Since the beginning of time marketers have exploited every channel available. Newspapers, radio, TV and now social media.
The value of each channel, like most things, can be illustrated by a simple curve.
Social media is a valuable channel, no doubt. Yet it is not a silver bullet that will endlessly drive sales and solve a long term problems.
Where many go wrong is that they believe the curve of a particular social network will never drop off.
They invest hours and millions of dollars in perfecting a Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter strategy. But the return on investment, long term, will be minimal.
The idea of social connectedness will continue to grow, no doubt- but certainly not it its current form.
Just as we have moved from black and white tv to multi-channel digital stations in a relatively short time, social media channels will also be ever-changing.
By no means can we underestimate the role of social media as a communications platform.
Just as the past five years have brought us dozens of social networks, the next five will bring hundreds.
There is no silver bullet and we can only control how we allocate our resources. So don’t waste too much on the now.
Sean Blake Blog 