Mele’s Musings

What social allows us to do, obviously, is to offer these to consumers in new and dynamic ways.  Brand interaction becomes paramount, as does brand reaction.  In the social era, brands must address problems right away lest they lose control of situations.  Brands must be more active in getting information out to consumers.  Campaigns - discrete, highly controlled, disruptive communications - become far less important.

This does not, however, change what consumers want and need from brands.  We can trip all over ourselves trying to figure out how many friends or fans we want to collect.  More important than how many fans we have is what we are offer them.

Particularly in this still recovering economy and in this coming holiday season, consumers want and need reasons to pay attention to brands.  Brands that offer them value, take care of their customers, and provide that extra “something” - offers, information, etc. - will win the favor and cash of consumers.

Yes, social media is a new and exciting space, but the basics of relationships between brands and customers should not be forgotten.  Indeed, they should be amplified rather than changed.