The consumer revolt has begun. While major marketing gurus once thought they could build interest and drive sales with expensive advertising campaigns and other promotions, the power has now shifted to consumers, who are often doing more to build brands than the marketers themselves. It's strange but true. Who would have ever thought that consumers would use a platform to talk to others about brands and products and make recommendations. Who ever thought others would even listen ? In "brand hijacking," buyers take over marketing from professionals. This represents a fundamental shift from the marketing department to the consumer. With hijacked brands, the consumers are the ones who define the brand's image, taking it out of the hands of the professionals. As consumers gain control, their brand loyalty grows. They feel a direct ownership interest in the brand. Traditional marketing professionals may think this model is upside-down, but it is happening with increasing frequency, and it often translates into more money for the brand.
So what is happening today;
• Marketing departments can no longer control a brand's development.
• Consumers have taken over some brands, "hijacking" them from professional marketers.
• When such hijacking happens, brands can become phenomenally successful.
• Consumers who hijack a brand are trendsetting pioneers driven by their response to the brand and a sense of exclusivity. They can generate a "tipping point."
• When a brand is hijacked, marketers should stand aside and build on the collaboration of the collective.
• Brand hijacking represents a fundamental societal shift as consumer society matures.
When this brand hijacking happens, marketers are challenged to go with the flow and follow these guidelines:
Embrace your customers - Often, the first reaction of possessive marketing departments is to resist new enhancements to a product's use in the field. Big mistake. "
"Marketing managers aren't in charge anymore.
Don't kill the grassroots efforts with legal challenges - Mattel actually sued Barbie doll aficionados who started fan clubs and produced customized dolls. It sought damages and cease-and-desist orders against its own customers. Southwest Airlines took a completely different approach when it allowed a reality TV show to tape its renowned customer service employees in real interactions. A Southwest executive said the airline trusted its employees and its viewers' judgments.
Find out why your brand has been hijacked - Create a timeline to discover what impetus - such as ads or current events - may have caused the change and when it happened. Then, do nothing. Maintain your brand's basic image. Sometimes, hijacked brands are attractive exactly because they are out of style or not accepted by top-tier consumers. Resist the temptation to do new marketing.
Establish a "code of conduct" - Bolster the reasons that the brand was hijacked in the first place. If the product is anti-establishment, such as Napster, do not start doing banner advertising or selling T-shirts online. Marketers must maintain momentum yet resist selling out to mainstream marketing forces.
Understand that social media has empowered consumers like never before and they are wielding this new power to suit them not you. Marketers can chose to ignore social media or engage consumers via social media but make no mistake about it if you don't have a clear set of objectives and metrics your'e quickly going to find that your brand is not only been hijacked but that consumers are laughing at your marketing efforts right in plain site.