Real Time Marketing on Twitter - Brands + Political Campaigns

Source: http://m.adage.com/article?feedid=20&page=1&articleSection=digital_all&articleSectionName=Digital&articlePage=&articleid=http%3A%2F%2Fadage.com%2Farticle%2Fspecial-report-digital-conference-san-francisco-2012%2Fbrands-pols-learn-twitter%2F237358%2F

It is no surprise that marketing is shifting towards becoming more and more interactive. Twitter and other social media platforms enable interactive marketing to occur in real time.  Marketers can now communicate not only more easily but also with greater speed.  Marketing has gone from being a monologue to becoming a two-way dialogue between the marketer and the target audience.  May it be a political campaign's or brand's marketing plan, the consumer is becoming more involved in shaping the image of the candidate/brand.  The consumer's real time response to the brand/candidate can either aid in reinforcing or becoming a factor in modifying and/or clarifying a marketing message.  This constant online dialogue makes marketing more personalized and becomes crucial in establishing a strong relationship with the target audience.  Empowering and involving the consumer in marketing also requires a great deal of continuous monitoring as negative dialogues need to be dealt with appropriately and immediately to ensure that a brand's image is not tarnished. 

On Twitter, advertising and content have become one.  To my surprise, consumers are following brands on Twitter for entertainment purposes and not necessarily for "deals".  Consumers enjoy not only participating but also being passive followers of this two way dialogue.  As brand building has become more interactive and consumer's are given the freedom to "interrupt" a brand's message, I believe this must be translating into greater consumer confidence.