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How Mass Media Has Impacted Marketing (Guest Blog)

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Mass media has a different approach today with the internet taking over the airwaves once ruled by television and radio. The advent of the viral video has given media an instant audience with viewers that can reach into the millions in mere minutes.

The cleverly crafted “Ice Bucket Challenge” to benefit those with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) often referred to as Lou Gehrig's Disease, picked up celebrity endorsements that helped catapult its success aboard social media platforms. Drenching ourselves with ice water and challenging others to do the same was all the rage during summer months and raised over 88 million dollars for this worthy charity.

Image Source: ShutterStock.com

 

React and Interact

One might strike up a lively debate on social platforms about the death of print media and might argue that today, more people watch video news feeds online instead of picking up a newspaper. And that’s exactly the point. Archaic methods of communication on newspapers, magazines and other periodicals, don’t allow for direct interaction with their audience. This type of engagement is one of the many reasons for the overwhelming popularity of social media.

Talk radio has long owed its success to this form of interaction and today you’ll note that most broadcast news programs are asking for this type of feedback from their online audience. Giving their story a hashtag topic on Twitter and asking their viewers to chime in on Facebook, they are reaching out to their audience and asking them to engage with them on the internet through their favorite social media networks.

 

Influencing Purchasing Decisions

Shopping online has become the new norm, currently 71% of purchase decisions made in the United States begin with research on a search engine. Then comes consultation with friends and family where almost 60% of shoppers seek their advice before making a purchase. Word-of-mouth has long been an effective form of advertising and marketing and today that conversation is taking place on social media.

 Image Source: ShutterStock.com

 

Branding and Content

Effectively communicating and marketing a brand online is challenging. More marketers are embracing content strategies to reach a larger audience on the internet. Think of it this way: people are already firing up conversations about their favorite brands on social media. Posting  online content gives the discussion extra fuel to feed that fire.

 

Coupons and Special Offers

While traditional coupon clipping is still popular, it is waning into a subset of shoppers who utilize “extreme couponing” which demands a fairly decent learning curve and a hefty investment in time and effort. There are now more effective ways of reaching a potentially larger audience when it comes to promoting special offers and coupons.

Another shift in mass media marketing is communicating with smartphones and other handheld mobile devices. SMS (Short Message Service) and other forms of “push notifications” are becoming increasingly popular with both consumers and marketers alike. Other forms of mobile marketing being successfully utilized are:

  • Location based alerts that contact mobile consumers who are nearby
  • QR (Quick Response) codes for coupons or other offers
  • Integration with social media to access reviews and reward programs

Mass media is no longer strictly a communication tool for use on traditional venues seen on the pages of newspapers, heard on radio broadcasts and viewed on television screens. With advances in technology, people are viewing a different type of handheld screen today that is more interactive and informative. The new marketing model needs to embrace social media and the use of these mobile devices.

 

 Author Bio: Megan RItter is a graduate student at USC and has worked at various financial institutions and marketing firms. Follow her @megmarieritter.

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