image credit: pbo 31 via flickr
I’ve been traveling this past week - and Thursday morning as I stepped out of my hotel room for a series of meetings, I noticed a usual sight: a copy of USA Today sitting at the steps of my door.
And, my usual response was to pull it inside my room and set it aside where it remained, unopened and unread. Perhaps a better idea would be to bring it downstairs and ask them kindly to save the energy and paper and not deliver my news in this arcane format.
As I have said before, the whole idea of someone bringing you news as words printed on paper with ink in the digital age is a quaint and archaic notion. It is wasteful, harmful to the environment and pretty much irrelevant.
I enjoyed my breakfast while reading RSS feeds through my iPhone - where I am receiving exactly the information I want without ads that are of no meaning to me and without articles that don’t pertain to my world or industry. There is only a fleeting amount of time (the most precious resource) daily, and there is no reason to waste it reading something that was designed for a previous era. The one-size-fits-all, shotgun approach is over. Let the age of customization begin.
Customization of news is so much more efficient I do not understand how anyone can read a printed newspaper any longer. Everyone reading this through RSS is well aware this is the future.
Okay - I have ranted about the continued existence of printed newspapers enough here, so I’ll spare you more words on it, you know how I feel.
This brings us to what I’d like to talk about - the digital divide.
I am starting to think it is even larger than I initially thought, and it is not purely a divide between young and old. There are plenty of people my own age (25) or younger that are at the same level (perhaps even further behind) than those twice their age. In fact, age has nothing to do with this, there are many high level and highly influential bloggers/social media power users that span demographics.
The divide exists between those who have dove in and actively use the innovative tools of communication that have changed our world forever, and those who have not. I’m not talking about people who merely use social networks for personal use. I am talking about those who know how to bend the network to their advantage, follow the undercurrents of the social web and have a deep understanding of the space. I’ve linked here before, but if you haven’t read it, read this now: programming is the new literacy.
Change, adaptation and staying at the edge are necessary to stay relevant
My friend Gaston Mendez, CEO of Xpander Communications and I had a good discussion about this and he put it pretty succinctly: “People being afraid of change? That’s how the world works.”
And, he’s right. The new version of Facebook is far superior in many ways, yet millions of users were vocal in their opposition to the new format.
The designers behind the site clearly have a keen vision for aesthetics and the company has thought out all of the usability issues deeply. They are highly-skilled in their craft and understand how to make the most efficient product for their users. Yet, people complain because they are afraid of change and the unknown. It paralyzes them.
This is what has happened around blogs and new media. They are hardly new, however many professionals still have not taken the time to learn about what they mean for their specific industry and how they have changed the world we live in forever.
I can’t believe I’m spending more words on this, but it is still a big issue. Many continue to push “business as usual” and doing what they always did without considering the shifts. I can only speak for my specific industry on this, however, I’d like to hear what has happened in your industry in the comments.
Some ways marketers/PR people are lagging behind:
- Still using E-newsletters and not blogs to present content (Why not both, if you can’t give up the e-newsletter? It is no addition work to give huge added value for your content)
- Still designing websites in all flash/video, not considering usability, SEO or building sustainable traffic
- Still presenting complex PowerPoints with slides that look like reading tests and end up communicating nothing instead of simplifying their messages (I will touch more on this in a future post)
- Still blasting out press releases designed for traditional media to bloggers
- Still trying to apply mass-marketing techniques to the social web
- Still thinking the TV-to-consumer model is not forever broken
- Still thinking that banner ads are a good way to spend a huge sum of money online
- Still using push marketing online instead of pull
- Still using trite, cliched adver-games that are a massive waste of resources to develop
- Still not thinking through what a website’s function should be, and just throwing something together
- Still not taking advantage of incredibly flexible tools, like RSS
- Still not jumping into global the conversation in a way that makes sense while competitors continue to broaden their presence there (and have been for years)
I could go on here, but I’ll spare you.
The changing media landscape
image credit: will lion via flickr
The shift in our world is towards 2-way dialogue, conversations, niche media, customization and community. The shift is away from broadcast,monolithic media, print, and one-size fits all approach. That print copy of USA Today being left outside every room of a massive hotel with hundreds of rooms will soon be a relic.
From a keynote speech on Saturday, 9/21/2008 by Richard Jalichandra, CEO of Technorati at Blog World Expo 2008 in Vegas:
133 million blogs have been indexed by Technorati since 2002.
Blogs = Information and influence. Blogs are media.
