I have read several articles, challenging the methodology of brand positioning in the age of social media and online marketing.  Traditional brand positioning deliverables are messages developed and placed based upon a specific target audience description and a defined competitive understanding.  The argument is that while positioning works in traditional media, it does not best drive a brand in online and social media where there is an interaction and conversation.

An author recently described social media as follows, “Social media has been likened to a cocktail party where brands had better come prepared to talk about more than themselves.”  Playing out this theme, you probably don’t want to talk to everyone at a cocktail party, only people who interest you or have something interesting to say.  You seek out and engage with those individuals.  This is what brands must do in social media to succeed.

So, where do brands turn if “positioning methodology” does not deliver the goods in social media channels?  The answer, in my opinion lies in traditional database marketing and direct marketing analytics.

I just saw a study on active social media participants which showed that the most valuable brand spenders were not the best referrers of the brand.  This analysis was accomplished by creating a 10 decile segmentation structure for social media participants.  Segmentation based upon actual consumer data can help shed light on how a brand can engage with a customer across both on and offline channels.

Back at that cocktail party, do I want to talk to 10 million Facebook users or the 100 that will drive the referrals…..the answer is somewhere in between. As always, I welcome your thoughts on this topic.