The Age of New Media - Is Your Brand Up to Speed?

By Laura Pasternak

You Tube. Facebook. MySpace. These are just a few of the new media channels that have shaped our culture, influenced opinions, and sold ideas, products and services. Are you leveraging them to build and promote your brand?

While the traditional methods like print, television and radio still help to build a brand, technology is changing the way in which we learn about political candidates, discover new trends, introduce emerging artists and their products to potential audiences and more. Today, consumers are in control. They pick and choose what they watch, how they buy and where they get their information. Forums abound, offering reviews on everything from merchants to hotels. Blogs offer up varying perspectives on our social, economic and political landscapes. These new channels are changing the way brands are presented, marketed and even received by consumers.

Tuned In, Logged In and Plugged In

A 2007 survey of 7,705 U.S. college students conducted by Reynol Junco and Jeanna Mastrodicasa, authors of the book, Connecting to the Net, illustrates how technology has entered practically every facet of daily living:

• 97% own a computer

• 94% own a cell phone

• 76% IM (instant messaging)

• 15% of IM users are logged on 24/7

• 34% use websites as their primary news source

• 49% download music using peer-to-peer file sharing

• 75% have a Facebook account

• 60% own an iPod or other portable music/video device

Such statistics should be an eye-opener for businesses that haven't considered leveraging these mediums in their branding efforts. Often referred to as social media, social marketing or social networking (for consistency, we will refer to these collectively as social marketing), these mediums are shaping how brands are created, developed and perceived.

Social marketing outlets allow users to self-publish (e.g. blogs, You Tube, online forums) and provide other opportunities (think Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace) to interact and, in many cases, even shape buying choices. They wield a broad swath of influence; heightening exposure for the subject or brand and enabling viewers to help spread the message or sell the brand. For example, Wikipedia notes that in July 2006, there were 65,000 videos uploaded to You Tube daily and more than 100 million videos being watched there daily. This same source also cites that Facebook and MySpace have more than 64 million active users worldwide and well over 300 million accounts respectively. In January of this year alone, nearly 79 million users watched over three billion videos on YouTube. Those are staggering statistics.

Social marketing is proving to be fertile ground for all genres including businesses, charitable organizations, politicians and even the common consumer. Individuals can easily, quickly and inexpensively create, disseminate and/or gain information as well as establish and maintain social connections that help build and strengthen a brand.