In this #InspiredMarketing blog series, we are sharing predictions on the future of marketing from 25 industry thought leaders. These predictions have been compiled in our new whitepaper, Inspired Marketing Predictions for 2013. In today’s post, blogger and social media specialist Andre Bourque shares his thoughts.
Beneath the Surface: Storytelling in 2013
For years, Seth Casteel photographed dogs leisurely floating in pools and playing in water fixtures. It wasn't until one of these animals lunged for a toy and dove into a pool that he captured an entirely new and revealing perspective on an otherwise ordinary event. It turns out, there's a whole lot of activity beneath the placid surface of a pool's water.
Following business trends, speaking with clients, publishing articles, and hearing stories at internet marketing conferences throughout the year, I've discovered a similar phenomenon. It turns out, there's a whole lot of consumer activity happening beneath the surface of business as well. For marketers, advances in social media are simultaneously forcing and enabling us to look beneath the surface of our businesses. What's happening with Casteel's canines is happening with our consumers, and good storytelling is what brings these remarkable experiences to surface.
One of the most extensively distributed and widely read articles I wrote this year was a story about Pinterest and a mom-and-pop company launched by the social media darling. What makes it so compelling is that it pairs the power of social media with the power of a single voice. A lady pinned a photo, an enormous amount of interest ensued, and a company was launched.
It's been said that content is the currency of social media. Good stories make up the higher value legal tender. In the content marketing world, that means creativity, investigation, articulation, and ultimately, engagement. Many of these stories dwell beneath the surface of the obvious. My Pinterest story and others like it are the kind of remarkable content brands and business need to find, articulate, and share to drive their reach in the social sphere.
So dig deep in 2013, and pull all your good stuff to the surface.
Andre Bourque, MBA
Blogger and Social Media Specialist
www.socialmarketingfella.com
@SocialMktgFella
Andre (Social Marketing Fella) is a Google top-ranked social media marketing and inbound marketing specialist, and a featured blogger on Social Media Today. He writes a C-level interview series on Technorati, focused on emerging social media industry technologies and trends. Andre has held positions in technology marketing at Sun Microsystems, Intel, Web 2.0 startups, and most recently in the in-flight entertainment industry. He serves as a copywriter and content marketing strategy consultant for several firms and brands.
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