"Too Smart For Your Own Good?"
I’ve written more than once in the past about the need for marketers to avoid Shiny Object Syndrome and, more recently, to Think Organically when it comes to Social Media.
Guess what? Not everybody reads my blog.
As we have found ourselves increasingly competing not just against PR firms but against different types of marketing agencies, e.g., advertising, marcomm, branding, we have on occassion lost the bid because the Other Guys wowed the underinformed prospect with the snazziest aspects of Social Media.
Will these happy-shiny approaches work? Likely not. But after you’ve spent a million hours developing a sophisticated, achievable proposal (on spec), that’s cold comfort.
Fact is, people like shiny objects. People like big, swing-for-the-fences ideas. Hell, we do, too!
The trick, I guess, is to “find the line” between ambition and realism. And the challenge to finding that line is that the more you know about how goddamn hard it is to create sustained successful programs, the more you may tend to underpromise/overdeliver.
That’s called being too smart for your own good.
Lesson learned.
Posted on: November 4, 2009 at 7:03 am By Todd Defren
Comments
Social Media Comments
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RT @davko1: @tdefren Never good to lose to Shiny Object syndrome, still they’re probably not the clients u want anyway. [link to post] -
RT @tdefren “Too Smart For Your Own Good?” [link to post] Shiny Happy People Holding Hands…definition of social media? -
Timely (for me) and right on the mark.. RT @tdefren “Too Smart For Your Own Good?” [link to post] -
Do we, PR people, lose competitions due to excessive realism ? RT @tweetmeme “Too Smart For Your Own Good?” [link to post] -
RT @TDefren “Find the line” between ambition and realism (a tough lesson). A quick RT of today’s post. [link to post] -> good advice… -
RT @TDefren “Find the line” between ambition and realism (a tough lesson). A quick RT of today’s post. [link to post] -> -
Great post from @tdefren: “Find the line” between ambition and realism (a tough lesson). [link to post] -
RT @goodridge: Wish I could write as well as @TDefren- great post today- [link to post] -
Wish I could write as well as @TDefren- great post today- [link to post] -
RT @tdefren “Too Smart For Your Own Good?” [link to post] -
Good post from @tdefren about companies getting bamboozled by flashy, bogus SM programs [link to post] -
RT @tweetmeme “Too Smart For Your Own Good?” [link to post] -
RT @tdefren “Too Smart For Your Own Good?” [link to post] (h/t @GeoffLiving @adamcohen) -
Good reminder that shiny objects are a lot of flash. RT @dmullen: Too Smart for Your Own Good, from @tdefren. [link to post] -
Too Smart for Your Own Good, from @tdefren. [link to post] -
Very true. Good reminder. RT @dmullen: Too Smart for Your Own Good, from @tdefren. [link to post] -
RT @TDefren Finding line between ambition & realism is made harder by knowing how tough it is to build sustained success. [link to post] -
Too smart for your own good? I’m afraid we are.. Great post from @TDefren [link to post] -
RT @GeoffLiving: Good post from @tdefren about companies getting bamboozled by flashy, bogus SM programs [link to post] -
I think some account men/women can sell PR but don’t always fully understand PR. This tends to end badly- via @TDefren [link to post] -
RT @TDefren Finding the line between ambition & realism is made harder knowing how tough it is to build sustained success [link to post] -
“Too Smart For Your Own Good?” [link to post] (via @TDefren)
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Allowing the customer to feel if they are a part of the brand is one of the best advertising and PR tools out there and social media is a vehicle to achieve that. Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on the case, companies are not the only ones advocating or producing buzz for their brand, but brand loyal or brand-loathing customers are. Sometimes when coming up with strategy for a new campaign it is easy to get wrapped up in things that are over-conceptualized and will probably lack optimal results. Sometimes the easiest route is the best and social media is providing this now.
A really good article, it’s a syndrome you can’t really take off easily not until they realize it’s not doing them any good. Not because it works for others, it could also work for you, maybe yes but there’s a lot need to be considered.
The whole model is a fundamental change, not just advertising vs. PR but Messaging as a function of a giant Robot with a megaphone to a more rational interaction that resembles a conversation. The customer becomes part of the brand. Developing organizing principles around achieving a wholesale change of a broken system…. Let’s get together, perhaps we can tackle it together… http://www.magnity.com
Todd,
You can’t save everyone. Some people won’t give up feeling great today, even if they instinctively know they’ll need to pay the price tomorrow.
On the other hand, one thing agencies have learned and honed over the years is how to put on a good show and tell enthralling stories, no matter how fanciful the plots are. There’s nothing wrong with that; we humans love great stories and a good song or dance to go along with it never hurt.
I don’t think you need to overpromise anything. But everyone in this business still has something to learn about presenting and creating experiences, even if they’re sales pitch experiences.
You’ll get ‘em next time. In the mean time, at least you won’t have any problem looking in the mirror tomorrow.
Love the comment above from AM Van den Hurk about the matte finish not tarnishing.
Sorry you didn’t get the account, but if they are buying the sizzle rather than the steak, they’ll get hungry soon. The shiny objects might help win accounts, but delivering results is what keeps clients. If the other firm doesn’t understand the long-term commitment that is social media, the client could well be back at your door soon enough.
Best wishes in netting the next big fish that comes your way!
Jen
Thanks, Jen. We win our fair share, too, and the pipeline is amazing. When competing for the big fish, the competition is far more fierce. We don’t expect to win ‘em all.
I feel your pain, Todd. If there is one thing advertising agencies are good at – graphically amazing PowerPoint slide presentations.
Utility can be beautiful. It can also appeal directly to grand aspirations.
Telling the client what is possible is a part of this business. It’s as much about the dream as it is the final product.
This is why you build in aspirations with utility. You show clients where this work could eventually end up going. Thus, they buy into the practicality that could possibly get them there.
Is social glamorous? Depends on who you ask. I think it’s gorgeous.
Your point is well taken, and your approach is what we strive for, Stuart.
Making stuff prettier is not a bad thing for us to learn, though. We need to help the prospect visualize our ideas.
Great post and several great comments from your readers as well. It’s hard to find the line between ‘snazzy’ and ‘real’ that will win the business, but I take heart that the client worth having can tell the difference. The clients who are blinded by the glitz will probably be back later, after the shine has worn off.
Shiny Objective Syndrome is a good description for a lot of what is happening today in our field. While the shine gives instant gratification, the matte finish is what gives the lasting results… it won’t tarnish.
Todd – the thing that these agencies and the companies they reeled in with the promise of a big ‘swing for the fences’ strategy/program, is that they ultimately leave little room for testing and tweaking. They fail to realize that you have room for adjustment to make the program that much more successful vs. over-promising and under-delivering.
Though they win the short-term battle of obtaining that client, the long-term typically isn’t in favor of either.
Social media could be the pr world’s time to shine. As you say, ad agencies bring the bright and glittery campaigns with tangible outcomes (not the same as results), and buyers are used to being blinded by their arguments.
However social media is not for purchase (Fast forward through the “it’s about dialogue, and pr knows that” drill) and pr’s arguments will be stronger and easier to understand than ever.
When argumentation is done we need to find the ways to shine. After having explained the value of engagement for years I find that we are right now in a position to do just that – shine. Social media projects (and results) in business related areas such as customer relations, business development and product launches are key, and the succesful cases keep stacking up around the world.