In week 2, I wanted to discuss with you the idea of markets and how they essentially will cease to exist to marketers as they know them. Target markets, demographics and Living Standard Measures have all been used up till now to try and gauge potential buyers in a particular industry. However a new way of thinking has emerged in the marketplace and with the insurgence of new ways of connecting to one another as well as with consumer-generated media vastly becoming a ‘buzz word’ in society today, these old school measurements seem to no longer apply.

It is a brand new day so it seems in today’s marketing world where consumers are becoming more and in-tune with the world around them, and they’ve been relying on their own inner voices to make buying decisions.

In other words the power that a brand holds over the customer is no longer in the hands of advertisers and marketing folk, but rather the decision-making process of whether to buy at Woolies or Pick’n Pay, is actually left up to what other consumers, friends and family have to say about the stores themselves.

This is what the Cluetrain Manifesto recites as “markets are conversations”, and this is key to understanding the new era in online marketing. The reason for this is because unlike the ol’ days when people were strapped for choice and diversity, modern technology has made it possible to get more than you bargained for when reviewing the pros and cons of buying that new product.

Sites like HelloPeter.com and the MyAdsl forums are sometimes now the starting places of information on companies and can make or break buying decisions amongst the Netting public.

It is important to keep this premise in mind when next you launch that big campaign because not only should you consider your own conversations as a consumer, but consider the possible talking around that particular campaign if people can’t get others to buy into. Interesting dynamic, isn’t it?

I’d like to get your thoughts on this subject as I think it has legs and can grow into an interesting discussion so feel free to leave your views via the comments function.