Disqus - Latest Comments for Steve_Dodd

Re: How to beat ChatGPT and the new wave of Content Shock

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 19 Jun 2023 13:38:40 -0000

The 80/20 rule strikes again! Opportunities are always in the 20%. Following the crowd keeps you following. Striking a different path delivers uniqueness many in that 80% seek but are too afraid to explore.

Re: The biggest tech threat to creators is not ChatGPT

Steve_Dodd — Tue, 16 May 2023 12:11:28 -0000

The internet business model will change over time and AI tools will need to pay for content being used. That will further restrict their access to overall content which in return, may further degrade their real value. And, much like we are experiencing with media in general, there are looming "trust" concerns that will escalate. Those concerns may very well help individual publishers maintain strong market positions.

Re: How to deal with the existential crisis presented by AI

Steve_Dodd — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:25:12 -0000

Thanks Mark! 14 years? Wow! As we once said so long ago, if something is free you are the product. The ramifications of this are rapidly escalating, more than most realize. I'm looking forward to more insights from you and your community about this fascinating evolution of technology and societies in general.

Re: How to deal with the existential crisis presented by AI

Steve_Dodd — Tue, 03 Jan 2023 12:50:39 -0000

Mark, after 40+ years of technology experience, nothing has me more excited (and worried) than this. I've been thinking about the calculator analogy but believe using it provides a false sense of security we need to be wary of.

The calculator was a tool. It gave answers but did not have the ability to interpret, evolve and adapt them. This new stuff does. Years ago, you and I discussed the notion of "Society Think". We've seen technologies that influence this by clustering people of like minds to evolve communities over the years. But, these new advancements can potentially influence the communities through interactive discussion without human intervention.

I'm not sure if you've ever watched America's Got Talent but a runner up winner from last season was a company called metaphysic.ai. It creates deepfake puppetry currently powered by people but when you add these new AI bots to the equation, fakeness takes on an entirely new meaning. As you watch this and realize what is actually happening (https://www.youtube.com/wat... its easy to imagine a world where we may never know who (or what) is really "talking" to us. And, more importantly, what is the real foundation / purpose of the messaging.

Currently our laws are fundamentally based on human to human activity, reactions and responses. There is nothing governing the impact or responsibility of adding machine influence to the mix. The Head of Google NEWS once said "Social Media is to the First Amendment what the AK-47 is to the Second". These new technologies have the very real potential of making our reality and beliefs even more questionable.

The real issue in my mind is (like the results from a calculator) will most even question it.

Re: How to deal with the existential crisis presented by AI

Steve_Dodd — Tue, 03 Jan 2023 10:59:39 -0000

Totally agree, Rosemary. However, humans in the broader sense typically don't evolve with technology that way. Eventually it becomes the accepted reality no matter the quality (or validity) of the output.

Re: In remembrance of Twitter. Let’s never forget

Steve_Dodd — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 09:43:52 -0000

Those were the days. But will Musk bring them back to life in a better, more powerful manner? Not sure, but hope so. Sometimes things need a hard restart to clear a clog. Twitter had certainly become clogged in many ways for many reasons. I still believe he has a much bigger vision of Twitter's future than he's currently letting on but we'll see. The good news is this morning, it's still up and running! Maybe all of those clogging it and threatening to bail, did?

Re: The Tech Giant War is here, and there are opportunities for marketers

Steve_Dodd — Wed, 11 Aug 2021 12:50:05 -0000

Hi Kiki, this is going to be a fascinating discussion going forward. Add to this the elimination of third party cookies (better explained as the tech giants trying to control this data for themselves and block everyone else), and it becomes increasingly obvious that too much power in the hands of too few is not a good thing.

We are also seeing rapid alternative platform growth as users "escape" this insanity and look for "safe harbors". Sites like Reddit and Quora are exploding. Companies like Verticalscope are quickly creating enthusiast channels that attract very focused communities of users. Millions of vertically focused discussion forums are strengthening as users "escape" the noise and become increasingly concerned about "control". Investors are placing huge bets on these alternative platforms.

