is inherently interactive and, yes, increasingly social. How customers interact via the Web with your brand is proving to be experiential. Sounds trite but it’s not to be under-stated!

As customer behaviors emerge new marketing practices are needed. Multi-channel retail customer acquisition and retention cannot survive on strategies like affiliate and search marketing alone. What are these new strategies? Some call it “conversational” marketing. Whatever name you give it, this emerging practice area is all about joining in with customers – listening to them and interacting on a more intimate level.

How can marketers accomplish this and what social marketing strategy should be tried and tested first? Watch the above video for answers and stay tuned for Part 3 where we really get revved up with specific case studies and best practices from leading social marketers!