Cue the Carpenters

“We’ve only just begun….”

I hear that a lot lately when I talk to folks who are trying to figure out the best marketing models for brands to reach consumers in the social media realm. Though the skepticism over ad models for social networking is growing, some people lately seem to have very little hindsight.

Just think how far we’ve come already, from marketers building profile pages on MySpace to counting friends to tracking influencers to widgets and applications to Open Social. (OK, that last one’s just a maybe, since we haven’t exactly seen much from OS other than talk.)

And yet the conversation between brands and consumers has only just begun. It’s in that early, awkward stage. You know, the one where you run into a friend from college you haven’t seen in a long time and once you get past the “what are you up to” and “how many kids do you have” questions you start looking over their shoulder for something else to focus on. Or the conference cocktail party where you meet someone who wants to gab your ear off and you need to figure out how to gently extricate yourself. (No, this has never happened to me. I’m always interested in what you have to say. Always.)

John Battelle describes this uncomfortable dance in a recent Searchblog post:

In essence, brand advertising has been, up till now, an attempt to influence the conversation that potential consumers will have after experiencing the advertising. With conversational media and marketing, that concept is time shifting. Now brand advertising can *join* and even *initiate and convene* those brand conversations. And that requires a different skill set, one media folks are just starting to explore.

The key, as John says, is to find a marketing vehicle that works for brand, content producer and consumer. There will be a lot of awkward, uncomfortable conversations between brands and consumers in the future. But, like the best networkers, the brands that get the message right and know how to develop that first conversation into a lasting friendship will succeed.