Old School v. New School
If you read this blog regularly or follow me on Twitter, lately you’ve been “treated” (and I use that word as sarcastically as possible) to a new strain of ramblings from me in regards to my feelings about the clash taking place between old school marketing/communications/pr people and new school ones. Some of you took offense, thinking that when I said old school I literally meant old in terms of age. Not the case! Rather, I was referring to a mentality in regards to communicating with your audiences.
I can pinpoint the exact moment the distinction between these two mentalities became clear to me: It was on the first day of the AMA conference before the first keynote took the stage. The conference chair got up and announced that no photography or video was allowed during the presentations. I looked over at Karine and the Innogage guys and was like “huh???”, following it up with an immediate vent of my frustrations with the policy on Twitter:
This continued throughout the conference, but the last session I attended really summed it up for me. This was the session they had “brought back by popular demand”. If there’s one quote I remember from it, it was when Tom from Innogage asked the presenter about interacting with your audience on the web and he responded that his father taught him never to argue with drunks and crazy people. The tweets that came out of me during that session are better representative of my absolute shock at the old school mentality of the two presenters:
Here’s the thing: normally I’m pretty isolated in a world were people (generally) agree with me about how to use the web to communicate with your audiences and market your institute. We may disagree on specific tactics, but generally we’re all on board with the strategy. Even most of the conferences I go to are like that. The AMA one wasn’t, and it completely threw me for a loop. This was an old school marketing audience. It took me right back to being an undergraduate PR major. The greatest irony is that these are the people that NEED to be taught about the current realities of the web more than any other group. People really didn’t get that expectations of your audience on the web have completely shifted in the last five years or so - that they are no longer interested in the messages that you’re pushing out there and that you don’t have nearly as much control as you once did.
So now I’ve given you about 400 words, but no real definition about what I think old school v. new school is (though I’m sure some of you have already guessed).
It’s control vs. engagement
It’s spin vs. authenticity
It’s about textbook marketing vs. what works in the real world.
It’s about treating the audience as the enemy vs. embracing them
It’s sticking your fingers in your ears, singing “lalala” vs. accepting reality
You don’t have to be young to embrace these concepts. You just have to be open to change from a traditional marketing/communications/pr mindset. Those strategies had their day but that day has passed. Your audience has higher expectations of you. Ignore those expectations at your own peril.
December 9th, 2008
HAHAHA… Great line “la la la”..
Great commentary (as usual) Karlyn.
December 9th, 2008
Amen. Great post. I’ve met people twice as old as me that embrace the ‘new hotness’ just as much, if not more, than me. It has nothing to do with age. It has a lot to do with realizing that it might be time for you to step aside and let someone else take over, or just acknowledge the fact that what you know might not work as well anymore.
December 9th, 2008
I don’t necessarily know if its about stepping aside. Anyone can learn this stuff if they want to. I will say that if they are unwilling to learn, then stepping aside is probably the best option.
December 9th, 2008
Excellent post. Some of those direct quotes from AMA are downright shocking. Have these people been living under a rock? I heartily agree that age has nothing to do with adoption of new practices. It’s all about attitude, and I know plenty of “older” folks who are embracing social media. The experience they bring to the table helps temper some of the unwarranted enthusiasm we “younger” people often display. (Not sure if I count as “younger” anymore, but I like to think so.)
December 9th, 2008
When I got to the point about ‘drunks and crazy people’ I gasped. Out loud. Old school indeed.
Change is the life force (if I can use a foofry word) of the succeeding in the world. How can they not embrace what’s coming in terms of social media? How can they not see the need to communicate with their audience and that social media is fantastic for that?
Drunks and crazy people. My word.
December 9th, 2008
There are people that I would like you to read this post to outloud…verbatim. It’s so good. Thanks for posting. I’m thinking about sending this to my dean.
December 9th, 2008
This was a great post…you really nailed “old school vs. new school”. Now to get others to read and understand…
December 9th, 2008
Good points, trying to deal with the old school mindset can be so frustrating. Sometimes I wonder though, will we ourselves be able to recognize when we’ve gone from “new school” to “old school”? I hope I end up keeping up with changes, learning new things, moving past all the marketing stuff that we rely on now as it becomes less and less relevant and embracing the new approaches, whatever they turn out to be. If we refuse to keep up, then I agree that instead of turning into condescending old-school types, we should step aside and let the new school-ers have at it. Although I wonder how willing any of us would be to do that realistically speaking, and how willing we’ll be to admit it if/when we become the “old school”.
December 9th, 2008
I know a “new school” PR prof teaching in a highly ranked PR program filled with “old school” people. I’m sending this to her to share with her department. As you said, these are the people that need to be taught more than anyone else. There are students sitting in undergrad and grad PR classes right now who have more real world experience than many of their faculty. Great post.
December 10th, 2008
I agree with you on all points Karlyn. Just know that the Old School people have been around the block few times and they aren’t going away anytime soon. …which reminds me of this rather biting statement that I read a few months back:
“For the uneducated (and there seem to be a lot of them), the vast majority of PR is done locally. The vast majority of PR is done in areas and markets where online communication just won’t cut it. Most of these social media self-proclaimed gurus are so myopic in their focus, yet feel compelled to project their beliefs about online PR to the entire practice.
Using Shannon’s example, try doing that kind of work - or any other for local nonprofits, organizations, schools, businesses - and solely use online communication. In the vast majority of instances … You’d be negligent. You’d fail at due diligence. You’ll do your clients no favors.
It is the sheepish sycophants calling themselves gurus and such nonsense (primarily in the tech world) that wouldn’t know real PR if it was staring them in the face. They spend more time fawning over their blogroll circle-jerk friends than they do offering anything of value to the community….
the whole thing is here: http://www.auburnmedia.com/wordpress/2008/08/14/jeremy-pepper-telling-it-like-it-is/
in the end though, any smart marketing or PR person can’t argue with results. They’ll have less and less success pumping out messaging the old school way, and they’ll simply work themselves out of business, as clients see better results with professionals who understand new realities.
This is a great post. I liked your vs. list.
December 11th, 2008
Karlyn, you’ve been far too kind to the ostriches. But you’re right.
This clash of ideologies extends beyond the online world of marketing/PR/strategic communications. It extends to media relations (my background) and is indicative of what’s going on in the world today. Jason Gorss had a nice post on his blog (which all of you should visit and read for a different perspective beyond web communications; you’re welcome, Jason) about the issues facing science journalism, but it extends to every facet of communication.
I’ve been taken to task for using the big-ass word “disintermediation” to describe what’s going on, but it’s the right word. I feel a blog post coming on. Damn, I wish I didn’t have too much to do this morning.
December 11th, 2008
Totally agree. And if you ever need an immersion in an environment where people dont get it and you feel like you are talking crazy, come down for a visit. LOL.
People need to stop acting like their ‘brand’ is whats important or that control matters anymore. Whats important is getting involved in the party that’s already happening and socializing, not creating a competing and passe party environment and try to force people to have a good time.
February 9th, 2010
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February 9th, 2010
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