Tim Leberecht of frog design was supposed to speak about "The Shrinking Brand - Marketing in a Small World". In fact, this is what it still reads on the official conference programme.
But after listening to Jeff Jarvis' keynote on "The Great Restructuring," Umair Haque's pledge for "Constructive Capitalism," and Andrew Keen's rebuttal of both, he felt the need to change the focus of his talk and approach it from a broader view. So he came up with the "Seven Rules of the Chief Meaning Officer". His key points, in a nutshell:
As brands face an unprecedented level of competition, transparency, and consumer empowerment on the social web, 'meaning' is becoming the new powerful currency that connects brands with their brandholders in the 'share economy.'
The new marketing leader, the Chief Meaning Officer, is a strategic activist, social media entrepreneur, constant innovator, and integrator. The Chief Meaning Officer has the potential to transform business through meaningful marketing - marketing that consistently creates added social value, not as an afterthought but a sine qua non.
While marketing has always been the art of turning friends into customers and customers into friends, it is now the art of finding, befriending, and activating the like-minded for a common cause, for the common good - and for profit. Brands that have a reason to exist, an argument to win, will be more appealing than ever.
The Seven Rules:
1. Listen and converse (and converge)
2. Atomize your brand
3. Activate your customers
4. Think and act like a media company
5. Give more than you take
6. Be the change
7. Be yourself
In the spirit of transparency he preaches, Tim put the slides for his talk on SlideShare. Please don't forget to rate his talk at SpeakerRate.
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