Who blogs and where are they blogging? The fact is that bloggers are all over the country and the worldwide chart is interesting as well - 48% of blogs are from North America, 2/3 are male, 70% have a degree, 72% are in English, 79% are personal bloggers.
Bloggers are also very serious about blogging, from their surveys, 1 in 4 blog 10+ hours a week. Also, 43% of the Technorati Top 100 post more than 10 times a day. Bloggers also immerse themselves in what they do, the average one uses 5 web 2.0 apps.
Note to marketers - 4 out of 5 bloggers write brand / product reviews, 80% talk about retail customer service experience. 71% of bloggers say they are getting taken more seriously as sources of information.
(Credit: miss604 - read the rest of her post for more details on BWE 2008’s keynote)
Do marketers and PR people know just how passionate and influential bloggers are? Many do - however, from my personal experiences, many are still far behind on what is happening in this space.
Understanding, and ultimately being successful here involves more than reading numbers, demographics and statistics, it involves being a part of the culture. You either join, learn what’s happening and get into the conversation, or you fall further behind. There is no way to be successful other than having a thorough understanding.
Conclusion
In the pre-Google era, those people and organizations that possessed book-like memories and vaults of information were highly valued.
Since anyone can now access any piece of information for free, whenever they want, merely being an information holder has zero value. Those that can organize and present that information in meaningful, innovative and useful ways are emerging as those with power. This is just one major way the world has changed.
Creativity in how you find, manage and then process infinite information is the important skill of today. So is being agile and having the ability to manipulate the global network for your needs.
There are so many ways things have changed due to technology on both macro and micro levels, but you would never see them unless you were paying attention.
There are those organizations holding on to the past, but they will be made irrelevant as we move further into the future and the divide grows. Being afraid is not an option. Being smart, understanding the digital landscape and able to adapt proficiently to a rapidly changing world is the only way forward.
Related posts from The Future Buzz:
Newspapers Still Have Much To Learn About The Web
For Music And News Industries, Power Is Now With The People
The Internet Is A Communications Medium, Not A Broadcast Medium
Related posts from around the web:
Newspapers Realizing That News Is Interactive (Techdirt)
CNN Twitters Its Way To Direct Audience Engagement (Micro Persuasion)
How Social Networks Are Disrupting Everything You Know About Business (Marketing Profs Daily Fix)
16 comments so far
I’m 47, I write regularly for four different blogs, I’m active on Twitter, I teach Web 2.0/social media workshops….and I like newspapers.
Adam, you can just toss that USA Today in my direction; gimme the Sports and Money sections.
I do not have, nor can I afford for the foreseeable future, an iPhone or other Web-enabled device, although I recognize how important it is to be conversant in mobile technology so I’ll get there as fast as I’m able.
I like a newspaper; it always boots up.
Not all of us glom onto every single tech doo-dad, and not every doo-dad is an improvement on Version 1. That doesn’t mean that we don’t “get it.”
That said, you aren’t imagining a digital comfort divide. I am stunned at how many that I meet who don’t have a clue and are afraid to get one, even in the world of communications and public relations.
Does that mean that they’re the fools, or are we geeks the fools — deluding ourselves with self-importance, and so easily impressed with our shiny toys? The longer I work this problem, the more convinced I am that the Web 2.0 world is not the future, it’s the NOW, and those who aren’t trying to figure it out are behind by a bunch.
That said, although I’m a bossy person :) and I need an occasional reminder that folks don’t like to be called Luddites or slow or stupid or whatever just because they aren’t leaping into the Web 2.0 deep end yet.
I saw my bossy self in your smack against my beloved newspapers, and it was a good lesson for me. We’ll get ‘em to the future, Adam, one at a time, but let ‘em bring a newspaper rolled under their arm if they want to.
September 21st, 2008@Sheila
Thanks for the great comment, appreciate it!
Somehow the newspaper topic always brings alot of disucssion to the table (that’s why I led with it here).
I guess I see it analogous to music — where mp3s have replaced costly and bulky CDs — RSS has replaced costly and bulky printed newspapers.
The music industries resisted, and what happened to them? iTunes took over. Its not hard to see the writing on the wall. I don’t see a problem with people holding onto their newspapers. But, just like CDs, they will eventually be phased out.
The analogy continues — I love vinyl. I have a huge collection of music on vinyl, and it’s very personal to me. It’s my music archive in a tangible format. Books are the equivalent of this, except with information. I think, just as vinyl is surviving the digital revolution, books will continue to live. They are both special formats, have a feeling of permanence and bring nostalgia to people.
