header-catch-up-article

Time for coffee and a Catch-Up…Take 3 minutes to read a few updates before you get back to it!

News Fatigue

The ills of the Internet and the press threaten the truth, and therefore democracy. The predictions of Eric Scherer, director of foresight at France Télévisions, are alarming. He anticipates a post-news era with citizens locked in their own digital bubbles, uninterested in (inter)national news they find too overwhelming; fragmented, ultra-personalized digital information from which people construct their own, however narrow, vision of the world; and a growing mistrust due to false and partisan journalism. The worst thing is not so much the fake news itself, but the difficulties of convincing a skeptical public that some information is actually reliable, fact-checked, and real. The solution: more investigation, fewer off-the-record statements, accuracy over speed, favoring complexity and nuance… It’s a tall order.

These symptoms are indicators of a media sector in crisis as it contends with cost-efficient models, content quality issues, and technological changes. The transition from Gutenberg to Zuckerberg has been painful for many. Pierre Louette lays out the strategy of his group, Les Echos. He explains that “monetizing information means that you continue to sell print newspapers while developing a more digital newspaper.” The transition is inevitable, but it can lead to creativity. For example, at Poool in Bordeaux, they now offer a dynamic paywall system that is customizable based on the reader profile. It’s a clever alternative to the “subscribe now or leave” approach. More publishers ought to consider it.

Head in the Clouds

We are interrupted every 3 minutes on average (and then require 23 minutes to refocus) and are checking our phones an average of 150 times per day. Naturally, our brains have to fire at full speed in order to handle this information overload. There are consequences to the bombardment of information: our work quality is declining, errors are being repeated, spikes of stress are on the rise, and even our IQ is diminishing (by 10 points on average). Cognitive attention is a rare commodity, and it is under threat. Or perhaps “under monopoly” is a better way to put it. “In the end, limiting screen time might be less important that limiting the omnipotence of several empires on our attention,” suggests Hubert Guillaud. His opinions are rooted in the writings of Tim Wu, who denounces abuses of power by the giant “attention merchants” who deprive us of our freedom to think, and strip us of our ability to fight back. He also speaks of “attention theft.” He urges regulators to reassert the long lost issue of consumer consent, and draws a parallel with the regulations that address noise disturbances in public space. Now shhhh…

Less (data) is more

70% of consumers wish businesses would better target their marketing efforts, but at the same time, 88% worry about sharing their data with a third party. This paradox leaves marketers feeling a tad restless, as they are being ordered to do better with less data. In the end, though, there’s no need to overdo things if the results turn out mediocre: #frugality. The quality of the data (reliability, accuracy, timeliness, completeness) has become THE top parameter to establish trust between brands and consumers. Issues around privacy and the GDPR directly affect everyone’s marketing strategy. For some, it’s been a boost (up to 55%), and for others it has slammed the brakes on their development. The world is dividing itself into 2 categories…

Crash Test

Men or women, young or old, rich or poor, humans or animals… Who deserves to be spared from death from a self-driving car? In France, it will be women and children first. Have a look at this study from MIT.

Package or On Demand? 

When Gartner asked marketers which strategies they recommend when it comes to martech investment, the “best-of-breed” option climbed to the top of the list. It goes like this: I choose the best available tools and technologies that meet my needs (from many different providers), rather than an integrated marketing suite from a single provider, which would put all my eggs in one basket. In addition to 59% favoring this approach, they also deemed it the only way to defend and foster a free and open Internet. According to Gartner, let freedom ring.

Ugly Sweaters For the Win

First, it was live air guitar concerts, now it’s the Ugly Sweater World Championships. Consider yourself warned: the competition gets ugly.

pulls-noel-animaux-moches

See you soon on the Internet!

Credits:

Author

Editorial Manager. Bernard was responsible for the content strategy of the AT Internet brand. He has almost 10 years’ experience in technical and marketing writing in the Software industry. A word specialist, Bernard’s job sees him working on many different mediums including blogs, white papers, interviews, business cases, press, infographics, videos etc. His specialist fields? Marketing and digital analytics content of course!

Comments are closed.