Growing Companies Can Harness Social Media to Level the Playing Field

In the new digital environment connections are currency and attention is like friendship: It can’t be bought; only earned.  Ten years ago start-ups and growth oriented companies had to do battle with their larger adversaries’ media weight utilizing the same weapons that their adversaries had (traditional media…they just had less money for it).  Now Social Media levels the playing field for challenger brands.  By properly harnessing Social Media companies can earn buzz, develop social capital, and a fan following without the mass media buys.  A loyal following always equals increased sales.

We are all connected — and now in a way that we can see.  That means thinking about individuals in isolation gets less and less useful.   Consumers want brands to join the conversation, but the bar has risen. To be seen as an authentic contributor to the conversation your marketing has to become more utility-driven.  Marketing that does stuff for people now; not just espouse the brand’s benefits or features will break-through.  Look for more and more brands to create online widgets, iphone applications, and social media applications as a way to get more involved in the conversation.  Growing companies that can start thinking in the new paradigm and implement some of these new strategies will be able to more quickly gain new market share.

Here is a perfect example of a growing company outsmarting its larger competitors with social media:

http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2009/03/16/story13.html?b=1237176000^1793616&ana=e_vert