When I buy tickets to a concert or show, I’m doing so with an expectation. That expectation is based on what I’ve known about the band and their music. But my experience does not end when I buy those tickets. I still have to drive to the show, park, wait in line, go inside, buy a drink, get in my seat, then sit and watch the show. After that I leave the venue, get in my car, maybe sit in traffic, and finally get home. Everything that happens to me that night from parking my car to getting home will impact what I thought of the show, my night, and if I would do it again. If you’re only focused on getting me to buy a ticket the first time and NOT on delivering a good product (affordable parking, bearable lines, reasonable drinks, good seats, good show) then you are not gaining my loyalty. This is analogous to just getting me to follow you twitter or Facebook page, but not adding any value to me after I’ve done so.

We subscribe to a brand based on what we expect to receive. When it changes or becomes something else, we choose not subscribe anymore. I expected to have a great night because I love a band’s music, but when the show is poorly organized and the music is poorly mixed, I’m going to think twice about going to see that band or going to that venue.

I would re-think your understanding that social media is entirely about opting in or out of a campaign. You can still make people upset and turn them off of your brand when you don’t deliver – even after they’ve lent you their eyeballs’ attention. In this age when word of mouth is on steroids (r. @garvee), doing this to your audience can have massively damaging consequences.

I would spend more time focusing on how to make things right with your community/audience and less on trying to defend a point or opinion.

For a fun game, see if you can guess the common denominator employer.

You seem to be mad that we listened and didn’t like what we heard, being able to only repeat that we “asked for it” by listening, searching, looking at all. Hey, point taken, we’ll stop listening to that brand.

Likewise, if you’re unhappy with someone’s reaction, stop reading.

People + Relationships + Communication = Bingo.

Dave has the first point covered. Obviously, enough people are in touch with what he’s doing/saying to warrant a blog post. It gets sticky at relationships and especially at communication. Based on the edits to your post, Dave has clearly reached out to you, but what about everyone else on here and Twitter that have expressed frustration in his Twitter behavior? Whether you are a personal or corporate brand, this is an opportunity to reach out, make a personal connection, clarify what needs clarification, and move on. When I tweet that my Comcast service is going bonkers, I get a response from a Comcast rep within minutes offering to help me out. What I DON’T see is Comcast publicly tweeting that too many people complain about their service. Why? Because that’s not showing people you care. It sends a really (and I mean REALLY) negative message about your brand. I respect Dave, his agency, and his work, but I was blown away to see his response to this and a similar incident from last week (i.e. @thedaryljohnson).

Back to Travis’ comment, we “opt in” to a brand because we are subscribing to who they are and what they represent. The day that changes course in a direction we don’t like, we leave. That’s when you’ve lost brand loyalty.

While I think everyone agrees Dave got carried away promoting himself, I think his biggest foul up to this point is how he’s reacted. No one does everything right 100% of the time, but not owning up and showing people you care is not going to make you come out on top.

If you only think of social media as an opt-in strategy on the readers part, I think you are the one missing the point and trying to apply a very traditional-marketing mindset. It is about signal to noise and community.