Be Curious, Not Dismissive
April 30, 2012 
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I recall a situation in 2007 (while in the consulting space) when most businesses were barely scratching the surface with digital marketing. The story goes like this: one of my clients, a national brand that is a household name was reticent to participate in social.
What was interesting is very smart people were running the company. But even after we explained the situation, shared research and outlined the benefits of embracing social marketing, they still seemed ambivalent. Or perhaps a better word: dismissive. “Why would anyone want to do that?” was a common response to what we showed people (specifically their fans) were doing. Even when endorsements, reactions and demand for social participation was right in their faces, they ignored it.
They dismissed the idea that the world was changing: either out of fear that marketing had passed them by or that their previous years of success were in jeopardy. Maybe easier to ignore the change going on around them than embrace it.
Of course, they changed their tune eventually. This massive brand is now one of the most successful consumer brands on social. They have 7-figure followings on most of their channels (trending to 8). They actively engage their communities, have a thriving social CRM program, deftly execute social promotions and tap their fans for content. It’s wonderful to watch and to someone on the outside, it seems organic. Like those operating the brand knew well enough to participate in social. They didn’t. Not without much persuasion, presentations and hand-holding.
It could have been so much easier. They could have been curious and started sooner (the reality is we began the process in 2006, it took a lot of work on our part). Many cycles wasted by fighting the future, they could be so much further ahead. I had a conversation with an executive from this brand years after who asked why they didn’t see it sooner. But I think they did see it, they just weren’t ready to accept the shift and were part of a culture that was change-averse.
The lesson? Be curious, not dismissive. Experiment. Try things and iterate. It is such a better mindset and leads to so many more possibilities than being closed off. The world is changing faster than ever and you need to be ready to change with it.
Image via 50 viral images
Beth M. Wood replied | Apr 30, 2012 (1 comment)
So true! I’ve been through several of the same situations. In once instance, it took me over a year just to convince one company that creating a blog was a good idea…they now blog regularly and it seems to have helped them to be seen as thought leaders in their industry, and serve as a hub for new business. Not that it’s always easy for some people to see… I, too, have been slower to convert to certain things than others. The difference is that I am always open to listening…hearing the pros, researching, learning, testing – and then making a decision. Curiosity is something I think many adults lose sight of as they get older – remember how curious we all were as kids? Let’s hold on to some of that and see where it takes us! Great post – thanks for the share.
Tammy replied | Apr 30, 2012 (5 comments)
I am often amazed by my friends who are business owners and really smart people who say, “I think my product could be really popular with a younger demographic” yet completely balk at the idea of gaining a presence in social media: “I don’t want to share what I had for lunch!”
With these friends, I do think fear is a big factor. For me, I understand that our first attempts at a new skill are not going to be perfect. I accept that learning curve! It doesn’t mean I’m not good at what I do as a whole, it just means I’m not to this particular thing. I love figuring out how things work, which normally involves trial and error (and if I’m alone, a bit of “blue” language). I later stand upon those initial stumbling blocks to get a better view.
So my question to you is, how do you show someone the positive side of curiosity when all they see is fear?
All Points Public Relations replied | May 2, 2012 (7 comments)
This is a great vignette on how some businesses are reacting to the current marketing and social media changes going on around them. It’s incredibly important to be receptive and accepting. Great article.
Debbie Bouwer replied | May 4, 2012 (2 comments)
Like Tammy and Beth I too have had my fair share of customers who initially balked at the idea of employing social media in their marketing efforts. All eventually capitulated and all but one made a success of it.
The reason for the latter’s failure is that they never really committed resources, so their pages were unattended to for days at a time – in spite of my cautioning them to be responsive. As we all know, customers dislike being ignored. Intensely. In the end their social media presence (or semi-presence) did more harm than good.
I suppose you can take a horse to the water, but you can’t force them to drink.
Dayne Shuda replied | May 8, 2012 (45 comments)
Adam – This is an interesting topic. It’s one I’ve thought about often.
I’ve seen the dismissive attitude at both large and small companies regarding social and other digital marketing efforts.
The issue for the leaders at the large company and the owner of the small company were the same. They became successful by experimenting and finding a business model that led to profit. They work hard to optimize that model and sometimes get so consumed that they can’t pay attention to every possible alternative.
In both cases, though, the leaders were eventually convinced. Both businesses evolved and succeeded.
What convinced them to take another chance in the end was profit. It took someone in each company to go ahead and earn profit with the new channels without really asking for permission.
Business leaders are smart and in the end they can’t say no to profit.
Change is a tough thing. I’m not sure why. I run into it all the time in my own life. Often I look back and wonder why I didn’t do something sooner.
Nick Stamoulis replied | May 8, 2012 (30 comments)
Great points. Marketing is always changing and evolving, especially in the online space. You can’t fear the change, you need to embrace it. If you don’t, you’ll fall behind.
Celina Macaisa replied | May 16, 2012 (1 comment)
Going to write this down because different experiences have proven this correct repeatedly..and then I forget =).
Stopping ourselves from being dismissive can be applied towards people also involved in the web marketing industry from SEO professionals to copywriters, and webmasters.
Alex Aguilar replied | May 22, 2012 (18 comments)
What Adam’s story really highlights is the resistance to change and fear of new ideas upper management has in a lot of these large companies. Attitudes get a lot more conservative higher up the corporate ladder you go.
Also, that cat is adorable.
Paul replied | May 22, 2012 (2 comments)
I think that this is a challenge that will always take place to some degree. There will always be people who are reluctant to change.
That’s because there is always a risk factor with change. Especially in the Corporate world where everything must be signed off on by 5-7 different execs.
Asking questions is how we learn though, and learning is how we accomplish!
Melonie Dodaro replied | Jun 5, 2012 (9 comments)
Very interesting. And maybe now they are wondering about the “what ifs” if they had started sonner. :)
Thanks for sharing this. Really empowering.
PR Company Phil Turtle replied | Jun 6, 2012 (1 comment)
And here we are in 2012 and it’s still an uphill struggle trying to persuade B2B and technology manufacturers to get involved in social.