I woke up to an approximately 68 degrees temperature difference between where I left (Denver), and where I am now (Orlando).  I am attending the American Marketing Association's (AMA) Mplanet conference at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida.

Yesterday I started the day leading a round table discussion entitled “Using Online Communities to Empower Customers."  A diverse group of individuals participated in a lively conversation.  Many of the questions centered around tactical issues involving an online customer community.  I walked away from the morning meeting with a couple of insights.

Insight Number 1: Many marketers are keenly aware of the power of a customer community
The conversation among marketers has grown in sophistication.  Rather than focus on the “why and what” around community (i.e. why have one, what value will an online community provide me), the participants of the round table had already educated themselves to the point where they could not only answer the “why and  what”; they could speak from a point of view of fairly deep understanding. Out of 11 participants, 10 had committed to starting a community.  The 11th participant shared her trials and tribulations from her nascent community with approximately 100 (and growing!) members.

Insight Number 2: There's still a need to sell transparency to the C-suite
Most of the round table participants were senior-level marketing leaders.  Many of the companies they represented, irrespective of company size and industry, were still stuck in the command and control mindset.  Transparency from a customer-to-customer perspective has still not caught on, and quite frankly, giving up control still scares many executives.  

But at least one Fortune 500 executive gets it.  Anne Mulcahy, Chairman and CEO,  Xerox Corporation, gave the keynote opening speech and identified this shift to a customer-centric ideology (from closed to open) as paramount for companies to succeed in an ever-growing social world.  Perhaps those round table participants will direct their executives to her message.