Power of digital Marketing
The Internet has never been more
important for businesses. We just witnessed one of the least experienced
candidates become president of the most powerful nation in the world. Donald
Trump bucked a 227-year trend by being elected with zero political or military
experience. So what happened?
There are of course many
theories, but one interesting factor was the role of digital communication. The
Trump campaign spent much less on traditional advertising than Hillary and
focused on both Facebook and Twitter. They ran extensive A/B testing for each strategic
piece of content they published and quickly worked out what people wanted to
read. [3] They reached millions of Americans from every corner of the country,
many of whom do not read newspapers and rely on Facebook for their primary
source of information.
What can we learn? It is clear
that as the consumer world moves online the most successful companies will be
masters of social media and digital communications. What is reality? Many
people ask this question, and some people never question what is right in front
of their eyes. So, for instance, if you read Facebook comments each day and the
‘news’ tells one repeated story, this will quickly become your reality, your
narrative. And after a while, your opinion will become resistant to change.
That’s exactly what Trump’s campaign did, and e-commerce businesses can learn a
lot from this approach.
Can social media be dangerous?
Recently a trend has emerged, for
taking selfie pictures in dangerous places, putting the life of the budding
photographer at risk. Many aspiring selfie artists have fallen in front of
buses, off the side of cliffs, from skyscrapers, and roller coasters all in an
attempt to get the perfect selfie and perhaps a few likes and new followers.
Psychologists describe this phenomenon as a self-gratification mechanism, as
users glean validation from their photos in the virtual world.
demographics
When it comes to shopping online,
it is mostly the 18-35 year age group that are the most active. [5] This is the
generation that grew up with smartphones, and for them shopping online is just
as natural as going to a physical store. There remains a significant gender
imbalance with men being 70 percent of the total online visitors.
Interestingly, when it comes to conversions or purchasing something men and
women are equal. This is in stark contrast to the traditional shopping
behaviors.
The internet is speeding up
Technology is also improving, and
it was reported in July that Pakistan’s average internet speed increased by 150
percent. [6] The average speed has reached 2.5mbps. Nevertheless, Pakistan lags
behind when it comes to the broad accessibility of good web services. Just 4.8
percent of all users have access to 4mbps broadband in comparison to 78 percent
globally. [7]
Cyber-crime bill
In August the government passed a
cyber crime bill that can imprison people for up to three years with a Rs 1
million fine for unauthorized access to critical infrastructure. The bill has
been met with a negative reaction from journalists and business owners who
think the bill may be leveraged to target journalists’ sources and
whistle blowers. It also opens up the possibility for more surveillance than is
set out in the Fair Trial Act 2013. Opponents of the bill comment that it will
restrict freedom of expression and access to information and that its ambiguity
leaves it open for agencies and the government bodies to abuse their power.
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