On Igniting Movements

Some days it’s damn hard to break free of the formula. Situational Analysis, SWOT, Segmentation, Objectives, Strategies, Tactics, Financial Analysis, etc etc etc. Wrap it all up, spin out a few campaigns, measure, adjust, rinse and repeat.

As marketers, the familiar is safe. It’s proven, it’s accepted, it’s what executives, managers, and investors expect and want to see.

But is it the right way to plan your marketing?

I was introduced recently to the term “Igniting Movements” via the “10 Lessons Learned in Igniting Word of Mouth Movements” (PDF) ChangeThis manifesto by the team at Brains on Fire, and it instantly resonated with me. It made me look back to so many of the marketing efforts I’ve been a part of, and sort the formulaic from the inspired, the campaigns from the “movements.”

Campaigns are part of the war vocabulary. (target, launch, dominate markets…)

Movements are part of the evangelist vocabulary. (evangelize, passion, love…)

The campaigns got results, sure, yet when I look back I recall the numbers. In contrast, when I look back at the movements I’ve had the privilege of helping shape – far fewer unfortunately – I recall the people. The passionate bloggers, the committed user group leaders, the enthusiastic volunteers, the inspired team members.

Campaigns are dry and emotionally detached.

Movements are organic and rooted in passion.

I also remember the intense and incredibly rewarding feeling of helping others, outside the company, feel a sense of ownership. I was helping them recognize the value and power of their own ideas about “my” product or brand, and hopefully empowering them to turn those ideas into something living, evolving, tangible.

The term “movements” can be intimidating – they don’t have to involve million-person marches, or involve tales of great personal sacrifice sure to be profiled on the morning news. They can be small, almost out of sight of the rest of the world – they just burn brightly among a select few. But if those are the right few, they can make or break everything you as a marketer are striving for.

I’m working on a marketing plan for a small project, with a few friends, that should see the light of day in the coming months. My first draft followed the formula, and covered all the bases. But it lacked inspiration, and this project aims to tap into a very real emotional need among a group of people bonded by a common and life changing experience.

In short, it screams for a “movement” – after re-reading the Brains on Fire manifesto, I’ll be parking the plain vanilla marketing plan for a bit and focusing on what it takes to tap into passion, enthusiasm, ownership, commitment, and fun.

Wish me luck.

Related posts:

1. Movements never end, and neither do communities