Quick - who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year? No Googling. To qualify for the prize you have to know right off the top of your head. I dare say none of you raised your hands. It was Marti Ahtisaari - the former Finnish President, and mediator. He won for "his important efforts... to resolve international conflicts".
But, here's the thing - I dare say that if I ask that question again next year - you'll all know the answer.
That's how an "interesting" choice can help our marketing...
Say what you will about whether or not President Obama deserved the award this year - the level of discussion of the relevance of the award, the merits of why it is given, and the general topic of world peace is through the roof. This level of conversation is the core mission that furthers the brand of the Nobel Foundation and its objective to (as Nobelprize.org says) "spread information about the Nobel Prize and the achievements of the Nobel Laureates".
Okay... second pop quiz. Who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007? Again, no fair Googling. But, I dare say a bunch more of you got this one right. That's right - it was Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Now, let's lake a look at the Google Trends for the search term "Nobel Peace Prize" for the last five years:
You can see there's a spike every October when the announcement is made. But last year - barely a squeak. 2007? Well, it was off the charts. And then, going back, it was fairly flat for the four previous years for Muhammad Yunus, Grameen Bank, the IAEA & Mohamed ElBaradei and Wangari Maathai respectively.
I'll bet you dollars to doughnuts that once the results are in, this year is an "Al-Gore-off-the-charts" spike for interest in the topic.
This gives us a real moment as a reminder in our own marketing. In today's world, we can't be noisier. There's already too much noise. We have to be more interesting. We have to create a conversation - and sometimes that means we have to be controversial. Sometimes we have to go against the consensus and make a more interesting choice - even if (maybe especially if) it's not the safe choice.
As you consider your content marketing and social media outreach, consider these five lessons out of what we learned this week from Oslo:
1. Get beyond an OCD control of your brand
Do you think that the Nobel Foundation cares that many in the United States are saying goofy things like "nobody cares what five Norwegian guys" think (that's an actual quote folks). Just as a side note, this year the panel is actually four women and one man.
Anyway, the key is to guide the conversation and make your statement. Look for ways to ride positive conversations, react to negative ones and in general... lead, lead, lead.
2. Be patient, and don't ignore the bad stuff
If you listen - you'll hear both the positive and the negative. But you have the opportunity to drive as much (some may say more) value out of the negative. A well thought out reaction to a negative conversation can be just the thing to turn brand perception around.
3. Transparency trumps opacity
Now, the Nobel Committee isn't the best here - and perhaps that's why the heat is as strong as it is. But in general, they aren't pretending either. The lesson for marketers here is - if you make a choice, be honest about it. If you subsequently find that it was wrong - admit it. If you believe in it, despite what the blogs say - stick to it.
4. It's a marathon, not a sprint
Remember, this is not a "campaign". There is no end-zone and there is no "winning". A content and social media marketing process - is just that - a process. It's a way for us to start, maintain and expand the relationships with our customers so that we build evangelists.
5. Don't stick a sharp pointed object in the lion cage
Know where you can and cannot stand up and take a position. Going in and editing your own Wikipedia entry with something controversial is just as bad an idea as constantly using Twitter to talk about how you can "make more money by using our product". Be cognizant and wary of where you talk about yourself - and where you merely listen.
The Nobel Committee has explained Obama's win as the "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples." Many analysts have deduced that what the committee is saying is that it's the "promise" of what Obama will do that earned him the prize.
With no cynicism, I think this is, again, pure genius - because it works exactly into what the heart of the Nobel Foundation is all about. It's about the promise and the discussion. There could be no better outcome for the Nobel Foundation than if the topic of "Peace", and what that really means, remained a vocal and loud centerpiece for some time to come.
I only hope that I can someday come up with something that generates that much conversation.
Comments