Is There Life After Marketing?

It's that time of the year when companies are generally in one of two speeds: (1) use it or lose it, the budget; (2) slow down, the year is done. With the economy slowing everything down, in fact some things to almost a grinding halt, we are left with number 1. And if you are a marketing (or a communications) professional you know what or rather who is number 1 - it's not you.

Social media and your networks can help

This is an opportunity to regroup and take stock. I promise this one is a very good investment. The title is a little imprecise - everything anyone does when in business is marketing. Heavens, courting someone is marketing.

Marketing gets a bad rap, people think it's about the little brochures and sell sheets, then there is a larger conversation around demand creation, which culminates with the most expansive view of all - your business is marketing.

Yesterday at Web Strategy by Jeremiah we were talking about the difficulty companies are having with influencial and popular people in their midst - what we call personal brands. We've talked about it before, personal brand equity is for rent, only.

Opportunities for companies in this environment

Jeremiah outlined some perceived risks: (1) the personal brand is a cost to the company; (2)  the now popular employee is likely to get poached; (3) employee exits leaving a chasm to fill. I see them more as opportunities.

Opportunity 1: employees who have good karma and reputation in the marketplace are in fact making the company look smart for hiring them. They have connections, networks and processes to share and a pulse of what is going on outside. We all know you need more of those in your ranks.

Opportunity 2: the truth about competitors poaching someone is a bit more complex. I've worked in extremely specialized industries - insurance/financial services and chemical manufacturing - and I know that even in those industries, people need to be highly motivated to switch - and it's not about the pay. But it becomes about the pay if you handcuff doers to their desk or micro manage them. So don't.

Opportunity 3: I've heard this from more than one manager so I'll consider it a mini focus group - they think anyone can do your job, you are replaceable. Of course, everyone probably knows it's not true, but it's true enough in the way they deal with you. This is bad karma for your interactions. Intention shows and comes true. The reality is that we are creatures of habit, people move (almost) only when they have to. 

We are portable, wherever we go there we are. Why wrap your head before it's broken? I say when we stay flexible and adapt - on both sides - we win.

Dear company:

• Think bigger - the whole business is marketing. Today's content-intensive micro interactions can benefit from a good scrub of all those practices that detract from what customers want and need. Your whole employee base is a community with voices, why do you insist in trying to control them? Why not educate and help them (those who want to, of course) shine? This is the face of the company. It sounds a lot like groundswell, doesn't it?

• Embrace your stars and if you have too few of them, shame on you. Where is your succession planning? Where are your mentors? There are people out there in social media taking one on the chin for you, when was the last time you thanked them?

• Let your customers be heard. This is the point Jeremiah makes that fascinates me the most. We've been talking about customer evangelists for several years and then we added the concept of citizen marketers - thank you Ben and Jackie.

All of these points are related to one simple concept - let it go. It's easier to carry the torch if there's a team helping out, and it's ok if they interpret how they carry it along the way. We all have many friends and they often are very different, allowing you to cast a very wide net, wider than the best of lists. This is organic, word of mouth and viral all rolled into one. I thought I'd throw in a few choice keywords to get your attention.

Dear colleague:

Is there life after marketing? Instead of worrying about your personal brand as an end in and of itself, build your skills, remain curious and engaged, help your community and colleagues grow and learn, be responsive to those in need, and stay hungry. Leading brands lead. I know it's not that simple, have faith in yourself and you will find it's true. I believe in you.

Here are a few choice quotes from colleagues' comments to Jeremiah's post:

Adam Singer: Smart people are not necessarily motivated by ‘more money’ - perhaps by more freedom. You would probably have lost that person regardless if you try and tell them what they can and can’t do.

Matt Dickman: I’ve built a personal brand from zero through blogging and used it to move into a better position with better opportunities. I think trying to lock somebody down will either frustrate them to leave or cause them to go rogue. Why not empower them, set clear guidelines to protect yourself, but use them as the marketing asset they are.

Beth Kanter: Most nonprofits react by keeping the marketing faceless and “institutional voice” which can be stodgy, formal, boring, and cold. If they move past that, they typically have the recipient of their services be the brand or face - or the person’s stories … stories of the impact of the nonprofit services on one person or one puppy are more powerful and can inspire donations. So, why change that?

