|
Thinking out one hundred years, I often wonder about the cultural, emotional and psychological implications of today's technology and its impact on the way society thinks and behaves. Visiting an art gallery recently I viewed several of Jeremy Blake's video-digital-animated works of art. They are continual loops of visuals and sounds and are best viewed on a very large plasma screen. I held this tiny $25,000 DVD in my hand and smiled at trying to explain to an insurance broker that this little disk is actually "art." This isn't Bill Gates displaying master pieces in digital form on a plasma screen. This is art created by artists but born out of technology.
Even online dating has reached mass acceptability. eHarmony raises more than $100 million and` is running network advertising. Hands down, J-Date has probably the marriage hit rate of any dating service of any kind. Urban professionals in their 20s will say, "this is the way." Interestingly enough however, anonymity in the era of search is almost impossible.
And then our shopping habits have completed shifted. I laughed when Gartner released a study that suggested sales of cars would go down because people would buy online more than drive to the mall and therefore cars would have much greater life spans. Living in the city, I don't think my children really know what a mall is. The only time I took them, they were a bit freaked out and I got strange stares as literally everything they saw aroused a "I want that, I want that, I want that." My five-year old usually is best at telling me which online store to go to. "Mommy, can you go to Apple.com and buy a new computer?" "And then to Cartoon Network to buy a Dexter's Lab lunchbox?" This shows the changes in perception as far as the Internet as a resource. Commerce and communication is changing continually through advancements in technology and yet there is still so much further to go.
When disruptive technologies emerge, pockets form within specific products or industries. For instance, the computer and consumer electronic industries used to be completely separate. The sales cycles were different, the sales methods were different and even the attire at the Comdex show was completely different than the Consumer Electronics Show (suits versus mini-skirts.) The merging of these two industries is happening. Although at Bill Gates' keynote for CES 2005 his computer froze. I wonder if in the olden days, when Panasonic was introducing a new radio it didn't work?
There is a balance that is constantly taking place between the technology that is being developed and the way it can fit into present consumer behavior. People do not change the way they think overnight. The technology industry has the dual tasks of finding ways for new developments to fit within the context of existing social structure and also discovering the ways in which technology can shape future interaction. It is through this push/pull relationship that society shapes and is shaped by new technology. One place this balance is being played out is in launching new technology. During the Internet boom, companies would launch with just an idea. This is no longer the case because they do not have the capital to fight legal battles to protect their innovations. A customer base is gathered before the official launch and this is often more important than the actual technology because this solidifies a claim on the product. Therefore, it is the practical, everyday uses of the technology that are the most vital and from here further innovation can slowly be introduced.
It is time we started thinking of the Web in real time. There is so much marketing potential and so many areas yet to be tapped. When I make a purchase on the Internet, no one is giving me impulse buy options at the online cash register. Everywhere else in society seems to revolve around marketing techniques and it is absolutely incredible to me that these same principles have yet to truly be put into practice on the internet. It is an exciting time to see these changes and also to speculate on how it may develop from here. We are right at the edge of great innovations that will have far-reaching effects.
PR Specialists |
PR Foundations >>
page 1 of 9 |
