As I started to walk over London Bridge your voice was speaking to me. You were doing a long introduction to one of your podcasts. Thinking out loud or broadcasting out loud might be the right label for what you were doing. You said it was an idea that you were still pondering.

At some point you mentioned that in the evolution towards more open conversations (social media in action) individuals or companies were referring people to a competitor rather than keeping the customer captive with a sub-optimal solution. As an example you reminded the listeners (US listeners?) of the scene in the Miracle on 34th St where Macy’s Santa Claus refers people to Gimbals.

The comment struct a cord with me. Going back to my days as a software developer in Silicon Valley we discuss about ‘first fit, vs. bet fit’. In many circumstances you can match two things but it might not be the best match. Good enough but not great. Should a company ship software that meets the spec of should the company do it right? Microsoft vs. Apple is an example in my mind.

Social media tools allow businesses to engage in healthy coopetition. Focusing on finding the right solution for the customer and building brand loyalty rather than just selling what seems to be good enough. The customer can also engage in the process so they are more satisfied with the result

Nordstrom operates in a similar fashion. They will buy in an item from a competitor in the mall if that is the right item for the Nordstrom customer.

As best as I can remember that is what was going thru my head crossing London Bridge with a voice in my ear.

Keep up the stimulating conversations…

-John

Interesting posts from Minnesota commmunications bloggers for the week ending 10/18/09.
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@AlbertMaruggi Well @inquisix is going through the pt #1 and #2 — been thinking about it for a while.

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@AlbertMaruggi will post comment later

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@AlbertMaruggi Whew, coopetition to community is on a continum, which has moved closer to community. Having personal experience right now.

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@AlbertMaruggi Absolutely agree with customer participation. (whether you ask or not) Flattened a lot of marketing research (test marketing)

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@AlbertMaruggi Increased, direct customer participation (Twitter, web, blogs, SM) has spurred entreprenuerialism. Barriers to entry lower.

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@AlbertMaruggi Cust Participation as force for existing turn-over (more oppty) it really is a revolution for existing biz– join or die.

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@AlbertMaruggi Jeepers, you asked for it. Exciting times we live in my friend. Good or bad, we’re def. not bored.

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