Alan Moore has posted an exceptional article at Masternewmedia.org. In Brand Experience Replaces Broadcasting: Online Communities And User Engagement Are The Access Keys, Moore covers plenty of ground, all of it compelling for anyone interested in media, marketing and or advertising. The following paragraphs, at the end of the piece, offer an excellent take-away:
The revolution of engagement is built upon the power of the meritocracy of ideas, and the strategic combinations of different media to propel that idea into the world. But more fundamentally than that, it is about connecting large or small communities with engaging content to a commercial or social agenda.
Rather than boiling everything down to a unique selling proposition, engagement marketing is able to create bigger ideas that emotionally engage its audience. Rather than focus on the single proposition that would result in a manufactured communication strategy, engagement marketing is built upon the fundamental notion of shared and co-created experience, something which ‘interruptive’ communications cannot do.
If as a brand you are not also a provider of a valuable experience – go home – hang up your boots and retire. In this new world the key to commercial success is to make your customers successful – understand your customers needs – involve them – engage them – develop strategies that by holding their attention willingly, you can also have a commercial relationship
As a practitioner of cross-platform engagement strategies – I see more and more and more requests for ‘big ideas’ – cross platform strategies. Terms used are of engagement, creative content strategies, which we have advised on a few. Customers you see, embrace the world holistically – funnily enough where-as we marketers like to chop chop chop, everything down into little tiny pieces.
IF ONE THINKS THAT AT THE POINT OF PURCHASE YOU HAVE JUST MADE THE FIRST STEP – WHERE DOES THAT TAKE YOU?
Remove the notion that marketing is ‘adversarial’ and you start to get into a really interesting place – that can be tailored and enhanced by new digital technologies – one in which you can create and co-create value in so many ways.
Customer base is replaced with customer community – all brand interaction should deliver an experience that actively links customers, media and brand in relevant and meaningful ways.
Brand experience replaces broadcasting in its broadest sense.
It is these shared, co-created experiences available to consumers online that we in the bricks and mortar world need to somehow embrace. The MySpace generation are enjoying creating this thing and one only has to see how they wield their power over the ‘owners’. The generation wants more control than the traditional retail offers today. Just as eBay has trained people to negotiate and be prepared to wait.
Moore’s message on engagement resonates on a variety of levels.