Existentialism by Social Media

Digital media platforms show us the distinct advantage it holds when compared with traditional media platforms.

Television, radio and a subset of publications inform audiences through a one way communicative model and while some form of measure does exist, it is intertwined with corporate agendas and industry competition.

Generally, the media has by all accounts, become leaders of persuasion and agenda setting principles – each competing for ratings and subscriptions between one another while continuing to portray impartiality and accuracy – but really, how far will this go before it collides?

We are told what to think, how to think it and more impressively, how we can easily be taken in by suave marketing styles that capture and relate to the raptures of an individual’s emotive underlining in tone rich relation-based narration.

The argument of digital media platforms – social networking to be exact - is based on the economical portion of information delivery and the newfound height of interaction that can now be achieved amid growing ROI justifications.

Going in at a rate of one tenth the cost of traditional media, new technologies have the discerning capability of targeting, for all sense and purpose, “the right kind of consumer”.

It brings with it the challenges that many pre-social platforms had already brought to the socio-network table such as consumer participation levels and the ability to ensure long term sustainability, but it does have one immense difference – it is a constantly evolving sphere of technologically induced ideas that marry with general marketing concepts.

The gem we should all pay tribute to (most already do) is Facebook not because of its ingenuity or ability to outrank existing social networks but because of its sheer participation numbers and business benefits.

It has crystallised as the single most unique opportunity available to mankind and breathed new life to the scale of accessible function against ROI. Recent analytics suggest Facebook has close to 500 million subscribers and that number increases daily.

Still, the larger than life buy in of Facebook creates parallel Internet dependability.

With more people getting online with the intent of accessing Facebook amid everyday routines like checking email, users will begin to facilitate their need for longer online time by shifting their media consumption patterns from traditional options to the online sphere.

This is the foundation of existentialism by social media.

As users shift to cater for longer time on networks, there will be an incline in information delivery demand to supplement information absorption needs. This propensity to change will also create an online advertising and promotions throttle.

The difference here however, is that consumers are engaging A&P syndications and not the other way around.

While the contention of a similar rhetoric existing on traditional advertising flares, people need to remember that there is an underlying sociological impact on consumers because of empowerment processes that have already been provided by Facebook, in this instance.

The ability to deny friend requests, remove friends, add new friends, create groups, advocate agendas, create topics of conversation, ban, block and engage in over the top privacy needs have put in place a notion that we have the power and the ability to simply ignore.

We now dismiss banners or skip a page or video ad, and this places greater importance on consumers as judge, jury and executioner of advertising collateral. Will the same genius that swirled in creative spaces be truly effective on online advertising platforms?

Will the art of copy writing be able to attract attention, spark interest, create desire and advocate participation? Can amazing design make consumers wonder? Would the mesh of the two offer a substantial approach to the A.I.D.A. strategy?

Advocating a yes or no answer is somewhat haphazard, because of the unique experience each user has every time he or she logs on to the Internet.

This same idea will defunct the idea of digital marketing as the greater good save for its targeting aspect, but it is still an important point to consider as we realise interaction, marketing and advertising on the online sphere.

We have seen in recent times, the changing face of marketing and how marketing laws that were once considered immutable now require some modifications to be truly effective on online-scapes.

The introduction of a new wave of thought and a new, more ‘communicative’ model of marketing which extends to include various digital technology options and still be able to make sense to the consumer is the next phase in advertising and promotions and to a greater extent, how we will come to understand the Internet.