Print newspapers are out though, it is just a matter of time. There’s nothing wrong with reading them at all, I didn’t mean to infer that if I did, but I wouldn’t hold my breath that they’ll be here forever. It might take 25 years and be a slow death, or 10 and be less painful, but they are headed into obsolescence (if they aren’t already obsolete to many).
September 21st, 2008I’m mostly on the same page with you about the newspaper (no pun intended) but I think there’s some feeling associated with the feel of paper. Throughout high school and college, whenever I was home at my parents house eating breakfast or anything at the kitchen table, I needed to read the local paper while eating.
Yesterday morning, as I poured a bowl of Quaker Oatmeal Squares at that kitchen table, I grabbed the front section of the local paper and sat it down next to me to read.
I never read a paper at my place nor would I ever think of getting a subscription to one. But there’s something about being at my parents house kitchen table reading the paper.
I’m not sure if I will always have this association but I think there’s probably other people with similar feelings/associations.
September 21st, 2008You hit the nail on the head on the digital divide. Too many companies still continue with this paper printing nonsense and you’re right, it’s based on the fear that because this is how they USE to do marketing and advertising, that they need to continue with someone that “works”, even though there’s ever dwindling rates of return.
Great article. Very prescient for a 25 year old.
September 21st, 2008Great post. I totally agree with you about the newspapers. I don’t understand why anyone would spend an hour reading one paper when you can subscribe to rss feeds and scan hundreds of blogs and newspapers in the same amount of time. But I do think it’s an age thing. People our age are more comfortable holding an iPhone than a cumbersome paper that leaves ink on your fingers. I enjoy my morning coffee with my laptop on the table, not a newspaper.
I am in the marketing/pr industry as well, and I agree with your observations regarding the digital divide. I recently had an ad agency pitch their social media offerings to me and they used paper printouts of their powerpoint slides and included an entire slide about e-mail marketing! What??? I would add one to more thing to your list: Still thinking they control the message.
September 21st, 2008couple of comments to your post and to the responses:
1) have instructed team to print out and send to all client contacts that do not currently populate and work at least two social channels :-)
2) flash is now seo enabled/search crawlable, so wouldn’t get too stuck on that
3) the only safe place for digital marketing to be is current with the consumer which means mass, rapid adoption of new media formats and applications
re: responses. @sheila, if you can’t afford an iphone due to costs/plans/etc. i strongly encourage the itouch. it’s wifi enabled like 85% of my life, has no use fees and is a killer reader, even of your beloved USAToday which gets a monster share of its digital traffic from RSS readers/widgets.
September 22nd, 2008@tim - oatmeal squares sound good right now =)
@ernesto - thanks for the compliment!
@marksilva - appreciate the response, in reply to point #2:
2) flash is now seo enabled/search crawlable, so wouldn’t get too stuck on that
so they say — is google *really* indexing them the same way as other sites?
i still haven’t seen many (any?) totally flash-based sites come up first in search for a major term…i could be wrong here, but most of the stuff i see on page one isn’t flash based. it is probably because many bloggers / web pros shy away from flash and don’t link there as much. there definitely is a distaste for flash among much of the web community. this in itself is a reason to stay away from it
also, slower load times and the need for plugins make flash less desirable in my mind…maybe it is a personal preference thing, but i still will not advise anyone to develop a site in all flash
September 22nd, 2008Excellent post and topic! I humbly add this awesome quote:
“In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”
–Eric Hoffer
September 22nd, 2008Adam,
This is a really good post. I just launched a social media service for fantasy football and have seen first-hand the difference between those who understand new Web concepts and those who don’t. Nice analysis.
September 23rd, 2008I agree with this wholeheartedly, but I do understand the reservations of others. As much as I would love to get my mom to use Google Reader and Friendfeed, I know it isn’t going to happen. Having said that, I don’t feel a bit sorry for newspapers or magazines. Heck, radio magnates tried to keep television from growing for fear of their cash cow. It has been shown over and over again in history that those who embrace the new technology are the ones that reap the benefits. It is hard for me to feel sorry for people who do not want to accept the reality of how things are changing.
BUUUUUT….The digital divide is much more prominent to those who are on the digital side. Like it or not, many many more people out there have no idea what Twitter is than do. So, the only way to reach those people is through the old way…newspapers, radio ads, etc. So the problem isn’t with the content providers…it is with the recipients of the content. My point is, find a way to get my mom to use Twitter, and you can save the trees used to print newspapers. Until then, you will just have to deal with the pile of unread papers sitting in my mom’s kitchen. :)
Great article! Let’s get the baby boomers on to Tumblr!
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