Social media is not a fad, and is linked to the coat-tails of exponential growth of media/product/information distribution of internet marketing. Traditional marketing and distribution methods of the 20th century industrial age just can't compete with the significantly more cost effective marketing/supply chain through social media, internet marketing, coupled with a simplified distribution model. With ~30% of a product's price being advertising, and another ~25% being supply chain related costs (inventory, planning, overhead, transport, 'brick/mortar' stores, etc.) associated with traditional marketing/distribution, social media & internet marketing have a HUGE competitive advantage in cost and its reach globally. I believe companies that evolve to this new paradigm will lead the way. Ones left behind will not likely survive.

Randy Eck
Sr. Partner at ECKcellent Business Services

Social media is here to stay ...but I wonder how will it evolve? We're in an infancy stage where things are happening in what I will call the "matchstick" method. This is where a little spark can instantly flare up, then settle down to a flame that burns down slowly. There is no new fuel ... and another matchstick has been struck somewhere else diverting attention to the "newest and greatest."
I think two things have to come together. First, the content has to be not only engaging, but worthwhile. Second, as we are already floating in "information overload" social media has to grow out of the toy phase with endless blogs of nothing.
Donna -- fuel your content and continue to be engaging!

Shouldn't technology be like sipping a fine wine? Sip by sip, take in all of the subtle nuances. Unlike hourly tweeting, where you mix it with Sprite and guzzle until you can't stand up anymore.


Rich Whitley
Executive Leadership and Business Development

Of course! The internet is like a big maul. The 10's of millions that are reachable thru social media networking are all like visitors to the maul. Who wouldn't want to hand out a flyer to as many of these visitors as possible. The cost effectiveness far outperforms any other medium, and drawing one to your site offers a great presentation. Its like the introduction of the automobile. Who uses a horse and buggy today?

Reuven Shefigal
General Manager at WiZkidZeMark

Social media is a commitment, but should be treated like an ongoing campaign as well. You need the mind thought and frequency of "commitment" but a strategy, goals and tracking of a marketing campaign.

As far as the "shift" from traditional marketing to social media solutions, I would say that this is primarily a dollar shift. I don't believe traditional marketing will be phased out, just less money will be spent on traditional marketing and more on online marketing.

Zack Hanebrink
Internet Marketing Professional

I think there is a foundational change happening, but it doesn't come down to where the dollars will be spent or whether one tactic will replace another. It comes down to how people want to receive information and how they wish to act upon it when they get it. People have gotten more selective about the information they choose to let in... social media is part of this. I choose who I follow (who can tell me anything) on Twitter, who I connect with or become a fan of on Facebook, or LinkedIn, etc. I choose to hear only a small portion of what the thousands of companies on any of those platforms are saying to me. I choose who I want to hear from, how I want to hear from them, and when I want to receive the information all by how I employ social media. And I am one among millions gathering info this way. Traditional media isn't going to *poof* go away... but it will have to adapt what, when and how it offers information. The phenomenon of choice... the lure of some control over our digital environment and infoscape... isn't going to go away, either.

Mandy Vavrinak
Principal, Crossroads Communications, LLC

Depends on the industry. I don't see it as a shift. I see it as an addition to. You still need to create the data sheets, white papers, articles, news releases and web content. You still need to do webcasts and email blasts. You still need to attend events (maybe on a smaller scale). But now you are using social media marketing to point to these traditional marketing activities. Marketing is definitely in a state of change.

Jim Walery
Business Consultant for IT-related Companies in Orange County, CA including marketing, sales and operations services

The whole social networking and marketing thing can become addictive. Look at the 20 somethings. I have found that 30 minutes a day and thats it, is all you need. I scan the new post on a few different networks and post when I have something of value and thats all I can squeeze in and still be productive in my business. CNN posted a good piece on Facebook today. Nobody really cares what you ate for breakfast.


Sandy Murowchick
Realtor at Windermere Real Estate, Project Manager

Remember when email marketing delivered so much ROI, it was as easy as falling off a log? Then came the competition, web sites, SEO, PPC, blogging, etc. And the SPAMMERS, probably did more than the competition to dampen the luster of email marketing.

