Marketing In Phoenix: \"My Posts Are Better Than Yours!\"

By Allan Starr

A Phoenix-based advertising, public relations and marketing veteran asks, "Has elitism invaded the sanctum of social networking?"

This question results from viewing thousands of posts on social media sources over the past several months. A recent post, in particular, brought the aforementioned question into sharp focus.

There it was on Facebook for all to see. A lovely and earned Arizona-based marketing pro whom many of us know – a self-professed (and actual) early adopter – had implied, if not proclaimed, that her posts, which admittedly are uniformly serious, substantive and cutting-edge oriented, are at least a little more worthy than yours and mine.

Indeed, this petite-yet-towering figure of Phoenix public relations propriety, itself, stated that she "doesn"t want to know what people had for breakfast," an obvious reference to some of those, yes, rather inane posts to which we are sometimes subjected when visiting our favorite social gathering spot, be that Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Yes, come to think of it, a certain local news anchor friend who shall remain nameless and who is doomed by ineptitude and shallowness to remain at the local level (though there''s nothing inherently wrong with local), DID actually proclaim a few weeks ago, "I had roast beef for dinner lat night."

OK, some posts are better, more inspiring, more informative, more titillating or more amusing than others, but so what? They say character reveals itself on the golf course (if so, I"m in big trouble!), and I"d like to add to that, it does through Facebook, as well.

But where, if it goes unchecked, is this "more pertinent than thou" attitude to lead? Should we be ashamed that, at times, we have nothing more monumental to offer than "TGIF" or "That was a great movie!" . . . or asking for prayers for a friend on life support? Most people think this is OK. They love seeing, not only the intellectual heights that can be reached and the humor, even suffering, that sometimes are revealed at this mental watering trough, but anything their Facebook "friends" have in their heart at a particular moment.

Yes, most people seem to love human frailty, theirs as well as others. They love venting and seeing others" "vents." They love the personification of imperfection, if for no other reason, than that it somehow validates their own precarious status on the human scale (as if one is being graded on a curve).

So, let''s keep those comments going out through contemporary social media channels. For better or worse, it is a demonstration of humanity on parade. And it''s about time individuals had a proper place to strut (spout off, cower?) in front of their respective peers. What''s this got to do with marketing? Only that it is the considered opinion of most marketing professionals; especially those who enjoy being eyewitnesses to the human condition, and it certainly applies insofar as their understanding of marketing and public relations processes is concerned.

Marketers have to understand as much as they can about what makes people tick. If online networking is of material assistance in that regard, more power!

About The Author

Allan Starr founded Marketing Partners in 1976. The Phoenix-based firm provides local, regional, national and international strategic marketing, advertising, public relations and sales promotion services for a diverse client list. Marketing Partners Phoenix