Social Media: fad or revolution? | Blog | Econsultancy

Social Media: fad or revolution? | Blog | Econsultancy: "

This videoby Erik Qualman of Search Engine Watch presents statistics that are so alluringthat it must leave the viewer wondering why some even consider social media tobe a fad.

It iscertainly not the social media companies themselves, media companies oragencies that are leading people down this social garden path. Actually it’speople’s thirst for information, friends, acceptance etc (and a plethora ofother sociological and anthropological aspects) that is resulting in peopledriving down more like a seven lane superhighway at breakneck speed resulting inthese unprecedented engagement levels.

And whenyou are driving down a motorway and see a lorry parked side on in an adjoiningfield with a large ad on the side, do you remember the URL or phone number onthe ad when you arrive at your destination? (If you’ve written it down whilstdriving – shame on you!)

Yes, younearly crash into the car in front of you trying to read the ad or slowed downso much that the motorcyclist behind you is now headbutting your number plate,but that’s just it. You read it and it’s gone. No hook, no memory. It’s a bitlike an ad on the London Underground using an SMS number as the call to action.

Some of thefacts presented in the video are so colossal that it has got everyonescratching their heads in bewilderment. It tempts companies and marketers toconjure traditional questions such as:

• Howdo we hook these users in?

• How are we going to make money from them?

• What’sit worth?

From myperspective however, these questions are totally missing the point andcurrently demonstrate a lack of understanding and empathy of what these usersare demanding.

1. They demand speed.

2. They demand choice.

3. They demand engagement on theirterms.

4. They choose when anything happens.

5. They demand free content.

Howeverthere is no one size fits all solution here. As with all user groups, understandingthe demographics of the target audience will define the answers to questionssuch as:

1. What is important to the user, whatdo they want?

2. How do we actively engage theseusers?

3. How do we tempt them?

4. Why do they need us?

So, sliceand dice your data and understand your target audience better. Yes it would begreat to target all 300m users of LatestSocialMediaFadSite.com but it’snot realistic as not all of them want what you’ve got.

Andunderstand the user purchasing journey for these demographics, as you will findthat social media hooks will create a longer lag time to purchase than someother channels.

So if yougive the user what they want when they want it and engage them in the rightway, the money will follow. And this is where another revolution needs tooccur. The present landscape demands that companies and marketers address andengage their audience in an entirely different and new way. We have gone fromthe industrial to the digital revolution. Now, all hail the social revolution.

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