I see the ROI of social media peaking and then beginning a decline, as competition sets in--not to mention the SPAMMERS. Already I belong to about 10 social networks. I find I can only be active on about five at a time. So I'm at the point that a new network will have to present a very compelling case to get me to join. This saturation phenomenon raises the marketing costs for the networks themselves. Classmates.com and Plaxo spend a bundle marketing to me, but I don't spend much time on those networks because I am saturated (timewise). I imagine if they were to launch a MAJOR, MAJOR ad campaign such as what Facebook and Twitter have done, I might ditch one of my active accounts and becme more active with them. But such an ad campaign would lower their ROI (even more).

I also run several social networking sites ( a business site, an alumni site and a few others). The sites started out with a bang, growing 20-30% /month. Then members who were on Facebook began to lure members away from my site over to facebook. Activity on my site has slowed to a trickle. If I want to compete, I'll have to invest in better content, and marketing technology to make my site more interesting than Facebook. That lowers my ROI, and I've chosen to not do it.

The winners in this game right now are the fence sitters, who are able to siphon off traffic from existing networks, without investing in social media infrastructure. I question how long that will last in a capitalist system where investors eventually need to show a profit, or pull the plug....

Social Media is clearly a commitment. If done properly, you'll spend huge amounts of time, money and other resources to forge relationships with people. It would be hippocrasy to drop the activity (and the relationships) once you became bored with social media, or found it too difficult to monetize the relationships.

Just like any other trend, people tend to rush in headlong without having thought it through. That means there'll eventually be a shakeout, evolution, or possible revolution...(ouch!)

My point is: social media can be quite powerful and effective if applied in the right scenarios. Novices should work with coaches or consultants, so they don't do more damage than good. Social media is not a panacea for all the challenges of marketing. There are cases where social media may not be the best approach at all. So I advise my clients to not do social media because everyone else seems to be doing it, and don't do it without first developing a well-heeled strategy to carry them through over the long haul.

Social media is a big commitment, not to be undertaken without careful consideration.


M. Dwayne Richards
Internet Consultant and Marketing Executive; Cofounder, e-Prime Marketing Solutions, Inc.

Great conversation! No question that we all need to be playing in a big and smart way in Social Media. It's a lot different than push marketing that says..."register for our event" or "you don't want to miss this tradeshow".

With Social Media, you want to do very little selling. Instead, arm your loyal followers with useful information that helps them spread the word on why to come to your event to the people that trust them, for you. We need to create messages that are easy & interesting enough to share.

Marketing segmentation and creating targeted messaging is as important as ever. If you have an army of loyal followers and equip them with messaging and information that helps make them look like a thought leader, you'll be rewarded by having them spread the word for you.

Do you know who the most influential people in your industry are? I bet the faces have changed over the past 8 months quite a bit.

Sandy,
I wish I could say that I only spend 30 minutes a day on LinkedIn. In fact, given that I have several discussions on different groups and I feel compelled to respond or participate in those discussions, I end up spending a LOT of time on LinkedIn. However, it has also become one of my best relationship building tools. We have found several new customers through LinkedIn Groups. It is much more useful to our organization that Facebook or Twitter.

I still think there are some LinkedIn navigation adjustments that could be made. For example, one very simple idea - give me a view of my discussions across all groups. It would make it much easier to monitor and respond rather than having to go to each Group.

Love your CNN message. I might like to dialogue with you, but I agree that I don't really care what you had for breakfast.

As social media become the cosmic mint for social currency - time, attention, reputation, relationships and credibility - they justly deserve a place in the marketing mix.

And oh, yes, there's the ROI thing - - not a good way to lead the discussion, but if you need to justify your actions in wading into social media, below I cite just one closed-loop example of how it works that may satisfy the cash-conscious among us.

~

ROI Example:

My company signed on to sponsor a conference run by a media house. I negotiated so that for every registered attendee generated from my promotional activity - predominantly via social media channels and other "birds of a feather" networks - we would receive a credit toward our sponsorship fee. Result: we wiped out the sponsorship fee by attracting event attendees from within our community AND outside it, consequently expanding both our community and that of our sponsor.

~

Before the stampede of laptop keys (emails to event producers) begins, first consider: have you first built up the bank account of social currency (relationship) with your event producer to warrant broaching the subject? Goal alignment (mutual win/win) is key.

No doubt this enterprising group can come up with other creative ideas for re-formulating the currency exchange - financial and social. Love to hear about your experiences!

