A few weeks back I posted a follow up on the idea about managing brands in crisis during a social correction. In my own thinking this general thread is an efficient way to focus attention on the larger subject of "what is a social correction and why should I care?"
I took my last post down about Jim Cramer's PR problems(which highlighted the same point), because piling on was not my intention with the post. So let's go at a social correction from another angle in this post:
Today's Washington Post has a George Will op-ed titled "Demon Denim". In it he makes the case that some Americans' obsession with the fabric is tantamount to a sign of (social) weakness of character owing (in many cases) to distant agrarian roots. In my mind it indirectly feeds the developing mindset of class warfare but then I am not offering this op-ed as an example of anything other than suggesting it has a very small place in a very large (macro) process called a social correction. I pay attention to things like this because over time, they shed light on details that businesses can use to understand the myriad considerations of their changing operating environments. As people, this is very interesting but then my goal in developing this insight is to create competitive advantage with a new, broader awareness of the times our market is living through--right now. I file these observations in my own folders of specific trend threads so that I can add to them or eliminate them (from significance) over time. It is very helpful to stack these discussions as they come up intermittently rather than rely upon only Google.
Fashion issues are about as perfect an expression of social mood as one might imagine. Unlike birds, we can change our feathers a few times a day to reflect whatever we wish to "communicate". Social mood is a constant current running through these (creative) fashion expressions. Rather than look at details (of changing fashions), of which I personally care little about, let's consider how changing social values are reflected in a social correction. The value in doing this is to see how changing social mood influences what and how we create when gathered in our "groups". (also known as markets)
This was my initial reaction after reading his op-ed today.
Social corrections have a dress code <it seems>. Is it set by George Will? Certainly not. But we clearly seem to have a natural proclivity to align ourselves with values that speak our collective minds, suggesting the desire to return to traditional values; ones that are somehow perceived to be tested and "timeless". This op-ed may be a good (albeit)narrow example on a larger point.
Free thinking, in terms of personal self expression, is broadly accepted in times of social expansions and formality tends to break down during such periods but, social corrections, alternatively, seek to align society's groups in a kind of coordination that reflects upon shared values that have created order in the past. One primary (or immediate) goal of social corrections is to rein in the chaos of the previous top in social free thinking (that lead to all kinds of excesses that are now obvious-not just financial) and to assess where we are and where we are going <as a society>. Clothes are a remarkable accoutrement in this process. "Birds of a feather..." As social animals, we naturally do things in a manner that was established long ago and simply adapt these basic proclivities and patterns to our complex social living today.
Periods of social expansion and social correction are primary patterns underneath the white noise of all times we live through. These primary <social level> impulses can be seen to alter our environment, and they follow very broad basic patterns. Likewise, these social patterns shape the markets we intend to serve as business. In some areas these patterns and trends are obvious...but because there are so many examples of businesses missing obvious swings in the demand dynamics in their markets, it shouts out a powerful need to be aware of social mood, and how this perspective can guide businesses to align themselves strategically, on many levels, with the primary social impulses in their markets. Sound complicated? It's not. Really.
So George Will's comments, to me, are indicative of natural social tension and the broader realignment of shared values that correspond to larger social patterns laid down in all periods of social correction. In these patterns is a lot of food for thought relative to your business' goals.
Do I think causal Fridays are going away anytime soon? Probably not, but they may get dialed up a few notches as social traditions that established many long lasting rules of formality were nurtured during past social corrections. My personal favorite: the neck tie. Show me a tradition reinforced by military conduct and most often you are looking back on a time of social correction.
How we value things changes during times of social correction because how we think and what we pay attention to changes as social mood changes. It's about everything we do (create)together and it is a very good time to look a little deeper. Dave
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