If Oscar Wilde were alive today, he’d not only have the Twitter handle, @NothingtoDeclareButMyGenius, he’d understand the concept of inbound marketing more than any other nineteenth-century Irish playwright. As someone who reveled in the attention he received from his career and his eccentricities, he’s known for saying, “There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about and that is not being talked about.”
Being talked about is at the core of inbound marketing, where the content found on websites, YouTube channels, and social media posts attracts people’s attention to generate interest in what a business has to offer. As someone who knew how important it is to get people talking, Oscar Wilde would easily recognize the value of social media and online content to the digital marketing world. The idea of “being talked about” depends on being actively creative and never being at a loss for great quotes, great work, and great ideas.
Building such a groundswell of interest comes about when people are engaged and stimulated by something that speaks to their interests and demands. Yet great content can’t be the final step in the process; that would be too one-dimensional. It’s about doing great work and then making people aware of it, getting some reactions, and starting some conversations.
Generating interest and curiosity is crucial for creating an organic form of marketing spread by those who embrace and support it. Content and social media are the foundations for this. Whether it’s a mix of Facebook posts, ebooks, infographics, videos, or tweets, your online presence must be vital, engaging, and continuous. This consists of reaching users on a level far from anything like a sales pitch. It’s about connecting with them about topics and news relevant to your field, using humor, and establishing a relationship based on a common point of interest. It’s about letting people know there’s some personality and thought behind your business.
Oscar Wilde may not have known that over a century after his death he’d still be as quotable as he is—not to mention that his work would still hold up to today’s sensibilities—but he seemed to know that the way to stay in the public eye is to be someone worthy of the public’s attention, and that’s achieved through a combination of creativity and promotion. Wilde was one of the earliest examples of someone who was both a serious artist and a prominent social figure of his day who never shied away from self-promotion. If a marketing group were to follow his example, it would face the dual challenge of creating cutting-edge content that intrigues and informs, as well as the task of smart, compelling promotion. If he were still around today, he’d likely see his Facebook page and Twitter account as being avenues for his creativity and wit that would, in turn, provide momentum and fuel anticipation for his larger creative efforts. He’d likely counsel marketers today with the idea that work and the promotion of that work go hand in hand, and both feed the other.
Wilde is also known for saying something less famous than his “talked about” quote: “Success is a science; if you have the conditions, you get the result.” Inbound marketing is its own science of a sort. It has its methods and strategies and following them to create the optimal conditions can help your organization reach more people, which results in more leads arriving at your doorstep, increasing your company’s potential for success.
Creating the genesis for online conversations and shared content is where inbound marketing takes off, with the destination being your company’s website. Social media and content marketing provide excellent opportunities to get branded messages out to consumers, yet the challenge is determining how to get people talking and then ensuring they never run out of conversation.
Image credit: AbodeofChaos
