Back when I lived in NYC, I’d judge my strength on how quickly/easily I could rip up the ValPak envelopes that would plague my tiny mailbox. I couldn’t think of anyone that values getting these random collections of coupons, and even remembered writing a post here on how to stop or manage them.
Fast forward to this week at the Direct Marketing Association 09 conference, where marketers from around the world converge to discuss, launch, announce, align and do all the other fun things that help the market evolve. A stroll through the exhibit floor was as you’d assume – everyone from the most successful hi-tech vendor, to my friends at the direct mailing companies – were all discussing how social media is catalyzing change in their business.
With any industry, some folks are miles ahead and some are still finding out that the race has changed directions.
On the upside, I was excited to see the response to Alterian’s news of starting a council to make guidelines on using data collected over social media, as it was one of the examples of companies using social media content to create something new and valuable for the greater industry. (Disclosure – Alterian is a Bite client). I was even siked to have a chat with Izea – the folks making money on sponsored conversations that both PR and Ad execs are rapidly trying to make a judgment call on.
On the other hand, I wasn’t as excited to hear other vendors make comments like:
Vendor 1:
Person 1: “Social media is just, so, important.”
Person 2: “Yeah!” [high fives]
Vendor 2:
“Spam is really in the eye of the beholder”
[Matt hits palm to forehead]
Key Takeaway
Many of the vendors were agreeing that social media is the death knell for traditional marketing, that we’re in a time of true brand engagement with consumers. Despite this sentiment, the conference was filled with vendors that I don’t understand how they’re surviving: folks that sold massive lists they’ve scraped from the web, vendors that only focused on making branded magnets, and above all – a vendor that said he could give me buying habits on my family based on where I went to school (scary).
Point being – it’s still a MASSIVE land grab in terms of effective marketing on digital/social channels. Vendors will continue to sell whatever the market is buying, so the market needs to demand more tangible results from their marketing. Social media is not the death of marketing, but I hope it eliminates these mass mailers, spam vendors, disruptive advertisers, or whatever else is clogging your inbox.
(Photos via Matt McLernon’s iPhone)