The turn of the century saw creative minds, grouping together in small offices, decorated with full ashtrays, all working tirelessly to outdo one another in creating something which would captivate the attention of the masses. Advertising was created and with a simple Google it is amazing what one can find on old adverts.
These adverts take you down memory lane, offering each one of us the opportunity to glimpse back in time and see each era as it developed, changed and simply moved on. Each era introduced something new, always something cutting edge and technically better than that of the previous era. E.g. a flier is considered one of the most outdated marketing tools for a plethora of reasons, however travel back to 1978 and fliers were a show stopper, why you ask? Simply because that was some major technology for those times. It was either hand written or if you had crazy walking around money, then you paid a company for run-offs.
In today’s world everything moves forward, as much as we try and hold back, we as the dominant species on this planet are constantly being pushed forward. Comedy in the 90’s was filled with punchlines and “slap your knee jokes”, yet today that type of humour is seen as cheap or cheesy. This applies to old school advertising as well…just saying.
For generations, advertising and marketing agencies have used print media, television, outdoor and radio to apply their trade. But the question is, are these mediums still as effective as they once were in their respective “glory days”? After all, can we not gain access to all the information we need from social media or a search engine and then some? With billions of people linked to platforms such as Facebook, Google and Amazon, why would anyone even need to source information from other mediums?
Lets take Television. 20 years ago, you watched what was on and when the adverts came on you either watched them or bolted off to the toilet… Today, you fast forward the ads regardless, just on that alone, you can clearly see a massive drop in viewership during advertising. And that’s where they get you, as they say viewership is on the up, but its advertising viewership which is your concern, not the shows being fast-forwarded too. Just an FYI.
Switching the television on after work, singing along to your favourite song on the radio and flipping the paper still takes place on a regular basis. This is because these three tools still offer businesses and consumers a vast amount of information. But, where do you spend most of your time during the day? Behind the television? Listening to the radio? Do you spend all day reading the paper? Or do you scroll through Facebook’s newsfeed when you get a free moment at work? Where do you get most of your information?
Digital media has not only changed the world, it has changed the way we engage and interact with one another as a people…let that swirl around in your head whilst you contemplate if it is important?
However, here comes a very large curve ball. You see its not all sunshine and roses for social and digital media. The biggest challenge in this newish industry is that most people, wing it.
As they firstly think it’s easy money and secondly that it is something which can be learned quickly and needs little experience (How crazy is that). I mean, a marketing degree is a wonderful thing to have, yet in today’s marketing and advertising world a marketing degree is pretty much worth diddly squat, as everything now is about systems knowledge, experience on the relevant programs/sites plus of course, constant evolution of your digital footprint to ensure algorithms are always being worked correctly.
Relevant experience in this industry is rare, as it is new. Therefore anyone who is experienced is someone, who had the presence of mind a few years ago to jump on the band wagon and start learning. Once your digital image is created the world sees it, therefore tread lightly and choose a marketing company based on success and experience. Content is king!
We now read our books online or we get the news form online sites ;). We now even run our businesses via the internet, we bank digitally, we are officially futuristic people and its time to embrace it and to enjoy the financial benefits of it, as you are already a part of it.
Digital media also allows you to interact with potential customers, while sharing your company’s story, services and products via easy to find and use tools.
It also allows you to share images, videos and unique content. No longer do potential customers have to worry about misplacing their newspaper with your advert or missing a flight on television or radio. Through the genius of digital media, they can see a company’s respective advert on their cellphones at any time of the day or night and its free to the client.
A colossal asset which digital media boasts is that it is measurable and tractable, this powerful spin-off gives you power over your advertising, which simply could not be achieved with other mediums.
The advertising world will always evolve, we are already moving towards “internet 2.0” which is basically the next level in internet usage and involvement in our lives. (We are still only in the beginning phases of the internet). This means that the longer you wait or waste your time with people “wing it” the harder this process becomes later on.
While we discuss if this is all relevant, the world is moving on. People are opening businesses and through correct social media use, become millionaires within a year. These cases are not rare, this is how the world now works. Companies like Netflix are killing traditional Television stations like it’s their job. Shows like the Oscars saw their worst ever ratings this past year, yet their social media was pumping. Everything is now about brilliant content, placed correctly over relevant mediums at the right time.
Here are some stats on marketing and advertising: Sourced from https://www.omnicoreagency.com/digital-marketing-statistics-2018/
- 90% of Searchers haven’t made their mind up about a brand before starting their search.
- The average person spends about 20 minutes on Facebook or one in every six minutes a person will spend online.
- Close to half the world’s population (3.03 billion people) are on some type of social media. (WOW)
- Content marketing is a top priority of B2B businesses after brand building and social media engagement.
- 59% of adults between 18 and 29 are using Instagram.
- 86% of women will look at social media before deciding to make a purchase.
- 80% of social media content is being accessed via mobile device.
Digital media done correctly is one of the most powerful tools your business or brand will hold, thus would you not say it is worth your while to take this serious and leave TV, radio and every other old school advertising tool where they belong…in our memories?
As you scroll through your favourite social media platform, remember the potential. No longer do you have to be restricted. The world is digital do not be analogue.
This post and content is sponsored and provided by Pixelfish Marketing Solutions.
