Social Media Without Borders

The one tricky thing about marketing and PR in this digital world is the globe-hopping nature of all those little blue links on web pages. For marketeers it is a bit daunting - one minute your target American consumer is visiting your carefully crafted microsite, and the next minute he or she is reading a review of your product by an Canadian blogger. There is a tremendous amount of "marketing message leakage" as campaigns in one country inadvertently reach consumers of digital media over the border. This leakage is especially true across the American / Canadian border. The leakage is so great it takes a misplaced "u" in the word color or a detailed evaluation of a clickstream to really spot an online Canadian.

This is a big deal for many brands where product offerings and regulatory restrictions differ tremendously: Auto, pharma, consumer goods - they all have this issue.

Social media marketing campaigns are a uniquely equipped to handle the nuances of today's cross-border brand leakage. Because social media conversations are authentic, one-on-one conversations, you have the luxury of pointing individuals to the information (or messaging) that is most appropriate for them. For example, you could direct a young Canadian to US sources of Scion info in advance of the Canadian Scion launch, and notify them of the Canadian offerings when they occur. You could facilitate conversations between passionate brand Molson drinkers on both sides of the border (does it taste different, really?) to spark debate. Same for Gatorade - does Gatorade taste better in Canada because it is served colder?

It is with this opportunity in mind that today I'm excited to announce the launch of com.motion USA. And to make sure we tap the brightest minds we are setting up shop in Boulder, Colorado - the heart of Social Media USA.

com.motion USA's goal will be to offer global brands the opportunity to embrace social media and inspire authentic conversations between real people. This is marketing in the 21st century.

I've been kicking around the social media industry for a few years, and have helped some of the largest global brands think about their social media strategies. (MicroSoft, Pfizer & Chrysler, to name a few.) I'm looking forward to talking with you.