Users want targeted ads

It's a world of contradictions. A while ago Facebook faced a consumer backlash for its Beacon programme, which stored users behavioural data so that it could serve targeted adverts.

So I was surprised to hear that 56% of respondents to a new survey said their social networking experience would be better if marketers pushed more targeted ads (full story).

This reflects the experience of online marketers, particularly in the email sector. Targeting your marketing activitly according to premission and preferences creates huge efficiencies and it also helps to build a relationship with your customers. Get it right most of the time and they'll start to trust your ads - image that!

The power of transparency

Pretty much everything that is a threat also has an opportunity, certainly in the marketing world. You simply need a different perspective.

The growing voice of the consumers (see the Brand Terrorist entry below) is overtly a threat to markets, as it blows through the carefully constructed marketing story to expose the usually less palatable truth.

The opportunity here is to take the initiative. One of the key objectives of any brand is to build consumer trust in its values. So rather than make up a marketing story that exaggerates or spins the truth, why not just tell the truth in the first place?

Patagonia have taken this approach to their environmental credentials in The Footprint Chronicals, a website that puts their carbon footprint under the microscope. The overt message is that everything they produce has a supprisingly large carbon footprint (transport of raw and finished products being the largest contributor). But the point is makes it that they are aware of this and are working to minimise wherever possible, as long as it doesn't impact the quality of their products adversely. By implication, other clothing has a similar impact, but the producers don't know, or don't care.

Certainly the honesty in the approach impressed me.

Beware, brand terrorist lurking

First, have a look at the Comcast installer video posted on YouTube by a rather unhappy and opportunistic customer.

This is a brand terrorist in action. Not a fanatic, just someone with a grudge to bear and a bit of time on their hands. Not only is it rather amusing, but the stats tell a scary story - 1.2m views and 704 comments. Imagine what it would cost to buy that sort of coverage. And imagine the cost of undoing the harm of this negative message..

The Internet has the power to amplify a message. The viral effect means that if an individual's blog / video / podcast hits a nerve, there is no limite to how many people will see it. If that message happens to be a rant about your business that could be bad news.

What can you do about this, you might well ask? .

The answer is that you have to take your customers very seriously - every single one of them!