I received the following message from a connection through Linkedin. Hello,
My latest position at an ad agency came to a close this week, as the
company went out of business. I am forwarding you my LinkedIn profile
in hopes that you or someone you know may be aware of job opportunities
in advertising, marketing or social media. This request made me think about the “Agency business” and why is might be failing for those unaware.
Advertising agencies are known for the creative skills in creating
images and messages that get people’s attention. They are also known
for creating integrated ad campaigns using every kind of media
imaginable. A lot of talented folks have created some of the best ads
known on the planet.
Then Social Media Disrupts The Process!
There is a clear shift from mass media that creates attention to
conversational media that keeps our attention. The difference is in the
form and context of media, content in every form. You’d have to be
living in a cave not to know how social media is changing market
dynamics for every single industry. The dynamics have flipped from push
to pull as have the thinking behind each underlying methods. Agencies
who do not understand and master the methods will quickly fail to
exist. Why? The anwser is simply because the market is demanding new methods which requires new thinking.
Is The Thinking Old Or New?
Renee Cassard writes “With
social media, the importance of interaction has resurfaced. SM
provides a vehicle in which the local, more personalized business
transaction can be reintroduced into the mix. Previous mandates of
telephone scripts and corporate liability statements have rendered
these transactions dormant in more recent years. The introduction of
social media gives corporations a wonderful opportunity to find someone
who believes in them to represent their company. This is good for
internal morale and for bringing the human element into the mix again.
It engages consumers in more authentic, less scripted conversation.
Mind you, this doesn’t mean a business should overlook the development
of a social media strategy. Quite the opposite, actually. It simply
means that in today’s world, social media gives companies the chance to
value those who work for them and have passion about their company,
products, and what they do. Who better than these people to interact
with your consumer, or former “receiver” turned “sender” of your
company’s message? “
“In the end, simple and classical business interactions are what
lie at the foundations of social media, and ultimately will ensure its
ongoing success. So when a client asks you about the “new” thing –
social media – you might prompt them to consider whether it really is
something scary and new, or something tried and true!”
Renee says it well. The essence of social media is relational rather
than institutional. Relational communications has been the fiber of
human interaction since the beginning of time. What has happened is
that the market, and the thinking behind the market, has gotten away
from relations and chased “tricks of the trade” aimed at getting our attention.
Our attention has shifted back to what is natural, relational and
meaningful. Sometimes going “back to the future” means having to learn
what makes relationships work. While being creative is part of the
equation a meaningful conversation is the entire equation.
Agencies that don’t get this will die a fast death as will
the companies they serve. Maybe agencies need help understanding this.
Most agency web sites do not reflect any understanding of social media.
Most agencies cannot even begin to explain social media.
Most agencies have little experience using social media for themselves
or their clients. That being the case most agencies are in trouble.
What is your opinion?