If you work in marketing communications, every day can be exciting, challenging and somewhat scary because the landscape is evolving so quickly and what used to work really well not too long ago, doesn’t seem to anymore.
I embrace the changes because there’s a a fantastic energy to creative disruption and it’s turned us all into lifelong learners. And personally, I like that the expression ‘because that’s how it’s always been done’ has lost its power and meaning. Nothing’s on the tip of our tongues anymore. We’ve outsourced our memories and knowledge to Google.
Here’s an overview of what I talked about at Social Media Weeek Toronto in my Social Media Barometer session.
New generation gap
There’s a clash of generations in the workplace. Boomers are still in charge, reluctantly passing the torch to GenX. And yet Millennials have another view and see things through a different lens – Google glass perhaps. Many Millennials don’t think about traditional media at all when they search for information and news. They rely on social networks. They’re outlet agnostic. And that’s where we all seem to be heading.
21st century moguls in waiting
Wide screen televisions don’t seem to be big enough anymore. We need a second – or third – screen to keep up with the commentary, behind the scenes and the shows themselves. When it filed for its IPO, Facebook said 85% of its revenues came from advertising . YouTube offers production deals to professionals and amateurs. And Twitter’s heading to an IPO and gobbling up companies that can help them sell and demonstrate the ROI of promoted posts.
The old big three used to be ABC, CBS and NBC, now we have a new big three Facebook, Google/YouTube and Twitter, with LinkedIn in the role of Wall Street Journal and Pinterest as Life, the specialty network.
It’s digital first
Meanwhile, many traditional media are adopting a digital first approach and leaving print behind, including the world’s oldest newspaper. And yet some PR folks still regard the news release as the ultimate answer. They don’t realize the question has changed.
What’s the future bring?
I’m going to focus on three things:
1. Strategy – Lead with creativity. Think beyond the not one-off and figure out how to build engagement over time. Understand the metrics and what catches on and always be ready to adapt.
2. Training – Learn and then teach. There’s an opportunity for us to be more like management consultants – that is, listen, train and then step back and offer counsel on both the strategic and tactical fronts.
3. Content – In a world where community management is the new PR, start thinking like a publisher and a publicist. Our stories should entertain, educate and engage. Whether we like it or not, we’re all in showbiz!
If you’re interested, here are the #smwbarometer Twitter comments and my presentation on SlideShare.
What are your ideas about where we’re heading and how we get there?
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