Best Buy and Social Something

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What’s the idea with @15

 

You’ve got to give Best Buy credit for trying to do something in social networking. And Cause Marketing. And Market Research. And Customer Relationship Management (CRM.) And Youth Marketing. But this effort is going to be a million dollar dud. As my drunken mentor Dick Kerr once said though, “The idea to have an idea is often more important than the idea itself.” (I told you he was a tippler.)

 

Best Buy may indeed extract its million back thanks to some unforeseen consumer insight, but targeting 15 year olds with a “what’s important to you” social net, is not the way. It doesn’t support a viable branding idea.

 

I know Walmart and the big box stores like Costco are dinging Best Buy and (RIP) Circuit City, but slapping a social net together isn’t going to win the youth market. And yes, kids aren’t exactly price shoppers and they do care about brand, but there are other ways for Best Buy to earn brand points than positioning itself a generic one-stop entertainment and technology shop. They need to dig deeper and not go all tactical. Peace!