Group dynamics make for miserable marketing. Here’s why. Most groups exist over long periods of time, so they have to work together. Say one person in the group expresses a strong opinion. Maybe everyone agrees. Maybe no one agrees. But because everyone has to continue to work together, no one wants to disagree out loud and potentially damage a relationship. The silence of the group is mistaken for agreement, so that one vocal person dictates the outcome, often in exactly the wrong direction. If you absolutely have to gather opinions from a group, consider doing it via individual e-mails where no one is copied and everyone can share his or her opinion in confidence.
