The thought is less than savory, isn’t it?
That analogy is the premise of meatball marketing, a term coined by American entrepreneur, author and public speaker, Seth Godin. It is also the focus of his bestselling book Meatball Sunday, published in 2008.
Basically, the concept of meatball marketing is the harried approach to building a delicious ice cream sundae, but when you’ve got a big meatball at the base, the results are chaotic, repulsive and ultimately unsuccessful.
More and more often, marketers don’t take the time to evaluate, deliberate, and evaluate some more before making a decision.
Social networks, blogs, videos, and mobiles – essentially Web 2.0 in a nutshell – can be compared to the countless toppings at an ice cream parlor.
Before you pile on the toppings, consider how you’re going to build your campaign to ensure each tactic is relevant and complements the others.
If you took that meatball and surrounded it with a heaping pile of spaghetti, fresh tomato sauce and grated Parmesan, the experience is entirely different – and it works!
Social networking is about being personable and connecting with the community, including your prospective and existing customers. It’s about building relationships and engaging – not hard selling. If people don’t buy into you, they aren’t going to buy into your product.
Before building your sundae, consider what your personal brand is and how it’s packaged; how effective are you at attracting an audience that connects with you (and your brand); and have you selected the right “toppings” to complement your brand/personality?
How well you bundle and engage will have a major impact on your success in today’s social media market.
What do you think is the major factor that causes marketers to build meatball sundaes?