New media presents both opportunity and peril—a cautionary warning that deserves immediate attention from all brand-conscious marketers.  The simple fact is that decentralized brand-building requires collaboration between companies and consumers.  The problem is that companies are not used to collaborating with consumers, at least not directly, on their marketing approaches and outcomes.  Yet it may prove to be a beneficial, aspirational goal.  A well-designed and orchestrated plan of shared creative activities can result in as-yet unrealized opportunities for increased customer intimacy and loyalty.  If, on the other hand, companies stick their heads in the sand on these issues or poorly manage their collaboration efforts, brand terrorists just might hijack their image and message.  Consider these recommendations gleaned from past experiences—both political and corporate:

1. Know how customers collect, create and collaborate.  Even carefully crafted commercials, news releases, and websites are fair game for consumers to share, dismiss, revise, and challenge using new technology tools.  Get out in front of these issues by identifying and engaging new media influencers. Monitor key blogs, social networking sites, and chat rooms that may provide leads on individuals relevant to your brand or cause—advocates, neutrals, or hostiles.  Track how ideas spread, evolve, and impact others. Then nurture advocates with useful information while taking action to move neutrals to a positive direction. You may also consider developing your own “revisionist” acts; creativity does count with customers and can win you points if done well.
2. For better or worse, YouTube is egalitarian. No matter how much you spend on production, there’s no guarantee your YouTube ad will be any more popular than other videos that address your brand. Slick and professional are not the hallmark of most popular YouTube videos. Before using YouTube as your own planned advertising medium, consider if someone else is already doing a more effective and catchy job on your behalf.
3. Facebook provides many plausible functions for markets, none of which is clearly dominant yet. Facebook recently announced that it strategically wants to be viewed as an application platform, not just a social networking site. While all of the Presidential campaigns have created a basic Facebook presence—not all that different from creating a simple web page or MySpace site—some have built custom applications that further extend functionality and are likely to enhance networks and mobilize communities.  Facebook has also rolled out advertising functionality that allows precision in the types of ads targeted to specific segments.
4. Not responding is no longer an option. Attacks cannot be ignored. From 1988 Presidential hopeful Michael Dukakis’ response to “Willy Horton” ads to John Kerry’s delayed counter-attack from “Swift Boat” veterans in 2004, America’s political campaigns have demonstrated clearly what happens when the attacked parties are either slow to respond or fail to retaliate at all – the attacker wins the day. New media, such as social networking and blogs, have greatly expanded the sources of threats and the speed at which attacks spread via community communications or viral marketing.
5. Brand terrorism may be right around the corner. For many businesses it is not a matter of whether, but a matter of when, with regard to someone kidnapping your message. Consider your vulnerabilities now. Re-think and update your crisis management plan quarterly. Identify the required participants and how they will be contacted in an emergency. Be sure to incorporate a plan for how to leverage partners and affiliates in your response. Think “Swift Boating” on steroids. Regardless of attack source, that is, new media or old methods, new media needs to be at least one major part of the response, because more and more that’s how you will effectively reach audiences to make your case.
6. Your media plan may need shredding. Visualize any number of your ”worst nightmare scenarios” about what can go wrong in your company (e.g., watching an online video of your passengers helplessly stranded on a tarmac in a far-flung and dangerous locale, your CEO accused by a whistleblower of corporate fraud, thousands of pounds of your food product in a recall). Create a hypothetical media plan that features an appropriate blend of traditional and new media to deal with an issue of this type and then build in flexibility so you can scrap it and shift resources completely, if needed. Remember that brand-damaging information moves faster than good news every time.
7. Your organizational structure may be an impediment. Consider a radical change in perspective about your organizational structure.  For example, replace a monolithic marketing organization with smaller units to enhance market-sensing capabilities and nurture instincts. Bake in the ability to act and react faster. Re-define the notion of "smart hires" based on the new structure, and build teams that balance mature experience with youthful new-media instincts in order to achieve depth and significantly improve results in a business and media world that demands more, better, faster and more nimble.

Related Content:
Full Report: New Media and the 2008 Campaign Season: Valuable Lessons for Business About Being First, Fast and Nimble 
Overview: Strategy & Operations