Chew on this;
“Nearly 50% of Millennials admit that their activity on social media has caused them to overspend to impress their networks”. — WeForum ‘Who uses social media’
Tasty. There are so many perspectives to view this from and it’s hard to know where to start.
Gen Z are the first generation to have grown up in a world completely connected. If you know what a compact disc is — or better yet a cassette tape — you’d also join me in fond memories of grinding dial-up internet and the row by paintstaking row of pixels loading to your very un-HD screen.
This is our world now. As a consumer we get the benefit of incredibly personalised content — both organic and non-organic — which make it all too easy to overspend in categories that we’ve demonstrated our interests in.
As a business we enjoy the fruits of consumers spending time online, adding more and more data to their individualised profiles in order that we can show them our content if they match enough of our profiling metrics to qualify as a potential customer.
It’s an alternate version of online dating. ‘Consumer seeking activewear apparel brand for deep connection, prefers quality over quantity, not interested in anything short-term, must be environmentally conscious’.
Well, dear consumer, let us introduce you via social media to, ‘Brand seeking active consumer for immediate, lasting relationship, prefer well-connected and well-networked, would consider short-term romances but ultimately seeking long-term partnership’.
Match complete.
It works, and it works whether or not we specifically ask for what we (as an individual) want. See ‘How Artificial Intelligence is Shaping Digital Marketing’).
It’s beautiful, and a little bit mindblowing.
Well done, internet.
