NYT: Determined Detractors
Really interesting story here in the New York Times -- Marketing's
Flip Side: The Determined Detractor, a term I've never heard
before. The Times defines determined detractors as "persistent critics
of a company or product that mount their own public relations
offensive, often online."
What fascinates me about the article is not that these determined detractors exist and that they use technology to pick off the big guys. That's old news. Instead, what fascinates me is that the big guys are still reacting to these determined detractors, rather than responsibly responding to a need and directly engaging in the conversation. Technology enables determined detractors to quickly coalesce into powerful and well-connected communities, usually because they are not being listened to. The answer is not to do better intelligence gathering so you can react faster. Instead, it's probably more beneficial to simply recognize the reality that you are now part of a community, so just join the conversation.
Notice these bits here from the article sound pretty defensive:
What fascinates me about the article is not that these determined detractors exist and that they use technology to pick off the big guys. That's old news. Instead, what fascinates me is that the big guys are still reacting to these determined detractors, rather than responsibly responding to a need and directly engaging in the conversation. Technology enables determined detractors to quickly coalesce into powerful and well-connected communities, usually because they are not being listened to. The answer is not to do better intelligence gathering so you can react faster. Instead, it's probably more beneficial to simply recognize the reality that you are now part of a community, so just join the conversation.
Notice these bits here from the article sound pretty defensive:
Now
some public relations agencies and research companies are studying
determined detractors, dividing them into different groups defined by
motivation, monitoring their complaints and trying to help corporate
clients decide how to react.
...
BuzzMetrics,
a New York-based specialist in word-of-mouth marketing, has developed
proprietary software to scoop up information on trendsetters and
potential influencers as they travel the Internet, posting messages on
bulletin board sites, updating personal Web pages and sharing
information through e-mail mailing lists.
...
"For
brand managers, the big challenge is to predict trouble on the
horizon," said Jonathan Carson, head of BuzzMetrics. "When they see a
detractor they have to figure out whether it's a single disgruntled
customer or an actual smoldering crisis that could explode."
...
"One
determined detractor can do as much damage as 100,000 positive mentions
can do good," said Paul Rand, managing director at Ketchum Midwest in
Chicago, part of the Omnicom Group. "In the same way that we need to
understand who the positive influencers are, it is becoming even more
critical to identify and manage determined detractors."
...
Left unchecked, "hear me" types can
become "reputation terrorists"
who have a personal interest in publicly criticizing a company, Mr.
Rand said. "These are the folks we have to track and stay on top of,"
he said. "To not do so can cost money."
