chapter 1
The New Ecosystem:
Building Momentum
MOMENTUM.
It’s the thrill of a roller coaster gaining speed.
It’s an unstoppable train barreling down the tracks.
And it’s what every marketer wants in a campaign.
Whether it’s a video going viral or a blog post going from one share to thousands in just a few days, when a marketing initiative has real momentum, it is nothing short of pure magic.
And just like magic, it seems impossible to re-create, impossible to develop using a strategic, systematic approach.
But I’m here to let you in on the magician’s secret: You can achieve that momentum yourself by following five simple principles—principles that will allow you to consistently deliver great results with your marketing.
Today, the digital landscape is constantly changing, and news travels at the speed of a tweet. But there is a way to cut through the noise and build that momentum for your own campaigns.
Want to know the secret?
First, let me ask you this.
What does digital marketing mean to you?
Posting on Facebook and Twitter a few times a week? Emailing a list of subscribers? Cranking out blog posts every few days? Tweaking your website to make it mobile responsive? Trying out the latest new social media platforms to find the trendiest ways of connecting with your audience?
Has digital marketing just added more items to your to-do list?
It doesn’t have to be this way. Effective digital marketing isn’t about embracing every new tool available to today’s marketer— it’s about turning your entire approach to marketing on its head.
» The Future Has Arrived
Imagine you’re going for a jog. You’ve got your trusty fitness band on, to help you keep track of all the miles you’re running and all the calories you’re burning. Maybe it’ll automatically post your route to Facebook in case your friends want to join you. Or maybe you can even tap it to your friends’ bands to compare data and start a little friendly competition.
Now imagine that you’re almost at the end of your jogging route, when suddenly, your fitness band shows you an offer for a free sports drink at a store nearby. All you have to do to redeem it is tap the link on your band at checkout. You’re hot, tired, and thirsty, and the drink is right there. It’s a no-brainer, right?
Next, another offer might pop up, encouraging you to share that same link—along with a picture of yourself, post-jog, sweaty and smiling with that sports drink—to your Facebook page; the link would provide a free drink to any of your Facebook friends who clicked on it. You’re not one to keep a good deal to yourself, or to miss out on a great opportunity to share, so of course you post the link and pic. “So happy my little 5-mile morning jog can help get my friends a free drink, too!” Score!
If you’re a jogger, you might think of this as an incredibly convenient way to rehydrate on the cheap right when you need it most and feel some serious appreciation toward the sports drink company for being so thoughtful and generous.
If you’re a marketer, you see this as the exciting new reality of building marketing momentum in the digital age.
Instead of blindly sticking millions of identical coupons in newspapers and mailers, hoping that a small percentage of them might land in the right hands and evoke a response, marketers can now target customers individually, at the time, in the place, and through the medium that will make them most likely to respond.
This is nothing less than a seismic shift.
The ability to tailor marketing not just to a certain region or a specific demographic, but to an individual—and not just to an individual, but to that individual in the optimal place, time, and way—has revolutionized the nature of marketing.
It’s not just the medium that’s changed here. It’s not even just the ability to customize marketing messages to individual customers. It’s the entire mindset behind marketing. The entire approach.
And this new approach is centered around the creation of real momentum in your marketing: meaningful momentum that helps you reach your goals.
Let’s take a closer look at how we got here.
» A History of Push Marketing
Marketing is not a new concept. If you’ve got something to sell, you’ve got to tell people about it, or no one will ever buy. And since competition isn’t new, either, you’ve also got to explain why customers should choose your product or service over everyone else’s.
Ancient marketplaces teemed with merchants crying their wares, each trying to outdo the others. Latin graffiti has even been found scrawled on a wall in Pompeii, advertising the fish sauce the doomed town was famous for: “Scaurus’s best garum, mackerel-based,
