Chuck Coulson, one of the chiefs of staff for Richard Nixon, once said, “Get them by the balls and hearts and minds will follow.”  Although not the best catchphrase for a marketing campaign, it seems that many companies have been using this technique to get customers over the years.  Be it through loss leaders, direct mailings, bait and switch, or just a good ol’ fashioned ad blitz, most advertisers seem content to bring a hammer to the party to get their point across and their goods sold.

Although countless savvy and creative ad campaigns abound, the scales have never really historically tipped in favor of the consumer, but rather towards the wants and needs of the seller. Granted, demand and purchasing power helped to shape the marketplace, but other than occasional economic sculpting, the customers have usually taken what was fed to them and forced to smile as they ate it.

For the current and upcoming generations this is no longer the case. Social Media, fully coming into its own over the past couple of years, leveled the playing field with a shift in the balance of power. Power is defined by some as “the ability to coerce someone to do something he would not otherwise do” ^[1]. However, I tend to think of power as your ability to achieve purpose.

Now the consumers’ voices are being heard and weighed. After years of being grabbed and moved around at will, they have efficiently tipped the scale towards their favor with price no longer the number one factor in determining if a purchase will occur. Here’s the rub: we’re dealing with problems of perception. Unfortunately, it seems that many companies can’t drop the mindset that they no longer win hearts and minds (or keep up the illusion that they have been) through the same top-down structure that they’ve been utilizing. This is obvious time and time again when you see companies realize that they need to be present in an online social space but approach it in the same direct manner they have maintained for years. This results in trying to get you to pay attention to them and buy whatever it is that they’re selling by constantly placing their most wanted action in your face.

On a level playing field things don’t fall like they did before and nothing turns a consumer off like this approach. People want the companies that they deal with to care about them, their goals and problems, while offering ways and means to help them achieve what they wish. While this is their power, or at least a large step in that direction, companies need not be powerless. Instead they must adapt to this change in the marketplace if they wish to stay competitive. There are as many ways into the hearts and minds of people as there are reasons why Nixon isn’t looked upon as a national hero. Where do you and your business efforts stand?

^[1] Ury, William L., Jeanne M. Brett, and Stephen B. Goldberg, 1988. Getting Disputes Resolved Designing Systems to Cut the Costs of Conflict. San Francisco:  Jossey Bass Publishers.  p.7

Photo: I Will Possess Your Heart from This is a Thing.