Tamara Littleton, chief executive of eModeration, argues that interactive advertising is shifting to the creation of communities.
The creation of social media communities around specific themes or purposes has fundamentally changed the way advertisers use social media to market to consumers. In January 2010, Pepsi announced that instead of paying out for Superbowl ads, it would be putting the money – a cool $20million - into a social media project, Pepsi Refresh, that would fund good causes and ideas submitted by consumers.
Of course, this was part of a wider digital strategy by Pepsi, and was not without its risks – there were a number of teething problems reported over the first few weeks – and the overall effects on sales are yet to be reported. But it has certainly increased engagement levels with consumers, and has developed the brand’s association with change for good. This was reinforced with the launch of Pepsi’s second ‘Refresh’ project, ‘Do Good for the Gulf’, which, according to FastCompany’s Ariel Schwartz, has seen the emergence of some positive ideas for funded projects to help the area in the wake of the BP oil disaster.
This kind of move can’t be ignored by advertisers or their agencies. There is a real move towards brands creating social communities around specific issues – known rather grandly as ‘communities of purpose’ – as they realise that the best online campaigns can be much smarter than a series of eye-catching banners and a Twitter feed. These communities have a clear goal: either defined by the community itself (as in the case of Pepsi) or by the individual within that community (for example a branded community to support people trying to lose weight, get fit, or stop smoking).
The secret to success is to have a clearly defined purpose to the community – and, of course, one that people will support (‘let’s sell a million phones’ doesn’t count) - to be achieved within or over an agreed timeframe. It takes serious time and effort to do this properly. This is a very different beast from one-way marketing: it’s not enough to design a beautiful community and expect people to use it. To work, it needs careful management, nurturing and support; a series of defined, achievable goals along the way; and clear reasons for people to interact – with each other and with the brand behind the community.
Human beings have always grouped together around a specific purpose. Whether it’s forming a book club, taking part in an exercise class, or campaigning for change, we form small communities of one form or another, online and offline, every day of our lives. Single-issue campaigning is a defining characteristic of our times. The Hansard Society’s latest ‘Audit of Political Engagement' (2009) charts the increase in recent years of single issue political campaigning, and polling shows that young voters in particular are more likely to lend their support to a party on the basis of a single issue.
It is no surprise, then, that brand marketers – including those from third sector organisations - are capitalising on this and creating their own single issue, or single purpose communities. Those that will succeed are those communities with a real reason for consumers to come to them, and a reason to return.
This article is based on a white paper on creating and managing communities of purpose, which is available to download here.
