Everybody is talking about how social media is changing everything. Some people seem to be waiting for the mist to fade and for it all to become clear so they can fully understand how it works. The way I see it is that this ‘changing’ is here to stay. Change is the new way; to be more accurate it is the old way (think Darwin), but we are only just starting to embrace this continual evolution in the business world.

I liken it to having children. You won’t ever understand them and you cannot ever be in control. They are always going through ‘a phase’, you never get it licked, they are constantly changing? You have to guide, be responsive, adaptive and not controlling – if you try to be control and find a ’solution’ you will get very frustrated as what works one day will not work the next. Like trying to hold on to water. This is how it is in marketing and business now thanks to the social revolution. Just like with children it is about relationships, not spreadsheets, lists or hefty documents. We can’t have 5 or 10 year fixed strategies and plans. What we can have is direction, ambitions and hopes.

Go with it; every day is a new day and brings with it new things that you cannot predict. Be flexible, seek out and embrace the new opportunities that present themselves. Deal with the tantrums, the slammed doors and the tears and enjoy the fun and achievements that come with them.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 1st, 2010 at 11:31 pm and is filed under chitchat. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Tags: 5 year plan, business, change, children, evolution, marketing, opportunities, social media, strategy