And, governments all over the world are becoming increasingly concerned about the societal impact of too much control in the hands of too few whose only interest is their personal monetary success.

All that said, there are rapidly growing opportunities for marketers outside of these 'titans' that may prove to be very beneficial because the user communities are more focused, easier to identify and far less served.

Re: Why does marketing exist?

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 15 Mar 2021 10:07:13 -0000

Great post, Mark! Marketing (product and market definition / discovery) is the first step but many continue to believe it is the last.

Re: Welcome to the Government-IT Infrastructure Complex

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 11 Jan 2021 09:03:57 -0000

Hi Albert, your first sentence says it all. "Rush". What was one reason for the escalation that caused this? The rush to censor (or at least qualify) a perspective. A perspective of a person who influences the lives of countries. And, it happened because that individual and his supporters believed they were already being arbitrarily censored when in reality it was the fundamental social media business model just doing its thing. When we "rush", we miss the basics and likely don't take the time to really understand what is going on and how to effectively deal with it.

Alas, once political, the rush is on to secure as much support (votes) as possible, even if for all the wrong reasons and even if the consequences may be far worse than the cure.

Does BigTech need to be broken up or if nothing else, opened up? I believe so because ANY consolidation of power creates adverse impact for those not in that position. That is why the American Constitution was written the way it was. But, before we try to fix something, we need to clearly understand why it broke. And, IMHO, the current rush to a politically driven solution is ignoring that.

Re: Welcome to the Government-IT Infrastructure Complex

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 11 Jan 2021 09:02:43 -0000

I believe it is more complicated than that.

Re: The cookies must die.

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 03 Feb 2020 11:36:30 -0000

Given the state of rapid change we are facing and the consequences of this "Cookie" trend, hopefully long before that!

Re: The cookies must die.

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 03 Feb 2020 09:50:06 -0000

Great observations, Mark. Many (including you) have predicted this for years. As you clearly observed, the consumers will ultimately win and in this case, have. Tim Cook said "that vast majority of internet users have no idea what is happening but when they find out, will be very annoyed". The evolution of this "annoyance" as now risen to a critical mass. And, it is escalating fast.This is just the beginning.

I loved your quote "the new marketing mindset must move from change our customers” to “come alongside our customers". I'm looking forward to hearing more about your approach to address this dramatic shift and the emerging technologies needed to support it.

The impact to all aspects of consumer engagement is about to change dramatically impacting both our commercial and political landscapes. Hooray! And, it was the consumers that ultimately forced it to happen.

Re: An alternate view: The real influencer scam

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 13 Jan 2020 12:01:34 -0000

https://media2.giphy.com/me...
Nuff said.

Re: The ultimate privacy betrayal: Your smartphone is cheating on you

Steve_Dodd — Fri, 27 Dec 2019 16:55:15 -0000

Kiki, great post that so many need to read! This entire situation has been a pet peeve of mine for years and sadly things are getting worse. As you stated, you can no longer trust inbound calls or emails asking for personal information to access accounts! Fraudsters are incredibly good at looking legitimate. Unfortunately this means significant changes are needed by companies for legitimate approaches.

I particularly loved your point 'Try to distance yourself from known privacy offenders such as Facebook, Google, and Amazon'. It's so sad that the organization's who dominate most internet activity have now become the the least trustworthy.

The good news is this means there is still lots of room for disruptive innovators as these titans become less and less trusted by an ever increasing savvy internet user community.

BTW, the only point to your protection advise I would add would be to turn off 'location' on the phone unless needed for specific use cases like driving directions. When that use is completed, turn location off again.

And finally, my answer to your question is '4'

Re: So what about that Peloton ad?

Steve_Dodd — Fri, 06 Dec 2019 17:18:04 -0000

ROTFL: As always, straight to the point: "Bottom line — When shit happens, react quickly and make it right." By now we should have all learned that the definition of "Shit" has now become (if it hasn't always been) how others perceive it. Right on target (again), Mark.

Re: Preparing for privacy: Here comes the CCPA (and more!)

Steve_Dodd — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 16:11:50 -0000

Great post, Kerry. It'd be nice to see the US step up to something so individual states don't bury us all with unique legislation and defensive action. But, like GDPR did, most will just adhere to the one with the toughest policies.

