Today you hear a lot about the social networks and the need to use them for marketing purposes. As you know by now we have used social networks to market ShotPak® Ready-to-Drink Cocktails. They have also allowed us to easily share videos of our PPi Technologies Group StandUp pouch machines with interested clients. So we know these quick 'touch the customer/friend services' have a place in our marketing arsenal. Can we rely solely on social networks and ignore other traditional marketing and still manage sales? My view is that we honestly don't know.
While dwelling on the social networks and how they help us, I received an email to visit Gizmodo magazine on line. They have an article about Facebook. Wow! They suggest considering quitting Facebook. Seems there are at least ten good reasons to quit Facebook, according to the article on Gizmodo. The article states for a variety of reasons, that some people now doubt that social networking will really help anyone-or inform anyone in a useful way. (By the way they ask if you have found social networking to be fun and or valuable?) The Gizmodo article is definitely worth a few minutes of your time. Eye-opening, to say the least.
Next on the technology front is that according to Northern Arizona University spokesperson Tom Bauer, NAU will use sensors to detect students' University identification cards when they enter classrooms. The data will be recorded and available for professors to review. Bauer is stunned at accusations that the new, RFID tag-based system is surveillance. He says it's "just recording attendance records". Is this any different from the Google system of identifying where you are using your cell phone?
We have a patent that allows for an RFID chip to be placed in a pouch. The chip will record the pouch's journey to the store, the expiration date and the pricing structure of the pouch. We see these features as a service to the consumer rather than surveillance.
Electronic surveillance and social networking are in their infancy and they will grow to monitor our every move. The next major decision is where and when do we want to switch off the system? The demand for consumer product information and the need for separation of our private lifestyles are going to become even harder. A consumer revolt for privacy would not surprise me.
Now that we know big brother is watching, let's consider that in the past four weeks we have had two major disasters that interrupted and will damage global economies for some time. Nothing electronic or social can save the day?
The BP spill or BP-Halliburton spill, as some are calling it, with initial estimates of 1,000 barrels (42,000 gallons) of oil per day is skyrocketing to the current estimate of 5,000 barrels per day which is much worse than expected. Figures of 5,000 barrels per day could explode to 60,000 barrels or 2.5 million gallons per day. At that rate we're at Exxon Valdez levels by June. The disaster isn't restricted to the Gulf of Mexico. If you think you're 'safe' if you're on the East Coast of the Gulf? Think again, as there's a 'Loop Current' from the Gulf that could move some of the spill around the Southern tip of Florida into the Gulf Steam and up the Eastern Seaboard. Tourist beaches and countless marine wildlife could be affected. No beach tourists, no beach cocktails and we all suffer. Our thoughts and sympathy go out to the many fishermen and communities who will be affected by this disaster for many years. It appears there is no simple solution. Remember our earlier blog post calling for nuclear power? This for sure is the way to go with clean efficient energy and no environmental risks or damage.
The second disaster is not a man-made one but a natural one, the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland. It stopped all international flights for a week and thousands of travelers were stranded around the globe. The costs are measured in billions and now it is has started exploding again.
So what is the synopsis of all of this? We have access to Facebook and other social networks that place us on the cutting edge of communication but that didn't stop an oil disaster that will not repaired for many years and volcanic activity that in one hour can disrupt all air traffic entering the northern hemisphere. What is the message here? Perhaps we should slow down and think about where are we heading?
On the digital front these figures were just reported:
- 100million blogs are available
- 1.3 million blog posts daily (18 per second)
- 100,000 new blogs daily (2 per second)
- More podcasts than global radio stations
- They believe there will be 250 million active Facebook users in the next year
- And now there are 50 million LinkedIn profiles and growing fast
Users of Social Media are defined as active, interested and engaging:
- The average social network user is 37 years old.
- LinkedIn, with a business focus, has a predictably high average user age; 44
- The average Twitter user is 39 years old
- The average Facebook user is 38 years old
- The average MySpace user is 31 years old
- Bebo has by far the youngest users, with an average age of 28. From all of the above means your buyers are possibly using social media to make buying decisions, to compare products and prices and to see how current and relevant your products are.
Now that you see the concerns about Facebook, it is easy to see why they say Twitter by comparison is the next big thing, it's free and it's making a huge change in how people communicate. It's a format of private to public (you to your group) and a communication of one too many. It's immediate, short (140 characters), and to the point. You can build a community and gather followers and also follow whoever in your industry interests you. News of the volcanic activity and the environmentally devastating oil spill will reach many people via Twitter.
So, if the digital social activities still sound like the domain of college students, young professionals and those who should "get a life," you may be right. But, then again, you may be left behind if you don't at least participate!
