Have We Redefined “Friend”?

I have been following how marketers use technology and marketing innovation to connect with consumers. There are so many questions about why we are using social media, what we get out of it (both brand and consumer) and what the real value is to both.

I recently got a Facebook message from a friend saying “Rob suggested you like XYZ company”. So not only can I have a social relationship that I can opt into, now I can have people suggest that I actually like them. Have marketers missed the point? Have we gotten so caught up in acquiring friends that we have totally devalued friendship? In the real world the measure of a friend is about shared experiences and interests that build a relationship based on actions not words or clicks.

Many retailers are acquiring Facebook friends, yet when I walk through their doors I don’t even get a “Hi, how are you today?” or “What can I help you with?” I can be a “friend” in the confined social media bubble, but in the real world of live interactions and transactions you not only don’t know my name, but you know nothing about me. We really need to connect dots between the social media world and the live world.

Conversely, Social media tools can create great value when we leverage them with other mediums. I love how Dutch airline KLM’s ‘How Happiness Spreads’ Foursquare-based campaign employed a ‘Surprise Team’ to give passengers tailored, unexpected gifts at the airport. They used several social tools to “listen” and then create a memorable live experience for customers. Throughout November 2010, as soon as someone checked-in at a KLM Foursquare location within its network of airports, the Surprise Team went online to find more background information about the person, decided upon a suitable gift and gave it them before they flew. For instance, one traveler tweeted he would miss a PSV Eindhoven football game while he was in New York. The Surprise Team, accordingly, gave him a Lonely Planet guide book of NYC with all the football bars highlighted in blue.

Marketing innovation and technology can have great impact when we use it with deeper purpose.