It's Not You, It's Me

Remember that wonderful, cop-out way of breaking up with someone? The “it’s not you, it’s me that I am breaking up with. I can no longer be in a relationship with you, because it’s me that I want to be in a relationship with? Make sense? No, I didn’t think so. We will get to why this will matter in a second. But, first you need to know who the “you” is.



The number one audience on social media right now, the “Millennials”, share content that interests them, not content that companies want them to share. Yes, “millennials” are heavy social media users and are 2.5 times more likely to adopt new digital, social and mobile tools. What drives social media activation for “millennials”, however, is content excellence. And with that excellence comes social sharing.

The idea of content being “share-worthy” is nothing new. Marketers used to encourage sharing by word-of-mouth. Today we talk about sharing by word-of-mouse. The “share” is no anomaly — we’ve just shifted from a mindset of advertising ideas to creating ideas that are worth advertising. Treating content in that manner ensures your message is meaningful to your audience.

The “It’s Not You, It’s Me” saying can be used in social media marketing as sharing is rooted in peer affirmation and how “millennials” feel about themselves when they share content with friends, family and random strangers. The great brands of tomorrow will not simply push out social media messages — they will inspire sharing. “Millennials” share content that adds to their story, and bypass content that doesn’t.

These “millennials” are not afraid of the “it’s not you, it’s me” excuse and in fact they will use it if you become a content abuser. Make sure your content is relevant, time-worthy and overall adds value to them (the you). It’s not about “me thinking,” it’s about “you thinking.” What do you (the audience) want, need or desire? Once you find their pain points, use them! Provide so much value added content that they should be paying for it, yet you are giving it away for free.

I don’t know anyone who will get the “it’s not you, it’s me” excuse when you are giving them the answers to all of their problems. I think it will soon change to: “It’s you, I need you. I can’t live with just me!”