Robert Swanwick: The glass is definitely half-full. More information and more liquidity creates a much more efficient market. Embrace it. If you don’t want someone to leave then find out if what motivates them is also good for your company. If it is, do it.

Geoff Livingston: A person does not have a brand, they have a reputation. Intelligent management avoids the Scoble personality dominating a social media situation. At the same time companies should allow people to be brilliant.

BL Ochman: Scoble did more good for Microsoft than any of their advertising or marketing before or since. And he built his personal brand in the process. I think that was a win/win.

Christen Dybenko: Tools like Get Satisfaction make it easy for a “lone ranger” in a big company to step up and start listening regardless of whether or not the company is on board.

Alex, aka SocialButterfly: Someone in this thread brought up, “what if a company provides a brand that people WANT to use as their personal brand?” I think Dentsu does a great job of this, and it is re-enforced by their entrepreneurial type of business model. However, the whole branding of the company is interesting. Employees can choose their own “color,” almost like a personality, so that the company becomes them and they become the company, yet Dentsu itself still maintains the umbrella brand.

Fayza: My boss recognizes the risks you mention above. Sure, some succumb to them. He has hired smart people, and intelligent people are always looking to grow and develop themselves professionally. He even acknowledges that sooner or later, this grouping of intelligent people will probably fly out of his nest. So he invests in us as people, and tries to make us the best we can be, as individuals.

As a result, and speaking from my own observations, we are incredibly loyal to our boss and this company - and each other. He doesn’t try to stifle us; he wants us to reach our maximum potentials at his company and beyond. We know he cares about our personal growth - how many employees can say that about their bosses? We are lucky that he takes the time to invest in us as much as he does the company. We know we are his most valuable resources.

__________

What do you think? Are you regrouping and preparing for the next phase in your career? Is your company actively involved in helping you grow and learn? Are you involved in social media on behalf of your company? Do you weigh the risks of joining a company that has a bad brand in the marketplace? Is your personal involvement in social media allowing you to shift your focus from one career to another?

[many thanks to Matt Clark at Image Designs for my new Twitter splash page]

Comments

[Adam Singer]

Wonderful addition to this topic Valeria, I was hoping you would post something.

Added my thoughts on my blog, but a quick summation is this: if you try to limit someone’s growth as an individual, you’ll merely drive them away from working with you and they’ll find a company that is more accepting.

Fostering and nurturing talent is the smartest path, and if that involves using open communications tools (important for communications people) then companies need to embrace it.

[Brian DR1665]

This post ties into much of my 2007-2008. As soon as I got my degree, I went out in search of that lucrative career my guidance counselors had promised. With salary and benefits as my focus, I quickly ran into burnout and my resume is a shambles because of it. However, this taught me a valuable lesson on what is truly important and the greatest reward in one's career.

I dismissed what "this" magazine said about a career with "that" company and, instead, proactively went out in search of local organizations which were related to my love of making cars faster. I managed to talk my way into a sales position with a small dot.com where full disclosure of the state of the company was a daily thing. When that company began to falter (a function of previous ownership nearly bankrupting it), I left and, to my surprise, was able to use what I had learned in the daily meetings at the automotive place where we talked about SEO/SEM, press releases, and experiments with social media, to actually land a position with a very stable, very supportive, social media player.

I know there are numerous organizations out there throwing this sort of talk around just because it's hot right now. I suspect that most people would prefer to work in a supportive, dynamic environment where they feel enabled to take ownership and experience the pride that comes with doing so. And I bet the biggest obstacle to overcome is *still* the fear of change. We need more users crossing the threshold from user to evangelist.

[Eric]

The word mentoring does not get used enough in a professional team. Helping someone attain the next level vs. hold them back because of fear (used too much) is never good. The benefits from helping someone will come back to you even if they leave your organization as they grow and continue to do business elsewhere. Building the bridges with employees thinking about the present and future presents a much better outcome than slowing their growth.

It has been my experience that I would not be able to work somewhere that does not cultivate my identity both associated with the company I work at, as well as my identity outside the company.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Adam - it has long been my belief that you nurture and help people become what they want to become. When they say two people have become one, all I see is two halves - the same is true for groups. There is tremendous strength and power in diverse thinking.

