Welcome To The New Media
A lot has changed in the past century when it comes to media and communication. In the 1920’s commercial radio was born. In the 1940’s it was commercial television. Then in 1989 the Internet was born.
Traditional media has always been owned by a small number of large media corporations. If you want access to their readers, viewers and listeners you have to pay. For marketers and advertisers, the media or network they choose to advertise in is dictated by their budget, and the demographics and reach of that particular media.
The reach is the number of people you can broadcast to. With radio it’s the number of listeners. With television it’s the number of viewers that tune in. With newspapers and magazines it’s the circulation and number of readers.
But with the state of the Internet today, we no longer need to pay these media corporations to reach our audiences. You can find all sorts of readers, viewers and listeners from all different demographics on the World Wide Web. In fact, because our world is increasingly going digital, most of these traditional forms of media are experiencing major declines in viewers, listeners and readers.
The Internet Has Shaped New Media
Today there are over 1.8 billion people connected to the Internet. That makes up roughly 80% of the planet. There are over 6 billion mobile phone users. Most phones on the market today are smart phones which can also connect to the Internet. We now have the ability to broadcast worldwide without needing the permission of the media corporations that so tightly control traditional media.
If it’s news articles you’re after, most major newspapers also publish the news online. Not to mention that there are over 200,000,000 blogs on the Internet covering every topic imaginable. Anyone can create a blog, start writing articles and make their message available to people from all over the world.
What about audio broadcasting? You can purchase a USB microphone and start recording your own audio shows. You can then upload those audio broadcasts to iTunes in the form of a podcast and reach out to a potentialof registered iTunes users. And iTunes isn’t the only podcast directory on the Internet either.
The there’s video broadcasting. I’m sure you’ve heard of YouTube before. It’s only the #3 most visited website on the entire Internet. There’s over 2 billion videos viewed each day on YouTube and over 24 hours of video is uploaded every minute. You can create an account and have your own channel too.
Technology Is Advancing New Media
With technology advancing as quickly as it is, most new televisions have the ability to connect to the Internet. Now you have the ability to stream your videos to people’s living rooms! Did you know that less than 18% of traditional television advertising produces a positive return on investment? That means that over 80% of television advertising LOSES money!
Don’t forget about social media. Maybe you’ve heard of Facebook? It’s the #1 most visited website on the Internet. The average user spends over 40 minutes A DAY on the network connecting with friends and sharing articles, videos and other things of interest. With an engaged online community, THEY will spread your broadcasts for you!
There seriously is no reason in today’s digitally-connected world to spend thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars to use traditional media to connect with potential prospects and customers. You can do this yourself for far less money and reach a much broader audience with a little bit of time and very little money.
The traditional media corporations don’t own the relationship with viewers any longer. You no longer need their permission to speak to people. YOU are the media. So GO, NOW and start broadcasting!
Are you using new media now? What are you using? What’s your thoughts? Leave your comment in the box below.
