Guest Post by Christopher Flores
Most know me as a New York City joint venture guy or “that moderator on SMC” or “that college dude”. More than being a spectacular person 90% of the time, I’m a scientist of people and cultures, an Anthropology student. In Cyberculture, my thing is Social Marketing and Web 2.0.
Like many powerful concepts of in their hey day, social media is one of those things few people get to use in a grand context. When it comes to Web 2.0, a good majority of people only ever see “the small picture”. And even then, they see the small picture in a very dim light. It’s unavoidable in this information age. That’s why there are Anthropologists – in part, to help you open up the world a little more.
Allow me to make the case to revisit your blog and see it in a grander context. After all, thinking big did wonders for all successful elites (Bill Gates, Google, Ted Turner). Why not for you?
Let’s think BIG, shall we?
Many marketing bloggers or blogging business owners are at the age where they can remember the Civil Rights movement or the Vietnam War. Remember the fights, the marches, the mass demonstrations? This was the power of organized perception and expression. My professor in Anthropology famously said this semester, “Students ended the Vietnam War”.
Let’s revisit that statement again – “Student’s ended the Vietnam War”. That means they caused the ruckus, they made front page news, they made the evening broadcast, they found their way into Washington, and they influenced public policy and world events.
They didn’t “just protest”. Remember that as I hand you a big picture at the end. Remember that you don’t “just blog”. Just like Nadia doesn’t “just draw”.
Case in point: Louis Vuitton vs. Nadia Plesner
Alex Ginsberg of the New York Post reports that Louis Vuitton is suing Danish art student, Nadia Plesner for copyright law violation. Plesnar wished to use a Louis Vuitton bag in her design to draw attention to the genocide in Darfur.
She’s a member of an organization that raises money for the cause and the T-shirt reflected her outrage over what mainstream media covers; Vuitton-sporting socialites like Paris Hilton. Read the rest of the article here.
Analyst Jerimiah Owyang adds in an article about brand hijacking (another interesting subject): “Since then, Darfur has grown in awareness, having now been on Digg, a Facebook group formed, spread in the news, and hundreds of blogs pointing to her site.” (conversation domination anyone?)
I’ve looked into the Facebook group, featuring over 3,00 members and read many of the comments expressed by Nadia’s supporters on Digg. The handbag giant’s decision to take on the small time designer really put them at odds with the artist and human rights/Darfur crowd, many of whom are Louis Vuitton customers (not any longer though).
Arousal and organization is the beginning of a powerful movement (Remember the 60′s?). One that can be staged against Louis Vuitton and do tremendous damage to the brand and dent the company’s bottom line. With tighter organization, more discussions, beginning demonstrations, thousands of supporters had the potential to save Nadia by burying Louis Vuitton in public outrage so that they drop the suit and please public demands.
Did you miss it? The big picture. This is not limited to civil rights, genocide prevention, and other “macro-movements”. It’s any group with any common interest. The tools and media are available to allow a “micro-movement” to take shape and move forward.
What is a micro-movement?
Anything we do at local levels is a micro-movement. There is a group who will rally behind you. All you need is one person. If you can move one person, there’s likely many many more with the same interest. You don’t have to find them all. After a certain number, your fans will find more people to pay attention to you.
That’s why Nadia has a thousand or so people who will buy her T-shirt, visit her site, defend her publicly on the web, and organize on her behalf (even perhaps use more force against Vuitton on her behalf). Nadia was a simple art student from Denmark. Now she’s a global figure.
Nadia has since removed the bag from her design. But I wonder about the different ways this could have gone. What would happen if we set her up with Twitter and other tools and apps, and what if we told her to blog her case against Louis Vuitton, asking and appealing for more action in her defense? What if you did it for her? The groups are there for you to tap. You would have been a pretty popular person for doing it too, wouldn’t you say?
Take another good hard look at your blog, your organization, your online efforts. Think about what you are doing when you blog, rather than think so much of what’s featured on it. Who are you appealing to? Do you want to appeal to them? What are you doing for them?
Use the tools of social media and get in touch with others with the speed and ease that the world has never seen before and appeal to people. Tap the raw power that stops governments in their tracks and turn it toward whatever (ethical and honest) thing you have going on. It’s not pie in the sky, poofy, mystic power. We’re talking proven, observable, true power, YOURS for just the price of shipping and your right to choose to use. Now that’s thinking BIG.
About Chris
Christopher Flores is a Dollarmakers Inc. Joint Venture Specialist, social media enthusiast, and student at SUNY Plattburgh in New York. The self styled “Merchant Of New York City” works with any honest and ethical person looking to find alternative business solutions. He blogs at Merchant of New York and can be reached at Twitter.
