Make Marketing History

The views of a marketing deviant.

Monday, October 08, 2007

Yes, But Moments.

Lately, there's an increasing amount of "yes, but" moments - those occassions when change is almost acknowledged and yet not really accepted.

For example, Russell recently twittered from a conference at which he spoke that he was "watching the advertising industry failing to understand its own demise". I've also seen a lot of them on both sides of the Blue Monster comments where entrenched views react in knee-jerk fashion without reading between the lines.

But the one event that keeps coming back to me was Danah Boyd's recent talk in London. Now, Danah has been studying online social networks for almost as long as the things have existed and was billed as the high-priestess of the subject. She explained that the behavioural characteristics that drive social networks are not obviously compatible with the behaviour of mobile phone users.

And yet, the audience of mobile communication industry exes listened but did not hear. Yes, but (they said) we know about "networks" too and will obviously be able to change people's behaviours so that social networks will work on phones.

"Yes, but" moments are not devil's advocacy aimed at improving an idea. They're denial in disguise - a way of talking the talk without walking the walk. Watch out for them and when you see them, move in the opposite direction.

3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

A bit off-topic but do you have more info about Danah Boyd's talk
If find the notion quite interesting and I'm afraid my initial reaction would have been to agree with the "yes butters"
Can't seem to find details of that talk on Danah Boyd's site but maybe more details on name/date of the conference would help
Thanks for this... and for the rest of the blog

10:13 AM, October 09, 2007  
Blogger john dodds said...

It was at the bizarre Mocollywood conference (October 2) that I referenced earlier and I don't think it was filmed or recorded.

As for your reaction, I'm not saying that you can't transfer some form of social network to the mobile space (although I think at least for the immediate future it will be different from the online version), I was much more commenting on the attitude of the industry incumbents.

9:12 AM, October 10, 2007  
Blogger Charles Edward Frith said...

Good point JD, as in 'yeah but no but yeah'.

I'm in agreement if that's confusing. Mobile media is a different media and a completely different context.

1:27 PM, October 10, 2007  

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