Re: Modern Day Hypocrites

Steve_Dodd — Sun, 05 May 2019 12:34:22 -0000

US politics is all about hypocrisy. Do as I say, not as I do is the rule. Both the left & right are equally guilty. And, the people fall for it time and time again.

Re: The Hysteria of Our Times

Steve_Dodd — Fri, 03 May 2019 21:02:18 -0000

Yup, couldn't agree more. Just please add FoxNEWS to the same list!

Re: Is it time to eliminate the sales function?

Steve_Dodd — Tue, 05 Mar 2019 21:58:52 -0000

We always are! And, given the stock market's negative reaction to Tesla's announcement, many others are as well.

Re: Is it time to eliminate the sales function?

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 19:28:16 -0000

Absolutely love this discussion, Mark. We'll done! I have always loved how you are able to get to to root issues.

I feel that until companies actually understand what the real marketing and real sales functions are, and more importantly, how they are structured to do what they are supposed to do, both are ineffective in the current state.

Real sellers don't sell, they help people buy what is appropriate. Marketing can never emulate that because the most important part of that buying process is the discovery phase. Conversely, only a very small part of true marketing is promotion and advertising. Most companies ignore what real marketing is and until they figure that out, selling (buyer assistance) is crucial.

I do agree with Scott that Tesla is a bad example as its sales are not driven by buyer need but currently a cult-like following.

Let's get real here for a moment and consider a complex solution based product or service. Most marketers have no concept of the customer buying process. Never have and never will until companies actually get what marketing really is. And, selling will continue to be ineffective and challenged by this kind of thinking until companies realize and motivate sellers to do what they are supposed to do.

And, one last thought... until the complexities of buyers and their processes are remove from the equation, marketing in its current state will continue to be ineffective. The pile of failed 'best product companies' is still bigger than those with lessor quality products and exceptional execution.

Re: Human-centered marketing case study: A radical business turnaround

Steve_Dodd — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 12:22:12 -0000

Andrea, this is terrific! Congrats! Many suspected all along that the "automation" approach was ultimately going to fail as it missed the entire reality of the human side of sales/marketing just to save a few $$ or attempt to expand reach. Those who realize(d) this have done well throughout. The best news for folks like you who have realized this is that all the rest will take a long time to recover giving you a window of opportunity to differentiate yourself and truly capitalize on this "new found" reality.

Re: 2019: The Most Human Year Because It Must Be

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 09:24:52 -0000

Can't wait to read this! I love this quote "Instead of “selling” to people, we need to find innovative strategies that will help us be invited into the organic customer conversations where the real work is being done." And, you know what? This has been the secret to sales success since the selling profession began. Finally, marketers are beginning to understand this reality. It will help eliminate the "Marketing-Selling" divide we've been talking about for years.
Happy New Year, Mark!

Re: Why management consultants are becoming the new ad agencies

Steve_Dodd — Thu, 06 Dec 2018 10:21:15 -0000

Totally and no matter how hard they try to fight it, their magic "BlackBox" is rapidly shrinking.

Re: Why management consultants are becoming the new ad agencies

Steve_Dodd — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 13:59:26 -0000

Fascinating topics, Mark! Loved the podcast!
1. The agencies are fighting to maintain and defend the advertising business model "status quo" while their customers are looking for newer and better ways. A classic case of disruption that involves a mix of capability the extends beyond the ad (as we've all predicted over the years). ROI is key as is addressing the consumer advertising backlash.
2. Facial recognition, emotional interpretation and image editing are taking us all down a new path of privacy concerns over unauthorized (think GDPR) and the ever expanding fakery that is quickly evolving to become the next AdBlocking as consumers and governments push back.

Re: Why there is no better time to pursue creative careers

Steve_Dodd — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 10:06:20 -0000

Love this! "Today, our companies are no longer in control of the sales process, the
“funnel,” or the consumer journey. The customers are in control. They
are the marketers. We can no longer buy our way in. We have to be
invited to the conversation." - Long live the customer!!!!!!