@Brian - I love your story a lot. It is often through trial and error and first hand experience that we grow the most. Yes, the empty jargon and doing what everyone else is doing get on my nerves. But I think there is a need sometimes to fit in and to feel appreciated that holds people from trying new things or doing things for the right reasons. It is a bit lonely being up front and leading the way... good call to action in your comment. Thank you for that.

@Eric - mentoring is one of the most amazing things a professional could do. And you can learn a lot about yourself as well as others doing it.

[Geoff Livingston]

I think you know I have a core, philosophical issue with personal branding. To me good stewardship should be preeminent. When you are getting paid to do a job, it's to perform a service. Ensuring the baton can move without you is the ultimate example of service and stewardship, and the antithesis of personal branding behavior. That's why I am so happy to see you and Jeremiah suggest the course of team first.

[Louise Fletcher]

I think you hit on my biggest problem with the 'personal branding' fad. It's not that I don't think there's such a thing as a personal brand - it's that I think you can't create it by working on creating it - instead it is created every day as you work and play and live.

The focus on the branding activity instead of on actually doing stuff, presents an easy (and false) out for too many people.

Thanks for the post!

[Fayza]

I can't say anything that I haven't already said, except, "Bravo!" Excellent follow-up to an excellent topic.

[Ryan Stephens]

I have worked hard to build my personal brand, and if a company takes a chance on me and it's the right fit for me you can be assured that I will work hard to build their brand as well, provided that they empower me.

As Geoff suggests, I agree your team should come first. Being involved in athletics for the last 20 years of my life has taught me that.

It's not, nor should it be about you, but if you're using this space the right way your setting a precedent and building a brand and establishing a reputation.

There's no secret that if you have done it well you can leverage that to help yourself (and more importantly your employer), but if your company insists on taking that away from you chances are they are going to lose out on a great opportunity.

These people, in our circles, that we consistently run into are working hard. They are working after hours because they are passionate about what they are doing. Give the rockstars freedom to empower your customers. NIKE built an empire empowering the runner and designing customized shoes for the best distance runners in the world while other shoe companies just tried to throw more money at runners to wear their gear.

Right now maybe there's less choice due to the economy, but if you try to stifle a rockstar they're going to go guide another pirate ship when we come back out the other side.

Great insights as always Valeria!

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Geoff - I do and we see eye to eye on that. My philosophy on work is to give others growth and opportunity in the process and to love what I am doing, no matter how small it may seem. I like the fact you use the term stewardship for it.

@Louise - if only companies figured that out. It is about products and services people want and the experience of dealing with you.

@Fayza - glad to meet you and learn more about your ideas.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Ryan -

I'm here reading your post and it's almost midnight - yeah, we are passionate about creating these connections, sharing knowledge and resources and helping each other out.

Part of me nods at your exhortation of "giving freedom", part of me thinks we take the initiative, push through the dip and demonstrate we "can" do it. There is no putting this genie back in the lamp. It will be interesting to see how the stories that are the future develop.

[Michelle Kostya]

Great post Valeria.
It is posts like these I would like to print out and slip into the mail to many of my past employers. They are "past" because despite promises they didn't: foster growth, encourage learning, or give the ever important freedom so many who have commented mentioned.
There are books, blogs, articles in papers and more about keeping good employees - that it is less about money and more about empowerment and challenging them. Money is important, but if you are able to take initiative and make decisions in your job - you tend to be happy. Happy people stay.
I wonder what the right questions to ask a future employer might be...to truly make sure they "get" this...?

[Swan]

Great post. You say "let it go". I would go even further and say "embrace it"

@Geoff, I only know your philosophy from the small comment, but I am curious if you consider the value that a personal brand has to the company by which you are employed.

I agree that personal brand should be developed in the course of accomplishing that for which you are paid. However, sometimes the act of "packaging" or framing for the purpose of personal branding is really actually strategy and priority setting for our job. Without poking our head up to reflect and self-analyze, we can easily get into auto-pilot.

Keep up the great content Valeria and thx for the reference to my comment in the main post.