Do you understand today’s hottest business trends well enough to have a point of view? Could you give an answer if asked—let’s say for example’s sake—about the future of consumerism in this increasingly dynamic world? Maybe you’re wondering why you need to understand or have a point of view in the first place.
The answer is that understanding and having a point of view are part of a critical chain reaction that’s happening in today’s world, whether you choose to be a part of it or not—and failing to take part will cost you the success of your business. Understanding leads to an informed point of view, which leads to fresh inspiration, which leads to true innovation—all of which are necessary in today’s increasingly transparent, information-driven, and consumer-informed world in order to continue creating profitable services for us and satisfying experiences for our customers.
Are you ready to lay out a kick-butt plan of attack to optimize your business, based on a solid understanding of today’s consumer, using the hottest and here-to-stay tools, applications and platforms available today? (… without a brain transplant from Steve Jobs, Barry Diller or that brilliant entrepreneur you read about last week in Fast Company?)
Today’s consumers are lusting after detailed information on anything and anyone; which is why millions of websites, blogs, sharing services, social networking sites like Facebook, devices and apps that facilitate instant checking, tracking, alerting, visualizing, analyzing, mapping and reviewing are hotter than ever. In the online world—and increasingly in the offline world—this quest for information represents the single greatest new marketing opportunity since the invention of the sign, and it’s being met by a mix of new technologies collectively called New Media.
Note: New media is a term meant to encompass the emergence of digital, computerized, or networked information and communication technologies.
As more of our society comes to live in the online and on-demand world, their expectations become dramatically altered. Want music? Download it. Need to know something? Google it. Want to tell Susie what Bobby said? Text it. Want to stay in touch with friends and family? Facebook it! Want to share your knowledge? Blog it! Have an opinion to share? Do any or all of the above! The result? An entire new dimension to our everyday world—not confined to the physical constraints of real-world time and distance—enabling real-time publishing, real-time search, real-time reviews and price-comparison for products and services, real-time news, real-time conversations, and more.
The instant information and communication gratification is obvious; and the need to tap into this trend is paramount. To remain relevant, we must move at the speed of the culture, initiating, engaging in, and (when it comes to our brands) controlling the conversations in this new realm where what’s said is visible immediately and to everyone. And we have to it intelligently, with strategies that include but aren’t limited to time-based offers, real-time customer service, and a level of engagement that makes the difference between an interactive and alive brand and a static DEAD one.
I’m certain you already recognize that our customers’ needs and demands have been redefined to the extent that we are now heading in an entirely new direction. The expectation, technologies, transparency, focus on responsibility, need for connection, sense of community, quest for information … those are just a few of the elements creating a transformation from business practices that used to be revered as reliable to a whole new frontier, driven by New Media, where the old rules and old school communication skills no longer apply. But merely acknowledging that it’s time for new rules is not enough.
It’s not just the rules that have changed. It’s the entire game.
A new game calls for new skills and knowledge, and that’s why the 2010 Optimization Summits should be a key element of your transformation plan. There will simply be no better opportunity or environment to develop the skills and knowledge you need to meet the challenges of today’s New Media world. Joining us means that you’ve chosen for your business to survive. But we’ll go you one better … be there and we’ll teach you how to THRIVE.
I’ll see you in Dallas!
P.S. – And my final thought: Regardless of the recession (and regardless of any argument about whether it is or isn’t officially over), going back to ‘business as usual’ is never going to be an option for us again. That’s either a sobering or exciting thought. Naturally, I opt for exciting (as you knew I would).
Internet marketing conference, Social Media Measurement, optimization summits, social media, social media ROI, social-media-marketing, social-media-strategy
