Apparently video games are bad. Thats what they said about the movies at the start too. Kids should be reading books instead and people lament the culture lost to the decline of the written word on paper. But if you could flip it on its head and look at an alternative universe where video games existed before books and reading, how would people perceive books? They would laugh and shake their heads at this entertainment vehicle where you can’t actively affect the storyline, where there is no true interaction with the medium and at a solo pursuit that can’t be shared with your peers.

Traditional advertising and digital advertising are sort of in the same boat. Some marketers stress and shake their heads at social networking, consumer empowerment and the perceived decline of the thirty second spot. But the rise of digital advertising has to be considered an opportunity and a challenge. Imagine a world where digital had come first, before traditional mass media. Marketers would scoff at traditional advertising, asking; why doesn’t it directly hit the chosen target audience? Where is the two way dialogue with the consumer? Where is the opportunity to learn from the consumer and respond accordingly in the best interests of both the brand and the consumer? And of course where’s the opportunity to crowdsource?
Crowdsourcing is a word filled with possibilities. The ultimate example of course is Wikipedia, a success that surprised everyone but one that in hindsight was inevitable due to the massive connecting power of the internet. This connectiveness has increased at an incredible speed with social media at its core. But as increased video and Youtubing tops the list of digital marketers 2010 predictions, will we see the concept of crowdsourcing for brands become too much. Will consumers start to switch off at yet another video competition, designed for marketers to try catch lightning in a bottle, invades their world with the promises of prizes and opportunity? The Satchi and Satchi Toyota video submission debacle may serve as an example of this. They didn’t receive many contributions from the general public for a couple of reasons. The first was that they didn’t utilise social media to any great extent but perhaps the main failing was the lack of clear targeting and target market relevence. To truly crowdsource effectively you need to avoid trying to garner any involvement you can and instead focus on getting the involvement of the people you want. If you are an Australian brand or ad agency, you should limit the involvement to Australian consumers online. Why do other companies work for them? Why crowd out your target market? The world is getting smaller online but as ROI is ultimately measured in sales it makes sense to focus on those who will make those purchases and will ultimately justify your work.