All the best,

Ed


Ed Alexander
Director, Client Development NA at Cura
twitter handle: EdA2day
linkedin.com/in/EdAlexander
curasoftware.com

I have been following this dynamic discussion and must tip my hat to the bright observations expressed. There is a point to be made. Whether its social media, blogs, youtube, ezine, adwords, adsense, SEO/SEM, stumbleupon, aweber, masterminds, pingfm, affiliates, etc, the fact is that technology is developing at a rapid pace. Technology has an enormous influence on behavior and perspective. The internet arena has stolen the show, drawing unprecedented attention from all parties involved, the communications industry, consumers and marketers. Traditional means and mediums have already begun making adjustments.
From the corporate boardrooms, down to the local neighborhood shop, the tools that the internet tecnological renaissance affords are worth their weight, and getting to know the how and what applies to your business model, will develop into one of the biggest and fastest growing service-industries in history.


Reuven Shefigal
General Manager at WiZkidZeMark
for BRAIN $TORMING

Social Media is neither a commitment nor a campaign, it is a tool. It can be used to do its designated job. If its part of a marketing campaign, I would hope it includes commitment to the campaign, not to the social contacts per se. The problem with salads, is that if you want to pick just tomatoes, you feel uncomfortable if others are watching. Well, with internet, no one is watching and everyone is watching. Take the tomato, leave the onion, and try to draw other tomato lovers to you.

Reuven Shefigal
General Manager at WiZkidZeMark

You can hate them or love them, online communities are here to stay and will have a big impact on the consumer behavior. Social Media started as a medium for people to connect but as the communities grew in size, companies started to use it to increase their brand visibility and connect directly with the consumers. Since this platform provides a possibility of 2-way communication, it is a double edged sword. The companies can, if used with reasonable sense, get great feedback of different options but at the same time they must be prepared to hear the issues related to fx customer care being faced by consumers. Every company should analyze – or at least consider, its situation before deciding its social media behavior. What should be important is to have a social media strategy as part of the communication platform. Even no participation is a strategy if made out of informed choices. Many companies made the mistake of ignoring the power of blogs and social media or fail in trying to use the social media due to lack of social media understanding as 2-way communication.

Brian Gjerstrup
Experienced executive Interim consultant at XLENT. Core.; Telco, Mobile, Internet, Media/ Content, IT.

Inspiring discussion. I see a general theme in the comments that indicate to me this exceptionally fast growing rather unstable bubble may burst. Can't help but think of the dot.com bubble, and how history tends to fundamentally repeat itself. Social networking and internet marketing will stabilize with a few major players, and secondary branches. I also agree with authors indicating a one-one marketing revolution utilizing technological advancements of today. People need to think ahead, and not about what successful model to emulate from 10+ years ago.

Randy Eck
Sr. Partner at ECKcellent Business Services

Traditional marketing will always be needed, the times are changing though and innovations in technology are leading towards different ways that people communicate and interact, which leads to new methods of marketing. This is why there is a shift and it will continue to develop as the channels open up more. I agree that it's more of a commitment. You can set up a project but you have to dedicate the time and effort for progress when the reality is it's difficult to judge. It's a complete mindset that doesn't have an end date.

Craig Kessler
Marketing Director at iSquare Inc.

Just this spring I attended a Chamber of Commerce workshop and one of the speakers stated, that in 10 years from now, 80% of all business will be conducted via technology units that you can carry in the palm of your hand. The desktop computer will be gone and people will carry and use their computers anywhere, like a cell phone. As a result, he especially emphasized, that learning and incorporating Social Networking into your business was an absolute must, in order to stay in the game!

As I see it, the past has been about developing excellent eye contact, social graces, and genuine caring in your face-to-face selling.

Now it is developing the voice and sincere written content to build quality connections.

Thanks for your great topic! Diane

Jim points out a key element in a brand's efforts in social media: "You still need to create the data sheets, white papers, articles, news releases and web content. You still need to do webcasts and email blasts. You still need (events)..." This is what Content Marketing is about -- providing customers relevant information, education, entertainment, and inspiration. Even if it does not mention your product (or at least not in a sales-y way-- that would be advertising), Content Marketing builds engagement and trust, so customers return to you again and again for solutions.

Why is this key when discussing a 'Great Marketing Shift?' Simply because the shift has occurred in the Brand:Customer relationship, with customers playing the lead role in the relationship, that of participant and not passive 'targets.' Social media is a revolution where customers take the initiative to gather 'round the campfire together to discuss your brand with you. Content marketing, then, is the stories that you tell, what you bring to the picnic. Engaging customers with content marketing is the meat of the social media discussion.

