Building Communities

I came across four interesting posts today:

• There is a great exchange discussing  What is Community on Brandshift.
• An article on $logging for hire from Gen X @ 40,
  
• Why Corporate Websites Suck from Marketing Roadmaps, and
• The Viral Marketing Manifesto from Robert Scoble

The next generation of successful marketing will incorporate elements from each of these discussions.  There is a place for crappy, self congratulatory corporate websites.  You need to have those sales brochures, case studies, product specs, roadshows, etc for clients, potential clients and investors to do their homework.  All of the flash in the world will not create buzz or community - but you have to have the information on-line.  On the flip side,  creating viral campaigns just to create buzz is more often that not flame out with very minimal long term benefit. 

Sometimes we forget that the brand lives not in the halls of corporate headquarters guarded by the VP of Marketing, but in the community which is made up of customers, advocates, detractors, competitors, and people who have no idea or interest in what you have to say or sell.  Everything that a company does to interact with these communities impacts the brand.  I believe that product development, customer service and public relations have far more impact on the brand than marketing ever will. 

That said marketing works and when done right has a huge impact on awareness, understanding and sales. When companies interact with their communities and communicate the information that interests them in a manner that interests them and at a time when they are willing to pay attention they will have a very positive impact on the brand and the bottom line.  That interaction could be a viral effort, a blog or a cool promotion, but it may very likely be a targeted direct mail, a multi-media advertising campaign or a sales promotion.