Steve Jobs liked to say that it’s not enough to kill bad ideas, you have to kill good ones too. That’s because good strategy is about making choices and it takes more than intelligence or even instinct, it takes discipline, one of Jobs’ most overlooked qualities.
The rise of social media over the past decade has been extraordinary, with a profound impact on brand marketing. Yet much of the potential of social media remains unrealized and, for many brand marketers, unrecognized. In key ways, social media are misunderstood.
It’s an absolute truth that talk value in building a brand is significant. The Internet and every device with an app have put the power of branding into the hands of anyone with a digital connection. Word of mouth has become supersized. Leading brands have gained an edge because they know how to use this power to their advantage and to the advantage of their customers. To ensure that you have the same advantage, here...
Technology journalist Stephen Baker got the New Year off to a provocative start with a headline question on The New York Times op-ed page. “Can Social Media Sell Soap?” he asked. Maybe not, he answered, echoing the not-so faint murmurs of social media disenchantment now being heard among brand marketers. It’s not that marketers are souring on digital; it’s just that social is proving to be particularly perplexing.
As the one-time Chief Marketing Officer of a large global wealth management business with severe reputational issues during the 2007 financial crisis, I struggled mightily with how to engage with and use social media to help my brand.
