A comment on comments

Marketing types, and I’ll generously include myself in this group, like to talk about ‘the conversation’ and ‘the dialogue’ between consumers and brands. I try to read a variety of marketing/branding/PR/Advertising blog and have noticed something: Many of the blogs have very few comments. Here’s a very unscientific survey - I looked at the front page of several blogs, looked at the number of posts and the total number of comments:

PSFK: Posts:36, Comments: 57 (Avg. # comments per post: 1.58)

Brand Autopsy: Posts: 30, Comments: 192 (Avg. # comments per post: 6.4)

Influential Marketing Blog: Posts 10, Comments: 36 (Avg. # comments per post: 3.6)

Murketing: Posts 15, Comments: 7 (Avg. # comments per post: .47)

Grant McCracken: Posts 14, Comments 65 (Avg. # comments per post: 4.64)

Eyecube: Posts 10, Comments 7 (Avg. # comments per post: .7)

Online Marketer Blog: Posts 5, Comments 24 (Avg. # comments per post: 4.8)

Again, this is a rather arbitrary analysis. I think all of the above are super smart people who all have a different approach and style.

Let’s take a look at the Top five blogs on the AdAge Power 150 to see what that looks like under the same litmus test:

When Marketing Bloggers Attack!

Look out, it's Peter Kim!

Check out the great little give and take between Peter Kim and John Moore of Brand Autopsy. It all kicked off with Dave Balter and his World of Mouth Manual II. Peter called him out for creating an Ego Trap that was enabled by bloggers like Rohit Bhargava, John Jantsch of the influential Duct Tape Marketing and John Moore among others.

Well, let the fireworks begin. Read the comments to Peter’s Anti-Balter Ego Trap post, it’s a who’s who of marketing bloggers: Jeremiah Owyang, John Jantsch defends himself, Adam Singer, Mack Collier from The Viral Garden, and Seth Godin jumped in as well.

For my part, I’m ok with Balter’s tactics for a couple of reasons: First, I think marketing and social media go hand in hand and there is a cooperative vibe where we all help promote each other. That’s cool, especially in the supposedly cut-throat business world. Secondly, Dave earned it by bringing quality and value. If his ideas were weak, would these people have helped? I doubt it.

But I do like to see the spirited debate. There doesn’t always have to be agreement and the industry as a whole moves forward when strategies and tactics are debated in the mareketplace of ideas.

Brett Favre, Starbucks and the Wisdom of Crowds

Favre heads out of town - Courtesy the AP

It’s been impossible the last couple of days to watch ESPN or NFL Network and not hear some talking head say, “Of course the Packers are a better team with Brett Favre at quarterback.” These aren’t fans saying this, they are “football experts.” And yet, it looks like Favre is on his way out.

Swing by Brand Autopsy and take a read regarding the latest marketing initiatives undertaken by Starbucks. In addition to John Moore, a former Starbuck’s guy, and Seth Godin, here are some quotes from other commenters:

“It seems like a strange promotion all around — as in, I can’t tell who really benefits from it.”

“Bad decision for Starbucks. Definitely not the best way for them to go.”

“It won’t be long before their brand has totally been commoditized.”

It seems the wisdom of crowds is pretty clear in both examples, yet neither the Packers nor Starbucks seems to be listening. I don’t think the management of either the Pack or Starbucks are dumb people, in fact I’d wager they are pretty darn smart. So why the disconnect?

What makes smart people make poor decisions? Are these poor decisions merely because a handful of people on the outside say so? When, and how, do you incorporate the Wisdom of Crowds into your thinking?

Scarcity, Storytelling and Having Your Business Blowed Up

John Moore from Brand Autopsy has a great story on a BBQ joint in Texas, Snow’s, that was named Best in the State by Texas Monthly. As a result, they’re dealing with sudden and overwhelming success. Some of Moore’s commenters suggested buying more meat and teaching more employees how to make the BBQ.  I disagree and think Seth Godin would agree with me. Seth recently posted on the issue of scarcity and often writes about the power of telling a story and consumers’ desire to tell one to themselves, the premise of his book, All Marketers Are Liars.

Snow's BBQ Pit Master Tootsie Tomanetz

Snow’s can create a remarkable story for themselves, and their customers, by preserving their scarcity.  The Pit Master, Tootsie Tomanetz, can’t – or at least shouldn’t – be duplicated. She’s an integral part fo the Snow’s BBQ experience. Could they teach somebody else to do her job just as well? Yeah, they probably could, but that’s not the point. Tootsie is the person you tell your cousins and friends about.  Could Snow’s order more meat so that they don’t run out at 9:45am? Sure, but that’s part of the story. Want to be guaranteed you’ll get your meat? Go to Costco.

Snow’s has a unique story and unique business model. They may be the best BBQ in Texas today, but they have a chance to become the Best BBQ in the U.S. Yes, the product has to stand up, but it’s the story that will take them to the next level. But what about the business you ask? I wager they could increase their profits by a factor of five without adding one more Pit Master or selling one more brisket. When you create scarcity that generates the type of demand that has people driving hundreds of miles and staying overnight so they can be first in line, you can start selling all sorts of ancillary products. Snow’s BBQ T-shirts? Could sell those from Coast to Coast. BBQ Sauce, cook books… all without compromising the quality of the product, or the quality of the story.

DINU – Dunder-Mifflin

The brains behind the hit NBC TV show The Office know that the key to developing a loyal following is to create a Deeply Immersive Narrative Universe. Sure, the Scranton-based office is an absurd caricature of real life, but the world they created is so consistent, that we are all willing to join in the fun.

John Moore over at Brand Autopsy has a terrific ongoing feature he calls “Would you miss” where he asks his readers if they would miss a brand such as UPS or Pizza Hut. Well, he’s turned his attention to Dunder Mifflin. Would you miss this fictional brand?

What I think is interesting in a sort of murketing way are the comments on the Brand Autopsy website. Some people chose to view D-M as a real brand while others would miss the TV show.  Millions of people got a chuckle out of Dilbert, but no one would ‘miss’ Dilbert in the same way they would miss Michael Scott, Dwight and the gang.  I’m not suggesting people out there truly believe Dunder Mifflin is a real company, but the way we engage with a Deeply Immersive Narrative Universe can blur the lines.