Bob Cargill’s Marketing Show

What Marketers Can Learn from Taylor Swift

Last summer, Taylor Swift came out with a great new song called, "Look at What You Made Me Do." And on that song, she said something like, "Sorry, the old Taylor can't come to the phone

right now. Why, oh, 'cause she's dead."

Marketers, advertisers, PR people, social media people, business people in general...what can we learn from those lyrics?

A lot of her fans, including myself, took it to mean she had grown up...and she has as an artist, a performer, a business person. She has grown up in so many ways. She has evolved. She has changed with the times. She is better than ever.

And we need to be better than ever.

Sorry, our old marketing, advertising, PR, social media, business ways can't come to the phone right now. It's 2018. We need to be better. We can be better. We need to be like Taylor Swift.

A Copywriter is Like a Performance Artist

A copywriter is like a performance artist.

A good, experienced copywriter can go in many different directions. We are like actors and actresses. We wear many hats. We walk in others’ shoes.

We are versatile, agile, nimble and flexible. We are enlightening and entertaining, interesting and informative, persuasive and personable. We write in many different voices, tones, styles, ways, shapes and forms. We connect with our audience members on cue...whoever they are, whatever they do.

I’ve been writing copy for years. At various times during my career, I’ve specialized in writing both commercial (B2B and B2C) and nonprofit copy for direct mail, email, print ads, banner ads, catalogs, websites, white papers, landing pages, blogs, social media…you name it, I’ve written for it.

A copywriter is like a performance artist. Don’t typecast us. Don’t pigeonhole us. Don’t think there is anything we can’t write.

Social Media is a Marathon

Social media is a marathon for brands, businesses, marketers and advertisers, not a sprint. A blog post here and a few tweets there just aren’t going to cut it. You need to be in it for the long haul if you expect to see a return on your investment. You need to be everywhere your audience is as often as possible. Don’t underestimate the importance of passion, persistence and perseverance if you want to succeed on social media. You need to be active on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and the like day in and day out, always and forever.  There is no rest for the weary on social media. 

Don't Work in a Vacuum

Far too many businesses, organizations and teams of all sizes, shapes and forms have their people working in a vacuum. That's not cool. That's counterproductive. That's an easy way to eventually fail. 

Does You-Know-Who Tweet Better Than You?

If President Trump can use Twitter to make news, you can, too. Only your news will be good news. 

Red Tape and Social Media

Red tape. Unfortunately, it prevents so many businesses and brands from making progress in any way, shape or form on social media.

Whether it’s because too many chefs are in the kitchen or there is just far too much adherence to outdated rules, red tape can undermine even the success of your very best efforts.

The most successful social media practitioners have a green light in front of them, not red tape. They get autonomy and support from colleagues and management, not questions and criticism.

The most effective social media programs are authentic, transparent and immediate. They’re carried out quickly and seamlessly with very few interruptions.

If you expect to be successful as an organization on social media, you’ve got to cut to the chase and cut the red tape.

Like an Ice Cream Truck on Social Media

One of my many summer jobs as a kid was to drive an ice cream truck.

To this day, I can remember selling all those fudgicles, popsicles, creamsicles, chocolate eclairs and strawberry shortcakes.

Behind the wheel of my truck, I would wind my way through the neighborhoods of my hometown, announcing my arrival with that familiar ice cream truck jingle, that same, old melodic chime that would play over and over again. And almost as if on cue, customers would appear out of nowhere…like clockwork.

Your brand, corporate or personal, needs to be like that ice cream truck on social media.

You want your audience to be anticipating your arrival on the scene. You want them to know you. You want them to like you. You want them to see you so often on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other such online communication channels that it is almost impossible to ignore you. You want your fans, followers, connections and constituents to feel like they just can’t wait for the content you have to offer them today.

The Three A's of Social Media

Years ago, while watching our kids play baseball, I learned about the three A's from a neighbor of mine. He said these were the standards he held himself up to on the job as a pediatrician. The three A's – ability, affability and availability. I said, “You know, the three A's would apply well to social media." Ability – you have to know what you're doing on the job. Affability – you have to be friendly, courteous and kind. You have to get along well with people. Availability – you have to be online practically all the time. So, do you have the three A's of social media? 

Use Social Media as an Ice-Breaker

Think of social media - brands, personal brands and corporate brands - as your ice-breaker. You should let your fans, your followers, your customers, your constituents get to know you. The more they know you, the better they know you, the more likely they're going to be to do business with you, to support you, to be loyal to you, to share your content, to re-tweet you. So on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, you name it, any social media channel, think of social media as your ice-breaker...whether you're an individual brand or a corporate brand. Use social media to let people get to know you.

Getting Attention on Social Media

In this podcast, I talk about an interview I heard in November of 2016 on WGBH (89.7 FM) radio with Tim Wu, author of the book, "The Attention Merchants," and what I learned from it about getting attention in this day and age using social media.