There's some great stuff happening on social media these days. Big. Epic. Life changing in fact.

From the surreal to the sublime, to the silly, to the serious.

What does that mean for brands? Particularly for brands which want to be 'part of the conversation'? It's an interesting question in light of Ad Land's strategic heritage. For decades Creatives have been distilling the weighty thinking of Planners & Account Managers. These brainiacs hone reams of research into an award winning strategy. A single minded point of view.

Except. This is the problem. On social media you won't find a single minded point of view. You'll discover the pluralistic point of view. It's complex. It's sprawling. It's nuanced. It's niches together. It's cross pollinating. Ideas meet ideas and inspire other ideas. There are no hard edges to communities. Genres fade into other genres and then loop-di-loop into something totally weird - to you. But not to its creators, followers or #mutuals. 

If brands want to get involved in conversations on social media, they have to embrace the pluralistic whole. The entire experience. You have to be open and nebulous. Broad not pointed. Fluid not rigid. Because brands that muscle into social communities projecting the values of ad agencies get cancelled.

Brands, it's time to let go of the old adage: a great idea is single minded.