Give consumers something to talk about!

There’s a fantastic piece in Ad Age by Bob Garfield and Doug Levy called “The Human Element”. My favorite point comes from a chart that contrasts “the old way” of social strategy with “the winning way”: in their POV, “old” is trying to “go viral,” and “winning” is “give consumers something to talk about”.

Give consumers something to talk about.

I couldn’t agree more. So much of the clutter and noise of our time is brands and people just going for viral. The best and most engaging content, conversations and (in Garfield and Levy’s view) relationships come when brands really try to give people something to talk about.

Giving people something to talk about is a hallmark of the best experience brands.

It’s also a point that’s driven home in new “2012 New Realities” research Jack will release on 25 January that comes from talking to consumers in the US, Brazil and China.  Watch this space for more!