Brands have to participate to interact with consumers. Common buzz terms like “1.0 versus 2.0” crop up. Gary Vaynerchuk tells brands to “get in the trenches” in this blunt and accurate video. Douglas White calls it “broadcast versus engagement” in this excellent article. Everywhere marketers go, people are looking for one thing—interaction!
Consumers want to interact with a brand. This forces businesses to share their brand with interested communities of people. Thus brands must allow consumers to participate in the brand experience. This coins the term “participatory marketing” and leads businesses down a path where their brand is no longer their own. And that can be a good thing.
