As the world around us changes and technology has its affect on just about everything we touch, media and those that want to reach those who consume it are finding greater challenges than ever before.Shocked that TV forfeited its audience's trust? Me neither--but gratified TV's loss is bloggers' gain.
It is no longer a world of mass media but rather it is a world of communities of customers and consumers. In an attempt to keep up with the changing world that the Internet has brought, the media world has embraced such things as websites to reach their customers, but it isn't enough. Consumers have gravitated to social media and that is where Influence is finding a significant home.
Influencers or Influentials are a group of very active consumers involved in "conversation marketing" where word-of-mouth is becoming a significant power in spreading dialog with customers, listeners and viewers. It means creating a conversation with your consumers in which useful information is exchanged so that both parties benefit from the relationship. . .
Conversation marketing is becoming more crucial to reaching young consumers and addressing changing customer preference. That's because traditional mass media is being replaced by networks of individual and small-group influentials. 93% of those questioned in a new Bridge Ratings report said they were moved to take some sort of action by word-of-mouth influence.
The value of peer networks - especially among the young - have become so important that this lifegroup will trust the advice of a total stranger over that of a professional marketer. Until a few years ago, technology limitations prevented these networks from forming. Now that dam has broken and the landscape for radio and its competitive media will look very different going forward.
Trusted sources of information and opinion among Americans has changed somewhat over time as the following chart attests to.
Comparing results from a study done in 1997 by the University of Massachusetts with a new Bridge Ratings study*, it becomes more clear as to the quality of input Americans receive. Both studies used the question, "Please rate on a scale of 1 to 10 the following as sources of information you most trust."
Source: Bridge Ratings
The Influentials in this chart based on these scores are:
1. Friends, Family and Acquaintances
2. Strangers with experience (in the subject area)
3. Teachers
Note that as Influentials, "Friends, Family and Acquaintances" maintained a consistent rating. "Strangers with Experience" improved significantly in the ten years between studies and "Teachers" trust level has slipped. Of particular interest is the drop in the Influencer value of "Religious Leaders", "Newspapers & Magazines" and "TV News Reporters".
(via Orbitcast)
2 comments:
"Stranger in a Strange Land" is more like it. Trust in expert strangers will likely grow exponentially when consumer product/marketing sites learn how to cull the covert (and sometimes transparent) shills, unhelpful diatribes, and know-it-alls. There also is the problem with sites that "claim" to contain reviews but only have a few or many that probably were mercenarily "solicited." Until things change, only those review sites that have their own unbiased expert reviewers and include properly selected "public" reviews have proven to be "influential" for me. Until things change, it will still be caveat emptor both with respect to products AND with respect to the review sites.
-Cogito
I wonder if "expert strangers" means "the rest of the internet?"
Except for bloggers, everyone else is eroding.
Post a Comment