Groundswell Reflections #2

As I continue reading Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff's Groundswell, my appreciation for their ability to use simple stories to hammer down crucial points continues to grow. Even though I am relatively new to the concept of "groundswell thinking," I find that the major points the authors reinforce are so cogent that I am constantly thinking, "Of-course! That makes so much sense, how could I have not thought like that before?" Their ability to take simple statements of advice and elaborately explore them has made the book an easy and enjoyable read. In today's post, I will reflect on 2 of these statements as well as one anecdotal quote that particularly resonated with me.

• Product development is hard. Why not let your customers help you? (p. 181)

Note: Apologies for the italics! My blogspot will not let me switch back! Hopefully I can go back and fix in edit.

This first statement is perfectly illustrated by the Del Monte Snausages Breakfast bites example. While this and similar methods of market research have been industry staples for countless years, web 2.0 makes taking surveys of opinions much faster and cheaper. Customer's have always been tapped for feedback, but the realization that they have the potential to be product creators themselves is a more radical notion. Traditional "focus groups" of the past were more likely to provide subjects with the already established products, receive feedback, then return to the drawing board, but in the groundswell, using customers help leads to innovation much faster.


Dove even has their own social networking site, where participants can hold dialogues about "real beauty" and discuss products and potential products. The majority of the participants would be users of the products, so this is a great way to get feedback.

http://www.dove.us/#/connections/

• Learn to give up control of the brand message. (p. 200)

Previously, (and currently for organizations not utilizing the groundswell) giving up control of your brand image was the absolute last thing you would want to do. After working so hard to establish their public image who would want to turn it over? The fact is, regardless of your efforts, this will inevitably happen with web 2.0 technologies. With this in mind, ceding a portion of your brand image and allowing for critical feedback and comments makes a company seem more responsible (and responsive!). What Dove did with The Apprentice in 2004 is now appearing everywhere. Many companies are even doing contests to create ad's for their products. Not only is this an effective use of of delegation, it is a win-win situation for both the artist and the company. Both receive promotion, and the company receives new ideas from the perspective of people who are actually fans of the product.
http://www.zimbio.com/Nissan+Cube/articles/10/NISSAN+CUBE+COMMERCIAL+COLLECTION

• "With a blog, we would be talking with people who are not coming to us with a problem, but are still interested in hearing from us." -Bob Pearson, Dell VP of Corporate Communications (p.208)

Previously, companies were stuck only talking to customers when they had problems, which is an extremely limiting approach. This directly relates to the point Li and Bernoff bring up early on in the book, focus on the relationships, not the technology. The technology behind Dell's outreach was inconsequential, what made the difference was the Lionel Menchaca's dedication to understanding what his customers repeatedly were looking for, and that "whether the discussion is with one person or a thoudand, the conversation is very similar.
The more frequently creative dialogue can be created between companies and the people who actually use their products, the greater the chance there is for innovation.

Article from today detailing Dell's now social media approach

http://irwebreport.com/20110216/dell-inc-breaks-new-ground-for-social-media-in-investor-relations/