When social media gets too social…

23 August 2007

The problem I sometimes have with social media is that it’s so, well, social. In fact, it’s quite likely that were I not blogging, I would not have met many of H&K’s direct (and indirect) competitors – who are generally quite nice people. But damn if that doesn’t take away from the thrill of the fight. Even panels at conferences on social media – where people really want to see some blood – have largely become love-fests. It’s a shame. In the context of corporate Canada rarely do we enjoy true face-to-face confrontations, other than perhaps a few stares and glares as one pitch team walks into a boardroom as another walks out.

And that’s disappointing. Which is why I sometimes wish we might all one day gather up our respective teams, meet in the middle of a field, and (if nothing else), lay down some heavy aggro on one another… much like this:

or this (itself a fine piece of marketing a la Braveheart)…

Published on 23rd August, 2007 by Brendan Hodgson

Posted in Fun stuff, Social Media |

6 Responses to “When social media gets too social…”

  1. Aaron
    23 August 2007
    9:15 am

    Blogging has led to sme great personal connections for me – people I would not otherwise have met. But yeah, I guess it can all be a bit faux-polite sometimes.

    As for the haka, Tana always did it best…

    http://somethingrotten.wordpress.com/2007/08/07/nostalgia/

  2. Brendan Hodgson
    23 August 2007
    10:48 am

    Absolutely agreed on all points, Aaron, with the side benefit also being, in addition to the relationships that have sprung from this, the fact that I’ve learned a lot more than I might have learned otherwise… I guess I just get a tad nostalgic for those simpler, more naive days:-)…

    Yeah, Tana makes it personal.

  3. Julie R
    23 August 2007
    4:57 pm

    Brendan, I think PR people in general are "faux polite" all the time.  No one will ever tell you what they really think of a competitor (unless you ask me or David Jones).  Just go to a PR awards show and talk to PR people, it’s nauseating.. everyone is so "busy at work" .. "clients are the best" … everyone loves their job and their boss … it’s not just in social media circles that we all agree with each other, it’s a scrum happy mentality.  I’ve been keepin’ it real for 20 years, I wish more PR people would.  

  4. Manners 2.0 at Gypsy Bandito
    23 August 2007
    9:08 pm

    PingBack from http://gypsybandito.com/manners-20/

  5. CT Moore
    23 August 2007
    9:14 pm

    I think that the problem with the love-fest 2.0 is that nothing interesting ever seems to get said. It’s self-destructing the blogsphere.

    http://gypsybandito.com/manners-20/

  6. Brendan Hodgson
    30 November 2007
    5:20 pm

    Is it just me, or are public relations practitioners – in particular, the bloggers – an uber-sensitive

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