Shifting some of the power from corporate entities to the hands of consumers: The use of online social communities for industries with "exciting" product categories

The proliferation of online social communities resulted in major changes in consumer behaviour. Marketers have to adapt to this phenomenon, to seize the benefits resulting from online customer engagement and minimize the risks associated with consumer’s empowerment. This paper provides specific recommendations for those promoting "exciting" product categories. Three case studies are provided to better explain the advantages and challenges from implementing online social communities. As customer retention is harder to achieve, and fragmented media and advertising clutter makes traditional marketing highly inefficient, marketers have to find optimal ways to balance their Integrated Marketing Communication mix between old and new channels. A passive recognition of the existing shift in power is not sufficient. The dawn of an interesting and interactive marketing era has arrived. Marketers have to rethink their strategies, as in the future only those companies that facilitate three-way communication dialogue between customers-company- and employees will thrive and succeed.