When marketing was born it really was just selling… and that worked then. Then things got sexy. Advertising became the opium. It told us how we should feel; how we could improve; and how we could be popular. Then people figured out that brands weren’t gods… that they were corporations run by guys in suits. So then, marketing went guerrilla…
Agencies told their clients it was all about disruption. That they should ambush their customers with marketing messages. But who wants to be ‘ambushed’ by anyone, let alone someone trying to sell you something?
Today the media is in the hands of the people… sharing information and opinion on brands, publicly and powerfully.
So now, the smart brands talk to people. They keep in touch. They listen. They react. They ask what will make peoples lives just a little bit better…
That might be an app here; a free ticket there; some entertainment over there…
Sure there are companies still telling us we should be this or live that, but that doesn’t bother most of us, because most of us don’t even notice.
Now the smart brands are invited in.
They become incorporated. And, that’s a good thing.
