Too many people believe in what I call the Field of Dreams approach to promotions…”if you build it, they will come”. While I loved that movie and appreciate Kevin Costner’s vision it’s a recipe for disaster in the online world.

Too many people believe that they simply have to build something cool online and the masses will come.

Here’s the reality check on that James Earl Jones voiceover…there are a lot of really cool things on the internet – in fact there are a lot of not cool things on the internet….in fact there are so many billions of cool, not cool, sort of cool, quirky, endearing, amazing, profound (insert your own adjective) things on the internet…how the hell do you expect anyone to randomly stumble across yours.

“If you build it they will come”….why? Do you expect people to inadvertently enter your url and be pleasantly surprised at what they serendipitously found.

Think of it this way….if you throw a kick-ass party and don’t tell anyone about it, you’re going to have a great time….by YOURSELF.

The success of the promotion is hugely dependent on the communication plan (i.e. the invitation to your party). Once the people show up, it’s the promotion’s responsibility to drive brand engagement, frequency, education, generate opt-ins, drive sales and more.

“If you build it and tell people about it, they will come”….while it’s not as catchy a slogan, it a far more successful one.

Filed under: Latest Postings on November 2nd, 2007