Enough mixed metaphors -- Viva le Revolution!


Keith Wiegold
Chief Content Evangelist
Nutlug Content Marketing
keith@marketingcontentstrategy.com

Social Media is here to stay. Like the internet, social media is changing the way we communicate, market, sell and conduct business. It is fueling a global shift in paradigm that will continue to grow and evolve in the future.

Smart companies will realize this is happening with or without them. Customers are talking about their products and services every day so it is worth their time to participate in the conversation.

But traditional marketing rules are not effective in this arena. Social Medial is NOT about blasting an unsolicited message at the masses. Effective Social Media marketing is about identifying the best channels to attract their target market, providing value and engaging them with relevant timely information, which leads to higher conversion rates and the best possible ROI.

Like face-to-face relationships, the KEY to effective Social Media Marketing, lies in a companys' ability to form RELATIONSHIPS with people.

Bev

Beverly K. Garvin, CEO
Urban Interact, Inc.
Launching Sept 09
urbaninteract.com

I don't necessarily see a shift, rather an additional medium in which to market products and services - a venue where, for the first time, consumers can interact with the business in a non-threatening environment.

A smart organization will effectively integrate traditional marketing with online media and close the gap between cyberspace and reality.

Living in New York City, I think about taking the train to and from the office. Without transit ads in the car, there would be absolutely nothing to look at. "Straphangers" are almost forced to pay attention to advertiser messages. If these same advertisers would take this momentum and enter blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo, YouTube, etc., their messages would go viral and secure the seventh impression it takes to make a sale.

Traditional media is here to stay, but it can be strategically used in tandem with on-line social media to produce buzz, start discussions and further develop brands.

Jason Vincik
Marketing Communications Consultant

I’d like to call it, “Getting back to the front porch” on a larger scale. Yes, ladies and gentlemen we are again communicating. This is the element of communication where we are able to focus on the task at hand rather than how a person postures themselves to society. We’ve gotten back to where we are able to ask our neighbors for help again. Isn’t that nice? You ask a question and all your neighbors(linkedin members) want to offer assistance. And when you look at them, they are always smiling ϑ. That smile is permanently stuck on the faces posed on each profile. And those are perceived as real smiles, “Not Fake Smiles”, right?

With this relatively new social media channel, we are able to escape the humdrum of the people we work with (that never talk to us), while now picking and choosing those we wish to be influenced by or attempt to influence. We are able to talk about things that make a difference in life. Even if you are not an executive, what you say still might have the opportunity to be captured as intelligent (Not to say, that’s the case for me). Lord knows we don’t always get acknowledged in the work place for our efforts.

Because of what the mass media has done in taking us away from our neighbors because of blowing up a few little stories about not knowing our neighbors. You hear those words “Well, he/she was always nice to me and my family, I would never think he/she would do something like that”, and this has put fear in many of people making them afraid to talk to one another. Relatively speaking the ratio is very small but the impact is large. This new social media allows us to get to know each other again and rediscover the nice people once more. Isn’t that nice? Hi, I'm Ken...

Imagine, we might get full circle and start shaking hands again.

Ken Ables
National Solutions Consultant at Professional Computing Resources-Technology Management Software

I definitely see a huge shift towards social media. There was a discussion about this recently that you might want to check out.

I agree with Richard - it's definitely a commitment. I tell my clients that social media is where it's at these days. However, they can't just disregard traditional marketing and PR either.

Jason, that is SO true. If these advertisers jumped on board (literally ha!)social media marketing tactics, they would be able to hit a mass audience (as opposed to just the "straphangers").

I also advise my clients that social media isn't an insta-fix when it comes to their marketing/PR. They need to brand themselves and win people's trust via social networks. My biggest pet peeve in SMM is when people tweet the same boring message over and over and sounds like spam. Then they get mad because their tweets didn't help them make a sale. Many companies jump on board but they don't know HOW to use social media to their advantage - I call it "social media throw up" - blasting out the same messages that gets lost in cyberspace. Like any marketing message, social media needs to be targeted and strategies put into place before you begin..

I don't think "traditional" media is here to stay. If you're talking traditional mediums such as print, newspapers are folding right and left across the country. Everything you need to know, find, research, etc. is online and right at your fingertips. Unfortunately, you don't need to pick up a magazine or newspaper to find current news and information - just pick up your I-phone or Blackberry from anywhere and it's right there.


