The recent MotrinMoms debate on Twitter got me to thinking (if you are unfamiliar with Twitter, here is a pretty good YouTube video describing the concept in plain English). The main issue was that some of the women at whom the advertisement was directed were actually offended by it. This was not Motrin's intent but the offence was definitely taken.
Advertising Age posted an article yesterday: How Twittering Critics Brought Down Motrin Mom Campaign; Bloggers Ignite Brush Fire Over Weekend, Forcing J&J to Pull Ads, Issue Apology
Okay, so why bring up news that is no longer new (sooo three days ago)?
Because advertising is a two-way conversation these days.
How quickly did Motrin respond? Did they have any system in place to monitor the chatter and interject themselves into the conversation before it escalated? No, they didn't, and it cost them. Motrin's biggest fault was not being IN the conversation with these moms before posting the ad.
That's why I’m trying to retrain my brain. I’m trying to fully make the switch from Web 1.0 (Are you ON the web?) to Web 2.0 (Are you IN the web?)
Please help me learn from you.
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What steps have you or your company taken to be IN the web?
- How do you make sure the conversation is going both ways?
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What tools / procedures do you have in place to help you know what your customers are saying about your and / or your product / service?
Please share with us all.
(And, by the way, if you want to follow me personally on Twitter, I am KermitRocks. It ain't easy being green. Element Fusion is on Twitter too: EFStatus)