Instead of using social media to find new ways of basically selling chocolate bars to people (aka advertising), shouldn't the power of these wonderful tools be used for something good instead?
Obama used social media to mobilise a whole generation of people. This proves that the infrastructure can provide a great deal of momentum that cannot be stopped. And the more people that are connected, the more feasible it is.
Imagine using Twitter and other social media for:
* Starting an elite university for everyone
* Finance a microcredit system for the third world
* Starting direct-democracy movements
* Igniting resistances and revolutions, and overthrowing regims
When everybody is connected to everybody, the only thing that's required is will, and the only limitation is the imagination.
What it takes is something interesting, valuable, useful, inspiring...what gives people something to talk about...something that spreads. Or, I agree with you, social media is nothing by another channel to advertise through.
I would be interested to know how you would use Twitter to starting an elite university for everyone (which seems an interesting contradiction in itself);)
You bring up an important point when you say that the "infrastructure can provide a great deal of momentum that can not be stopped". This is a fact. But this requires that brands learn to become comfortable with seeding their idea/belief/cause into culture and accepting that it will spread without their direct control.
Posted by: fredrik sarnblad | Monday, February 23, 2009 at 02:38
Interesting, valuable, useful, inspiring... > perhaps it's about finding the ultimate insight, like "change" (people like change, the opposite is undesirable). Starting with basic needs like freedom, democracy, equality is a good start.
The internet has 1 billion people. Facebook has 150 million people. Twitter has even less. Things might get interesting when these figures multiply into significant majorities.
Elite university: content already exists today - MIT has its OpenCourseWare and iTunes has a University section with lectures from ivy league schools. But these are digital copies of an analogue world. And they are not widespread, because there's something lacking: interaction. Social media can provide the missing link of interaction between teachers and students and between students – dialogue and discussion is one of the key parts of academic education.
I think elite (knowledge) is a compelling term because it implies democratisation.
Control: I think the only way for a brand to accept the loss of control is honesty. Honesty in product, communication, the way it conducts business. Because then it has nothing to fear.
Most brands are uninteresting topics for most people to converse about, and I think this should be respected. You can't make shit shine.
Posted by: Leon | Monday, February 23, 2009 at 08:52
Social media is surely more intresting from a democratic, political, educational - and entertaining - point of view. As almost all other type of media channels. And I think that it, as all other media channels, is mostly used for those purposes. But since we are in the selling-chocolate-bar-business that's how we look at it. And thats how we should use it as well. When it is possible. I don't think theres any future for brands trying to act as anything else than providers of products in these channels. I don't want Nike to give me cooking advice - I want them to make som kick-ass trainers that I want to buy and help me telling the world how cool they are. But there is a little difference in how Nike can do that in the "social media channels" than in other channels.
Posted by: Petter Janbell | Tuesday, February 24, 2009 at 16:00
I think that we are in the ideas-that-can-sell-anything-business. :) Not only chocolate, but anything that will make people happier. Droga5s Tap Water Project is a good example of how the same chocolate-selling creativity can be used for other things. Planning for good is another.
On the role of brands you are absolutely right.
Posted by: Leon | Tuesday, February 24, 2009 at 21:18