Therese Pope
Zenful Communications
Copywriter and Marketing Consultant

Therese - I agree with you about newspapers and other printed media. However, other traditional media, such as billboards, transit ads, and especially tangible collateral such as brochures, posters, handbills and fliers will always be necessary components in advertising. Without these materials, you are relying ONLY on the Internet, when, in fact, we should be hitting the consumer in every possible dimension, grabbing every impression available.


Jason Vincik
Marketing Communications Consultant

Jason, Aw, I was thinking traditional media in the "news" sense (that's the writer in me). I definitely agree with you about tangible collateral and traditional advertising.

Marla, that's interesting. I was just discussing my client's e-newsletter vs. print newsletter with her. She's a tax consultant and it sounds like her clients don't respond to her print newsletters, but she gets feedback from her e-version.

Therese Pope
Zenful Communications
Copywriter and Marketing Consultant

I agree with Jason that you need a combination of traditional and new media for effective marketing. In fact some say that since e newsletters are so common, when people get the printed version in the mail they may be more likely to look at it.


Marla Seiden
President at Seiden Communications Inc.

Bob,
I think the first shift was personal communications to digital communications. Instead of sending you a letter, I sent an email. This change was subtle since it didn't replace the way communications to the masses was handled. Then technology started to design ways to conduct two way communications, no longer were websites just brochures, but now the community could give feedback. The current Great Marketing Shift is about who owns the community message and how that message is deliverable, utilizing the latest tools to create a viral path.

What threatens the face to face market, is not these communications give solid reason for community to skip the face to face interactions. If marketing managers can prove that a webinar or other inbound marketing campaign is more cost effective that getting on a plane and connecting with a limited number of customer prospects, then corporate event marketers are going to reduce their show participation.

I have heard the adage that wherever you find three customers gathered together, the suppliers will come. If three customers are gathered together on an online community, the suppliers will show up.

Rich,
It truly is the evolution of social media that holds the promise and excitement of things to come. If this is where we are today with these tools at this early in development, what innovation is still to come. Whether some solutions die out or others flare up, the continued change will greatly impact the way we do business. As long as we are lighting many new matchsticks, the path of evolution will keep moving forward.

I agree that content will still need to be king. As to your second point, I think Don Henley did a great job of describing the challenge:

I don't think the solution to "information overload" will be the reduction of the noise, but rather the better solutions to filter the noise. Email spam has not gone away, but my inbox has done a much better job of giving me the messages that are valuable to me.

I have never seen an analogy comparing social media to getting plastered. But I will drink to that.

Jason,
Doesn't it ultimately become a trade-off for traditional marketing? There is a hard cost associated with most marketing components such as billboards, transit ads, brochures, posters, handbills and fliers. This collateral is expensive in comparison to social media solutions that are 'free'. In the past, social media did not have enough eyeballs to warrant the effort but as it becomes more mainstream, brands are rushing to harness the power of this new marketing channel.

Granted, I do not buy into the hype that social media is free. It does take time and resources to plan and execute quality content - which is still the king. Yet, since brand participation is becoming more important in these communities, it does seem that we are seeing a shift of brand focus as social media becomes a viable way to promote products and services.

Recently RD Whitney, CEO of Tarsus Group which is a very large conglomerate owner of face to face marketing brands, described how his organization has decided that the value of publishing companies has decreased given the expectation that traditional marketing will become less and less effective. You can see that video here: webcastgroup(dot)com/client/start.asp?wid=0840805094787

I have also recently enjoyed the YouTube video (youtube(dot)com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8 ) making the rounds that opens with the question "Is social media a fad" and goes on to provide some very compelling stats on the emergence of social media IN PLACE of traditional media. One very interesting stat that is shared is that 24 of the major 25 newspapers are in decline.

So I think I disagree with your statement "Traditional media is here to stay" but rather suggest only the components of traditional marketing that can be modified to become of strategic value to the digital brand evolution will continue to be utilized in the marketing mix.

My observation is that there's a paradigm shift towards social media networks as it's made marketing strategies easy and cost effective to use. The migration from conventional forms of marketing is undoubtebly being encouraged for new advertising and branding awareness as they have the ability to reach a much larger audience.

My opinion...it's a commitment.


Richard Beazley
AttainResponse Reseller - Email Marketing System