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Peer-to-peer vs. Corporation-to-customer
Posted on January 26th, 2009 by and currently 3 commenting.It’s so interesting to see how different companies are approaching this world of word-of-mouth marketing and outreach. And on one issue, we’re seeing two pathways emerge when it comes to leadership of the community (and when I say ‘community,’ I mean offline and online ” not just online, so get your head out of the social media clouds for a moment).
Pathway one is picking someone from inside the company to ‘lead.’ They figure that they are already towing the company line. They know the dos and don’ts. They are trusted by others in the company to say the right thing and put the best interests of the company first. This is corporation-to-customer.
Pathway two is finding those folks out there in the world that are passionate (or ‘influential’ ” bleh) about the industry or brand, empowering them with knowledge and tools and then bringing them into the fold. This is peer-to-peer.
So now let me tell you why peer-to-peer works better: Because it’s peer-to-peer. I don’t care how good your intentions are if you come from inside the company, you’re still from inside the company and people aren’t going to trust you completely. You are a PR tool. You are doing your job.
It’s been proven that the vast majority of people trust people ‘just like me.’ One of my favorite things that Holly, Fiskateer #1, said to us during her training was, ‘I’m a crafter FIRST. And a Lead Fiskateer SECOND.’ This is the honest, transparent perspective that only someone from the outside can bring. So the people in the community know where their loyalties lie. They are not part of the machine. They are part of the community.
Now I’m not saying that those that lead communities from inside the company are all bad. There are a lot of them out there doing a great job communicating to the community. But from first-hand experience, it is multiple times more powerful and more successful when you hand the reigns over to those in the community, step back, and let them lead. Because that’s trust. That’s dedication. That’s truly becoming a fan of your fans. It’s putting your money where you mouth is. And instead of just talking about listening and trusting and being transparent, now you’re putting those things into practice.
Hard work? Oh yeah. Very. But worth every single moment of it. So before you appoint that PR or marketing person to lead your community, consider empowering those that are out there already. Because peer-to-peer will trump corporation-to-customer seven days a week and twice on Sunday.
Believe it.
Tags: Community, corporation-to-customer, Fiskateers, peer-to-peer marketing, soical media, WOM, WOMM, word of mouth marketing
3 Responses to “Peer-to-peer vs. Corporation-to-customer”
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[...] their latest post, So now let me tell you why peer-to-peer works better: Because it’s peer-to-peer. I don’t care [...]
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tito mambo January 26th, 2009 at 11:31 am
Spike,
Tomorrow is birthday number 50 for me. As a lifelong marketing guy I spend half my day with my jaw dropped open at the new opportunities to communicate with each other. Not sell, communicate.
Who cares about bday#50? Certainly not me. I mention it because almost all of my “peers” are struggling with the topic of your post. and it comes down to one issue: control.
Control of the message is a fundamental premise of marketing communications and control, well, is now out of our control. So many “traditional” marketers just can’t live with lack of control.
I recently spoke with a client who is exploring what it means to encourage community around their brand. It went something like this:
“Who’s in charge of eliminating the negative comments?”
“No one”
“What if somebody puts up something bad about us?”
“If its unfair, your other members will weigh in”
“What if there are multiple bad comments?”
“Then you have a bad product and should thank each one for their honesty. Who’s the better friend than the one who tells you your fly is open or that you have food on your chin?”
Spike, I think there can be leader inside the organization. That’s the person who serves the important function of enabling the outsiders to do their thing without the insiders freaking out.
As always, thanks for the thoughtful post.
tito -
Happy B-DAY Tito!
And believe me, I’m with you. But the person inside is the support. The shield. The champion. I think that should be their function. Not necessarily the face.
Here’s to a great 5-0 and many more to come. Thanks for the conversation!
