Seth Godin Explains Why You Need a Tribe

[Gordon N]

This video popped up on my twitter as I follow Loic (the interviewer) - brilliant interview if you have 12 minutes spare to listen to the World master at marketing!

YouTube - Seth Godin Explains Why You Need a Tribe

 

[Former Member 1]

Much as I can see the sense in, and find myself agreeing with much this guy has to say, I can't help but be disturbed by the glib, quasi-religious nature of it all. I find (in abstract) the notion of 'possessing' a tribe or possessing anyone, troubling, almost offensive...

I don't think I'm so much 'offended' by him or his ideas; rather by some of the hero-worshipping zeal he seems to inspire in some of his followers, much of which actually flies in the face of what he's saying...

However, I found a few of the comments quite interesting.....


"Wow, I thought I was the only one that feels the same way about Twitter. I totally agree. Have ONE home-base and focus everything on that. Don't follow the crowd. Be the best in your niche and make the best product in your niche. Each one of us have one thing we are better at then anyone else in the world. Find it, and become the best and appear as an expert in your field."

"There is no real value in Facebook, Twitter or MySpace ..and there is zero content.

Tribes are about connecting with people with a common interest or passion......the regular social media is just a list of names, talking about things that don't matter, with people who don't care. It's a waste of time."

People are always desperately seeking the 'magic bullet', the quick answer, the quick one-size-fits-all solution to life God the universe and everything. It's all very childish, vacuous, a bit like writing in sand.... It's one way to waste time, but not really a career move unless you rent out the beach...

Never thought I'd find myself agreeing with a Tory twit, but how many tweets do make a twat?

It does strike me that Twitter and Facebook are just about sheep bleating... Twitter will implode eventually; but not before its founders have passed it on to some huge faceless multi-national.

Can someone get the guy with the camera a TRIPOD?

You know a cameraman is screwing up when you begin to realize that there IS a cameraman. His role is supposed to be invisible to the audience and yet all we get is this swaying and moving up and down and left and right and framing in the boom microphone....UGH.

Maybe he's the 5th best cameraman they could find...

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Not Godin's fault of course; though he does make the assumption that his interviewers have a clue as to what they're doing....

But it has to be said there is a certain irony in a man pontificating about being the best in the world at what you do on a platform that is completely and utterly incompetent... :001_huh: What does it say about "the world" according to these particular members of Seth's 'Tribe'? It's a couple of decades now since this particular medium (video) was the message. And if the message here is, it's ok to be the best in the world at doing something incompetently.... NOT sure that's a direction I want to be lead in!

 

[McVicar Marketing]

Well, that's the joy of Seth Godwin - he inspires debate and is at least challenging lazy forms of 'marketing' which depend on en masse interruption techniques, when we all have less time, or are less willing, to be interrupted.

Matt – absolutely agree with you that one-size-fits-all solution is a false idol in itself – wasting a lot of time, money and patience. :glare:

BUT what I do believe is that networking, whether it takes place online or in person, is the first step to creating real and tangible relationships with clients, partners, suppliers etc

The trick is to not approach it as a sales opportunity – but to approach it with an open honesty which is as much about what you can learn and discover, as it is about spreading awareness of your brand.

It’s just got to be authentic. Anything else is just yet more unwelcome interruption.

Good examples on Facebook at the moment are the massive explosion of games like Mafia Wars or Farmville. To play these games, you need to invite and create your own network of players, who ‘help’ you to achieve tasks. That’s pushing Facebook users to create their own mini-groups, and start inviting complete strangers to be their ‘friends’. Their commonality is the game itself – but, through expanding their networks, they will be introduced to other games, applications, ideas, life experience etc

So, what we have is 2 million players signing on to play a game every day – joining together to be stronger – all because they have already expressed an interest in a specific product. The next step could be to use this expressed interest to expand the product, either still as a game, or into tangent opportunities. Either way – the maker of the game now has a massive audience who are proactively interacting with their product, proactively ‘sneezing’ the product onto wider audiences, and also proactively engaging to further develop and refine their offering.

They’ve created a tribe and, if they handle their relationship with their tribe properly, the potential is awesome.

As an aside: I was actually re-reading Godwin’s Purple Cow last night, as one way to make sure I’m not in danger of falling into a tried and tested groove. It’s a bit of a cliché – but it’s good to be challenged, especially when you don’t agree. :lol:

Cheers,
Inga

 

[Former Member 1]

BUT what I do believe is that networking, whether it takes place online or in person, is the first step to creating real and tangible relationships with clients, partners, suppliers etc

The trick is to not approach it as a sales opportunity – but to approach it with an open honesty which is as much about what you can learn and discover, as it is about spreading awareness of your brand.

I think it's more the paradigm I'm uncomfortable with rather than the concept; and yes, absolutely, developing and maintaining relationships is at the heart, not just of marketing, but of commerce itself. Something that, regrettably has been lost with what I term the 'glibilization' of the business and professional world that's taken place over the past 30 or so years..

You mention a couple of games products and cite how facebook works for them. But with all dues respect these are trivial, banal products; not in the sense that the income for the manufacturers is to be sniffed at. But in terms of their place in the everyday working life of a serious-minded adult.

I can see absolutely how these platforms are suited to frivolous products. And make no mistake 'the frivolous' is an important and valuable part of everyday life. But the fact that 2 million users are playing games when (possibly) they should be working is not really a statistic that says any positive to me in terms of wealth creation or the progress of society. Quite the reverse actually!

As evidenced by the story that Gordon posted in another thread; there is some evidence that these sites are proving problematic in pulling time (which costs money) away from other more legitimate activities...

In short, unless your business IS the trivial frivolous and/or the banal what place has 'playing game' got in it?

 

[Adventurelife]

In short, unless your business IS the trivial frivolous and/or the banal what place has 'playing game' got in it?

Depends, I used to use game playing in the military back in the 80's and I know it has advanced hugely in that area today. It was in a far from trivial environment.

I also use game situations today to test rescue situations etc. Not exactly what you mean I know but gaming can be a very, very useful learning medium prior to carrying out the real deal in many situations.

Peter

 

[Former Member 1]

Depends, I used to use game playing in the military back in the 80's and I know it has advanced hugely in that area today. It was in a far from trivial environment.

I also use game situations today to test rescue situations etc. Not exactly what you mean I know but gaming can be a very, very useful learning medium prior to carrying out the real deal in many situations.

Peter

Yeah but Peter taking someone out into the wilds and having them physically 'role play' their way out of 'trouble' is one thing....

Sitting at home in your boxers in front of a monitor 'pretending' you're a farmer is er.... something else :001_unsure:

 

[Adventurelife]

The common thread running through this and several other threads about marketing and the various routes to marketing , modern and not so modern is one of time management.

In my limited experience it is the one thing that I would say small business owners are terrible at. Yes there is a lot needs doing but only a few things make a big difference.

The importance of time was rammed into my head at a very young age. If I had to identify one thing that has enabled me to run businesses large and small it would be time management.

Focus on the little things that make a huge difference and pay those that are better than you to do everything else. In my case that makes for a long list

 

[stugster]

In my limited experience it is the one thing that I would say small business owners are terrible at. Yes there is a lot needs doing but only a few things make a big difference.

But I've almost made 7000 posts on UKBF!

... ok, I agree

 

[Power Lunch Club]

The importance of time was rammed into my head at a very young age. If I had to identify one thing that has enabled me to run businesses large and small it would be time management.

Thanks for that Peter....now ever the opportunist in me....:thumbup:

We have a 'Time Management' POWER TALK at the PLC this Thursday

Power Talk Event ? Bill Atkinson ? Edinburgh ? 03/09/09 | The Power Lunch Club

Ex army officer....Bill Atkinson......

 

[Gordon N]

Just found this rather amusing article....

10 Hilarious Twitter Reactions To Gmail Going Down | Yeeaauuh!

Check out number 6 - made me laugh :laugh:

 

[McVicar Marketing]

Just to come back to you Matt. You have some very interesting points.

Gaming is only one example of how a company/product can utilise the interest in social networking sites to expand interaction with their brand – I didn’t necessarily mean that social networking sites are worth it because we can all distract ourselves by playing games when we should be working.

The point about these games is that they can (if handled properly by the creator) be a valuable asset at all stages of a product’s life – from research to launch – and can be utilised for a wide range of products. I wouldn’t dismiss them as all frivolous, or as only suited to frivolous products.

For example, the NHS has used mini-games to promote healthy living, and there is an increasing trend for Hollywood to use games to promote new releases (from high-action blockbusters, to more sedate, meaningful movies).

I’ve also used them in the past when I was in publishing, with one reaching over 1.6million hits in one day (helping to make the book we were working on a Sunday Times Bestseller). For that book, I needed to tap into an established online community – and it did its job in creating awareness of the product, and also moving the product beyond a niche market due to the online discussion about the game itself.

As with all promotional tools, it’s about finding that touchpoint which your customers will find enticing, through which you can begin to create a meaningful dialogue with them.

Of course, games are not appropriate for every target audience – just as the entire internet itself isn’t appropriate for some target audiences.

All best,
Inga

 

[Former Member 1]

For example, the NHS has used mini-games to promote healthy living, and there is an increasing trend for Hollywood to use games to promote new releases (from high-action blockbusters, to more sedate, meaningful movies).

As a product, I'd actually cite Hollywood and its output as the most frivolous of the frivolous... :001_smile: Likewise with most music

As for the NHS campaigns... I seem to recall board and computer games being used to target the N.E.E.T (not in education, employment or training) sector as well as children... i.e. people with a low educational level.

Can't recall your Sunday Times campaign as I slipped out of the habit of buying the paper some years ago. but I'd be interested to hear some of the specifics...

As with all promotional tools, it’s about finding that touchpoint which your customers will find enticing, through which you can begin to create a meaningful dialogue with them.

Absolutely, couldn't agree more. And the key here is recognising that a toolbox contains many different types of instrument.

So often when I hear people pushing one-thing-or-another as the universal 'must do' or 'must have' I'm reminded of the sort of DIY disaster type fellows who wreak havock on their projects by insisting on undoing nuts with pliers and crosshead screws with flat-bladed screwdrivers...

Obviously that's not something that a legitimate marketeer such as yourself would advocate. As you seem to suggest it is a case of choosing the correct tools for the job...

 

[McVicar Marketing]

Hi again Matt,

As a product, I'd actually cite Hollywood and its output as the most frivolous of the frivolous... :001_smile: Likewise with most music

I guess we’ll have to agree that one person’s frivolity is another’s sonnet …:001_smile:

Obviously that's not something that a legitimate marketeer such as yourself would advocate. As you seem to suggest it is a case of choosing the correct tools for the job...

Yes – looks like we’ve both experienced that old trick of selling bottled cough medicine as also a cure for baldness …

Can't recall your Sunday Times campaign as I slipped out of the habit of buying the paper some years ago. but I'd be interested to hear some of the specifics...

The online campaign I did was for a novel called The Game by Neil Strauss – when I was Marketing Officer at Canongate books.

The link to the game is on my website, at the bottom of the page:
www.mcvicarmarketing.com/websites

The basic premise of the consumer campaign (very briefly) was to target specific audiences in three stages:

1) Initially target the established online community of ‘pick-up artists’ who spend a huge amount of time, effort and money speaking to each other through forums and at events

2) Build on the game’s audience through promoting it on online gaming websites, to reach the more ‘dedicated’ of online game players

3) Both of which built up a huge buzz around the game – allowing the campaign to use this energy to widen out to a wider audience (at this time, specifically men 18+)

With such a wide target audience at stage 3, it was crucial for us to build a groundswell of discussion about the game, leading onto anticipation for the publication of the book.

The consumer campaign came after a booktrade campaign, with the consumer campaign also including magazine advertising, national newspaper advertising, London Underground sheet advertising, media interviews (including an author appearance on Richard & Judy),sticker placement in London and Manchester, plus also public events (you can view some of the advertising on my website: www.mcvicarmarketing.com/advertising)

So – while it would not have been advisable to base the entire campaign purely on a game, it’s one example of where, for the right product, online gaming and networking can be used to create a groundswell of interest.

This game was certainly frivolous, but the impact of the gaming was to lead the product onto a far wider audience. As I mentioned before – we had over 1.6million hits in one day (in the week after the game was live) – 6 million over a period of a month – with 50,000 downloads of the first chapter of the book before it had even hit the shelves.

So I guess we're back to where we started :laugh: Different strokes for different folks.

All best,
Inga

 

[Adventurelife]

But I've almost made 7000 posts on UKBF!

... ok, I agree

Blo-dy hell :w00t: I have not made 7000 posts on all the networks I am on combined!

Had way more than 7000 conversations with clients though