I've referred to Trust, Cooperation, and Partnership being essential dynamics for business in this period of social correction. How can business use these changing social benchmarks and apply them purposefully...especially those developing tools for business using social media applications? Well, first try seeing it from two perspectives:
A social correction is a process; a group process...or cycles groups (societies) of people work through. The best way to appreciate the importance of these periods is to step far enough back in order to recognize that very large groups of organized people expand and contract in terms of whatever mission they are organized to accomplish together. Progress, and correction of that progress, is a natural rhythm. It's easy to borrow freely from various philosophies to see parallels on this view but let's head to some practical aspects that matter right now. To me, the most helpful aspect of this general cycle to recognize is how we (as groups) swing back and forth in our shared perceptions as we look upon various specific values we gather around while working (creating)in these groups. It sounds simple and it is: How We Value Things Changes. Our social nature drives the process and it is patterned.
After acknowledging the basic macro dynamic of social mood, we can then step forward to recognize a series of expected social tendencies that are patterned and correspond to the period best characterized as a social correction. It is inside of the broad tendencies of social corrections we can begin to recognize paths of least social resistance during this social cycle as they relate to the markets we serve.
Even if the phrase "path of least resistance" carries an undesirable connotation in the competitive world of business, there is good reason to separate those emotions and look objectively at the implications these ideas have for building competitive advantage in difficult economic times. Resistance to status quo is one thing. Resistance to supported and developing central social values is another matter entirely.
So here's the set up:
We are witnessing unprecedented growth in the adoption and use of social tools in the digital realm as consumers of content exercise their technology given right to Choice. As we continue to settle the digital frontier it will be humanized or socialized and those structures that are built going forward will reflect the cycle of social correction we are now experiencing. And since what we are building out (collectively)is a direct extension of how we relate to one another, look again now at the broad trending threads of a social correction. These macro tendencies are much more useful if you adopt a perspective that allows flexibility when seeing scale.
So if we go back to the ideas of Trust, Cooperation, and Partnership and lay a (current) behavioral template over them as we develop structures to foster two-way communication(community), then maybe the first place to begin is by asking the most basic questions of our markets again, knowing that How We Value Things Changes...sometimes a lot.
What Trust meant a few years ago when the future seemed endlessly bright is different than what it means today. How will that impact how we interact and share? What Cooperation meant is changing too...and Trust is a part of it. What Partnership meant, and means, is clearly changing and no longer will it be acceptable to assume that vague (one-way) definitions of this generalized social tool is acceptable. Is this vague? Definitely; but it is better that way. If I were to define it more I would offer that the "legalese" disclaimer culture of warning without actually informing is definitely no longer acceptable behavior by friends or businesses, or anywhere in between. During a social correction the absence of expectations is a really bad thing for any marketer to allow.
Let's review:
- Trust is in demand because the supply seems short because shared perceptions have changed
- This both affects and parallels how people view/judge Cooperation on all levels of social life
- Partnership is social tool used to create something and relies directly on both of these changing dynamics
I cannot imagine where these points might matter more than to enterprises designing tools to use social media. They are at the heart of our shared perceptions of both community and engagement. They will also be challenging to measure but the suggestion may well have a built-in answer. The current renaissance in marketing is about two way communication and social tools are the means to this end. Besides being faithful to your brand's promise, building cooperation with your market now requires two way communication that is perceived to be more real than an automated answering system. Trust is a two way business dynamic and is more valuable than ever. Dave
end note: Social Mood sounds like a deceptively general term but it is defined specifically: Social mood is an aggregate measure of how a society of people view the always uncertain events of the future with either a sense of optimism or pessimism. Think of a giant moving average. Both of these polarized background emotions can be seen to spread through a system of people like a social contagion and the moving average of these two states defines whether social expansion or social correction is the dominant social dynamic. From either of these two generalized states we gather and create with observably generalized differences and that affects both what we produce and how we view the present. This social state is not something to be manipulated as it is endogenous, not reactive. This is part of our social nature as people and our expression of this part of ourselves is what creates differences in the topic of trust and cooperation described above. The definition of social mood contradicts most people's view of causality (in general) but if time is taken, it can be observed directly. Once realized there are a great many lessons for businesses that wish to align their priorities with their market in a timely manner.
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