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media and entertainment responses
media and entertainment responses exploring social surplus and the digital native
Tuesday, August 5, 2008 at 06:13PM
A client asked me recently, “Why do people want to engage with my brand?” We had a long conversation about brands and how great ones now seem to play out like “games” rather than “movies.” We went on an on about the importance of journey mapping for the consumer - creating a brand “bread crumb trail” that just keeps on paying off The Promise and engaging people further. We talked about Value Exchange and the truths of only trying to engage people if you have some form of intrinsic value to offer them for having given you their precious attention. We covered all the bases.
But with a look of almost dejected innocence he said again, “I agree with you Tom, but why are they (people) even there in the first place.” “What do they want from us?” “Don’t they have something else to do with their time?”
I went on for a bit about psychographics of the digital native (you know, people) wanting to be connected to each other and the things they are passionate about - and sure - most of this is true. But what’s even more true is I’m not sure I REALLY had an answer better than: People just do…
Thinking back, it was a bullshit, terrible response. I could just see the scoff welling up inside him. After all, aren’t we just a bunch of dorks playing in our basements? Are we? Clearly WE know that’s not the case - but really - what is it that makes us buy from FreshDirect, comment on Yelp, download all our movies, use Facebook on our iPhone (full disclosure: I own an n95, not an iPhone) and rely on Google and Wikipedia for truth? Are we programmed this way? Are the countless hours of Super Mario Brothers, Pong or You Don’t Know Jack and Metriod engraved in our psyche? Are we just hopeless sheep looking for a journey? Maybe. The smart marketers at Apple, JetBlue, Starbucks seem to think so.
But there’s another answer. One that has to do with SURPLUS. You know, SURPLUS. Idle time. The time you USED to spend watching Falcon Crest, Dallas, Saved by the Bell or Small Wonder. The time you used to spend watching Gilligan Fuck up the same rescue attempt week over week on the same island with the same cast, over, and over, and over again. It’s not your fault. You didn’t have a choice. Now you do. Now entertainment feels more like building a hobby, learning, interacting, communicating, connecting and reconnecting, playing and yes, even watching. Just all by our own rules. Our playing knows no boundaries - brands included.
These days there’s even more SURPLUS. You see - more technology creates more opportunity and curiosity. I think this is why we fill our time with all of these engaging forms for entertainment. We are occupying the SURPLUS.
This new time - “my time” - what are you doing with it for yourself? Marketers, what are you doing to fill it for your consumer? Product developers, how about you?
If you’re like most brands, not much.
But with a look of almost dejected innocence he said again, “I agree with you Tom, but why are they (people) even there in the first place.” “What do they want from us?” “Don’t they have something else to do with their time?”
good question.
I went on for a bit about psychographics of the digital native (you know, people) wanting to be connected to each other and the things they are passionate about - and sure - most of this is true. But what’s even more true is I’m not sure I REALLY had an answer better than: People just do…
Thinking back, it was a bullshit, terrible response. I could just see the scoff welling up inside him. After all, aren’t we just a bunch of dorks playing in our basements? Are we? Clearly WE know that’s not the case - but really - what is it that makes us buy from FreshDirect, comment on Yelp, download all our movies, use Facebook on our iPhone (full disclosure: I own an n95, not an iPhone) and rely on Google and Wikipedia for truth? Are we programmed this way? Are the countless hours of Super Mario Brothers, Pong or You Don’t Know Jack and Metriod engraved in our psyche? Are we just hopeless sheep looking for a journey? Maybe. The smart marketers at Apple, JetBlue, Starbucks seem to think so.
But there’s another answer. One that has to do with SURPLUS. You know, SURPLUS. Idle time. The time you USED to spend watching Falcon Crest, Dallas, Saved by the Bell or Small Wonder. The time you used to spend watching Gilligan Fuck up the same rescue attempt week over week on the same island with the same cast, over, and over, and over again. It’s not your fault. You didn’t have a choice. Now you do. Now entertainment feels more like building a hobby, learning, interacting, communicating, connecting and reconnecting, playing and yes, even watching. Just all by our own rules. Our playing knows no boundaries - brands included.
These days there’s even more SURPLUS. You see - more technology creates more opportunity and curiosity. I think this is why we fill our time with all of these engaging forms for entertainment. We are occupying the SURPLUS.
This new time - “my time” - what are you doing with it for yourself? Marketers, what are you doing to fill it for your consumer? Product developers, how about you?
If you’re like most brands, not much.
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Response: Gin, Television and Social Surplus
Reader Comments (3)
First of all, great post. Really enjoyed it.
While there is "free time" or Surplus time that is being spent on or multitasking with social media, I believe there is an additional factor at play here - addiction. We multi-task at work, often chatting away online often via Facebook, we check Facebook mobile on the go, we check Facebook when we first log onto our computers and before we leave. This is more than re-using an excess of time, it's re-defining the word addiction.
Hey Jon. Thanks and couldn't agree more. To me the presence of community and personal interactions drive that fascination or addiction. An otherwise cold and once largely robotic web is now warm with people connecting with people en masse.
Nice post Tom. The shift in how media exploits the surplus today v.s. 50 years ago is fascinating. TV has dominated our leisure time for such a long time that marketers have been caught on the back foot by the sudden shift in attention and engagement.