A control freak’s guide to social media influence

March 25, 2009 |

Losing control is a primary reason stated by brands who are unwilling to open themselves up to the conversation - and a major reason why most continue to use social media as little more than a brochure on the web.

In traditional marketing and brand management you set out the position you want to take, the message you want to get through and then you put it out there. You feel in control because you've lined up your one-way communications and in a vacuum everything appears to line up.

Combine this with your brand tracking research, which abstracts the consumer response, and you create a feedback loop where your marketing activities and your market research self-reinforce the illusion. And yet under these circumstances you have, and have always had, precisely zero control over what people think and how they will respond to you.

The reality is that great branding has always been about influence and not control - influencing consumer choices and desires in a manner conducive to your goals and their satisfaction.

Get the full story at Mashable

Latest Industry News

Storytelling that drives direct hotel bookings
25 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

Yahoo! TimeTraveler: a travel app based on Flickr images
25 May, 2012 | Online Travel

TripAdvisor’s City Guide launches 30 new destinations
25 May, 2012 | Online Travel

Optimizing your hotel’s distribution strategy by channel
25 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

Focus in lodging recovery has turned to pricing
25 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

How to use discounts in online marketing
25 May, 2012 | Online Marketing

Social and mobile impact on travel sales ‘overhyped’
24 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

Mobile travel searches most often related to transportation
24 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

Google updates travel research library
24 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

8 ideas for improving your hotel’s Facebook timeline presence
24 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

Mobile marketing small but growing
24 May, 2012 | Online Marketing

Advanced social media - amateurs and agencies need not apply
24 May, 2012 | Online Marketing

The change in hotel search
23 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

Can Hertz shake up car sharing?
23 May, 2012 | Online Travel

Travel forecasts predict summer gains, fall uncertainty
23 May, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

E-Mail Newsletter


Visit our sponsors: