Man has sought to communicate since the beginning of time.
The invention of the printing press by Caxton in the 15th Century allowed us to take a quantum leap forward by making the written word accessible to thinkers and scholars - and this really accelerated in the 19th Century with the invention telecommunications.
Today, the internet is providing the backdrop to a revolution - as social and political as it is technological - which surpasses anything that came before. Ordinary people now have the power to broadcast their thoughts to the rest of the world.
This democratisation of media and the development of interactive websites, blogs, and social networking site has created an entirely new form of communication - social media. If this is what can be achieved by individuals, the implications for business and social media are immense.
Video can transform brand websites into three-dimensional marketing tools, and social medial can extend a target audience exponentially while building a presence that rivals expensive traditional campaigns.
Traditional marketing techniques will not work on a generation who use little terrestrial media and rarely read newspapers
It is key to remain unafraid of these new technologies and learn how they can apply to your business or organisation. After all, many of these new marketing tools are completely free, so why pay for expensive advertising or PR campaigns?
Emergence of Generation Y or the Facebook generation
Those growing up in the New Media Age will shape the world. “Generation Y” - so named for being the children of those born in the 60s and 70s - have never known a time without computers and mobile phones, many having had access to the internet from an early age.
Using multiple gadgets at once and having a wide range of media outlets to choose from is second nature.
Consequently, attention spans are much shorter. Why read a whole article when it can be distilled into just 140 characters?
Traditional marketing techniques will not work on a generation who use little terrestrial media and rarely read newspapers. Their information comes from social media sites via a computer or mobile device. Reading the morning paper has been replaced with checking Facebook.
And Generation X has followed suit. From ordering online to googling stats, the internet has now been embraced by people of all ages.
The advent of mobile apps means that we can do almost anything from our phones. eBay, Amazon and IKEA all have their own apps, making it easier than ever to buy their products – even when you are on the move.
Traditional media has lost pre-eminence
So, where does this leave our traditional media? While statistics may be declining, it would be wrong to prophesy the imminent demise of traditional media.
In fact, many are adapting. The BBC now has one of the world’s most read websites, many papers have an online presence, and digital radio has increased numbers for many local stations.
Printed newspapers may have some form of a future niche market, though tablet devices may cause this to die out completely. It is vital that all organisations – public or private sector alike – prepare for this changing environment.
Doing nothing is simply not an option, nor is pretending that this is all ‘just a phase’.
Business impact
We are moving to a new model of ‘inbound’ marketing – ie, being found by customers – yet the majority of organisations (regardless of size) simply don’t grasp the enormity of changes taking place. They may focus on outdated outbound strategies or try to deal with new media without understanding the language of it.
Additionally, the recent economic downturn has caused many businesses to stick to “old favourites”, or reduce marketing spend, leaving themselves unable to compete properly.
The Federation of Corporate Real Estate are aware that large offices may no longer be feasible when flexible work styles (e.g. working remotely or from home) have been adopted by employees. As so many employees use social media sites and even incorporate them into marketing strategies, the days of banning their use at work will have to come to an end.
Many independent and struggling retailers, who would otherwise have found it difficult to stay in business, now have an online outlet which, at a stroke, makes them far more viable. Even Woolworths has been reborn as an online retailer, and Amazon is now the biggest book retailer in the world.
Broadband lines are fast becoming our modern-day canals, railways and motorways. This has been emphasised by the government’s commitment to broadband infrastructure (deadline: 2015).
Politicians want the United Kingdom to be as competitive as possible in the global economy. Now it is down to businesses do the same.
The revolution is gaining pace. Is your marketing changing to reflect this?
