So Many Opportunities, So Little Time
Setting up an advertising network in virtuality.
Putting together a new campaign to target cellphones, rather than PCs.
Discovering the huge new marketing opportunities in China.
Using YouTube to share your commercial for free.
Launching a new business through the social intermediaries like Digg and Reddit.
The world is changing, and it’s changing fast. How will you take advantage of all the opportunities that change brings? Truth is, you probably won’t. Even if you’re a $1B corporation with a Department of Change, you may not be able to hold meetings fast enough to respond to all the opportunities.
And that’s OK. Many of these opportunities are like television in the late 40s–an exploding new medium that people were still trying to figure out how to use. Should you make your own show? Do long-form informational programs? Sponsor a show? It took a while to settle down on the 30-second spot as the standard-bearer. And television continues to evolve today, with some companies using non-moving “billboard” ads to display during Tivo fast-forwarding.
The important thing is to uncover the opportunities that work best for you and your company. If you’re a car dealer, why not use a signup system and SMS messages to let prospective buyers know exactly when your perfect car is on the lot? If you’re a camcorder manufacturer, why don’t you sponsor a film festival, or do a YouTube contest? If you do clothing, why not appear on many of the lifestyle blogs that offer a way to reach engaged customers?
Don’t worry about getting it 100% right, because soon you’ll have the stats. You’ll know if you need to do it again, or change the model. You’ll even have great clues as to how to change the model.
So feel free. Experiment. It’s a wonderful time to be a marketer.
