Thanks to Mack Collier, I read the best blog post I’d seen in awhile last week.
Mack talks about some of the implications of a landmark study by RPI scientists, who have shown that when 10% of a population is passionately committed to an idea it can spread.
(As we have heard ad nauseum) This means businesses need to pay lots of attention to their most committed advocates. The ones who sometimes are “higher maintenance” but who have mad love for a firm/product/brand, etc.
However, the study has also implications for your next PR campaign. Here are a few tidbits I’ve thought about in light of this research, can you add to the list?
- Targeting of outlets and journos, should BEGIN with consideration of media the 10% are consuming. It may not be the same as the other 90%. Apple’s PR department has this down pat.
- In all likelihood you are putting FAR too many resources into scoring coverage or buzz in places and with people that don’t care about you very much. Ask first what you can do for those who love you and they might do to amplify your voice (on their own, absent your direct control).
- Where possible, any kind of social media or peer to peer initiatives done in the digital space should begin with personalized outreach to the most rabid of the 10% and should include clear asks to this cadre (i.e. ‘we need you to share this video on Facebook’, or ‘retweet this’, etc).
- If you are creating content/marketing collateral to help you accomplish numbers 1 or 2 it needs to be tailored to the 10%. Again, kinda obvious in theory, but so often it is not what happens in practice.
What else?
Hey Jackson, thanks for the mention! To me, the biggest business takeaway from that study is that it further clarifies that most businesses are focusing on the wrong customers with their marketing efforts. There have been several studies that have found that the TOP goal for marketers is acquiring NEW customers. But new customers usually have little to no loyalty and passion for the brand, so by default, they won’t be a part of that 10%.
The most passionate customers are going to be your EXISTING ones. If you can connect with them and delight them, that will give them more incentive to spread that feeling of goodwill toward your brand to OTHER existing customers as well as NEW customers. But most companies focus on trying to acquire new customers then wonder why their acquisition costs are 5-8 what it costs to retain an existing customer.