iMedia Connection Blog

By now we have all heard about the leadership failings of ousted J.C. Penney CEO Ron Johnson. There has been plenty of traditional marketing-driven Monday Morning Quarterbacking going on to explain what went wrong. In a nutshell, investors lost faith in Johnson’s plan to reinvent the brand’s sales approach, namely scraping discounts and introducing everyday low prices. It seems Johnson wanted to modernize J.C. Penney; make it appeal to a younger demographic; make it cool. What’s wrong with that you may ask? Nothing - unless the majority of your customers are the so-called old and uncool. And for the purposes of this blog, that’s the big social media takeaway. You don’t have to host tragically hip social campaigns to produce truly profitable results.
Recent polling suggests that teens and twenty-somethings are experiencing social fatigue. Facebook doesn't seem to hold the same sway with these age groups. On the flip-side, individuals in their 40s, 50s, 60s, and above are a growing social audience. Being that I am only 4 years from being a member of the 40 club, I am not prepared to label any of these demographics as dull. Still, more mature users have different reasons for establishing a social media... Read more