Rex Byron A. Roxas

Link: http://cluetrain.com/book/markets.html

Quote:  “First Markets are filled with talk”

I expect to learn how people in the retail business communicates and how they interact with each other. I also expect to learn what the roles of the internet in different businesses are. 

Chapter 4

Markets Are Conversation

The author said that markets are nothing more than conversations. Magazines, stories and articles inside that magazine are forms of market. In order for a company or a single product to be cost-effective, it should be known and talked about by people, or else, it wouldn’t sell in the market. No one would buy anything unknown or brand names new to their ears.

For a product to be able to be sold out in the market, it should have creative and interesting gimmicks such as promos, combos, stuffs like that which make encourage people to buy that particular product. Companies should never run out of creative ideas to promote its products, otherwise, if they stopped creating innovative ideas, they would have lesser market and less people would buy and appreciate their products. If a consumer really liked that product that he / she bought, tendencies are he / she would boast it to his / her friends, tell them how it gives benefit and added fun to his / her life.

The author mentioned that first markets are filled with talk. Market talks are all about goods, products, and opinions. It’s as regards to selling products, what’s its advantages and how will it benefit you when you get to have it. It’s about the good talk. Salespeople would always tell you every good word they can think of just to catch your interest. They would even tell lies just to get someone purchased their products. It’s good to believe to these sweet words, but at times, it’s just too good to be true. Consumers shouldn’t let themselves get fooled by these flowery words by the sellers. They have to see to it that their getting the good quality of the product and not just the beauty of the cover of the product.

As stated, markets are conversations between people who sought out others who shared the same interests. These interests are the common interests of those who buy; the buyers. They are the ones who have so much to say rather than the sellers. They have all to say, comments, weak points of a particular product or company, etc. Though buyers have so much to say, they also have positive comments, not just the bad ones. They can praise a particular product if it’s really rewarding not only their own lives, but also other people’s lives.

People naturally have intersecting interests. They always have things to meet when they start talking. This is just because people are social individuals. If there are problems encountered, talk about it, for sure resolutions will be made. Conversations are free flowing. But it’s really unpredictable because it’s coming from a thinking of one person. No one can easily predict what a person would exactly say after he / she ends a statement especially if that person doesn’t have any interest in the discussion. Markets are conversations not because markets are noisy, it is because people see each other and converse about each other’s work.

In the twentieth century, the industry has the ability to attract more potential customers because of the rise of mass communications media. Industries came up with tactics to magnetize buyers such as strategies with large rewards to consumers and these rewards were protected. Mass marketing did it all. Products were successful because it was all advertised to the market through mass media. Products were put in the commercials, newspapers, magazines and stuffs like that.

Here comes the interruption of conversation. It is called the “anti-conversation”. It is the bad thing about marketing; messages are broadcasted to everyone, even to people who didn’t want to listen to them. Sometimes, some people are pissed off hearing or reading these advertisements simply because they are not interested to buy any of it. There must be something wrong in the production or in the promotion and this could be the failure of marketing.

There is another form of market produced by the internet. When people are logged on, they get more connected and communicated with each other. People love to talk and talk about things that interest them. They would always find things to talk about and at find themselves thinking about the same thing at the end of the day. People would gather around topics that interest them and it’s conversation. The internet is a place where we can buy things we need such as books, tickets, shoes, etc. We buy it from e-bay or whatever similar to that. It really pushes people to but something online because it’s easier, it’s like “you order-we deliver it to your home”, easy as that. People also get to learn, talk to each other and do business through this internet.

In the internet, everything is discussed. You can find details and information about a product you’re thinking to buy. You can easily check the net regarding that product without bothering going out of your house and waste energy walking in the mall trying to find the better quality you want. In the net, it’s all there, the comments, arguments and recommendations. These are done by people interested in it. The net invites customers to talk and learn from each other. Indeed, it has brought more reach and wider influence than ever. According to the book advertisement in the net doesn’t advertise it only contains different sponsors for their respective product.

I learned from this chapter that conversation is very important between the producer and the consumer. If there is no conversation within the market their respective product will not be sold.