I took my newest dog, Watson, off the leash today. Yep, that's right. I threw caution to the wind and let him frolic freely in Bend, Oregon's public land for the first time since bringing him into foster care four weeks ago. His self-expression shone through. He jumped and ran and played. He barked and squeaked with joy.
And yet, amidst his enthusiastic antics, something happened. He kept coming around to check on me. He'd look up briefly to make sure everything was alright; he wasn't quite comfortable in his freedom. He was unleashed, but still engaged.
As I struggled through the rest of my run, I thought that Watson's behavior had a lesson in it that we could apply to the new world of business communications. Employees, consumers, businesses, marketers, communicators have been "unleashed" in the social media and social networking world. Everyone is blogging, messaging, Facebooking, tweeting, digging and more - it is a happy festival of content and information. Businesses can engage with their audiences on a personal and real-time level, while also gaining valuable, current feedback.
Gone are the days of strict messaging rules and carefully crafted communications documents. Even the most gifted and targeted marketer may have trouble following the "rules" when fitting thoughts into a 140 character tweet. So the online conversation goes - it becomes real, engaged and vital. There is a fine line to be walked between corporate messaging and creating real relationships. Too corporate = alienation. Too casual = undermining the brand.
So maybe a Watson-like approach is best. Unleash the personality of your business in the online world, but don't forget to check in with your brand and with your business to remember what your goals are.
-Jacq (@jacqsmith)
