I also used to enjoy getting stuck into long articles and curling up with an 800 page novel. Truth is, these days I find it challenging to read a lengthy online article without following the multiple links embedded within the page, the lure of checking Twitter, my netvibes news feeds and my multiple email accounts. Apparently, I’m not alone – there is a perception out there that the internet is changing our brains (and not always positively), how we consume information and retain knowledge. In effect, Google is becoming a replacement for our long-term memory and almost as quick at retrieving information (take a look at the new Google Instant).
Pancake People
Back in 2005, the playwright Richard Foreman wrote a piece about ‘Pancake People’, and it’s even more pertinent today than when he wrote it:
“I see within us all (myself
included) the replacement of complex inner density with a new kind of
self – evolving under the pressure of information overload and the
technology of the ‘instantly available’. A new self that needs to
contain less and less of an inner repertory of dense cultural
inheritance – as we all become “pancake people” – spread wide and
thin as we connect with that vast network of information accessed by
the mere touch of a button.“
Earlier this year, a client told me that people don’t read web pages anymore and that much of the beautifully crafted copy that we had produced was a waste of time. Instinctively, I fought back against this statement and zealously defended our work. After all, producing content and publishing web pages is one of the reasons we’re in business. However, there have been a number of articles lately that have re-ignited the discussions and changed my mind as to how the internet is altering the way our brains work and, therefore, the way we consume information.
Have we reached a point predicted back in 1985 by Max Headroom where blipverts will be the most effective way of getting our marketing messages across to our target audience; where high-speed, concentrated, high-intensity commercials lasting about three seconds are used to subliminally brainwash the masses?
We may not have reached that point yet, but changing trends in media consumption must have some real implications for marketers. Is the long copy ad dead? Will technology decision-makers no longer have the time or inclination to value whitepapers? Do we need to fundamentally address the taxonomy and content hierarchy of our websites? And, do we need to establish new measures of audience engagement? After all, a page view doesn’t mean a page has actually been read…
Bite-sized payloads of marketing gold
If the answer to any of the above is “Yes”, then we need to ensure that we’re producing concise marketing messages that are laser-targeted at our audiences. Let’s not create reams of written content that languish on our corporate websites. Instead, let’s embrace the notion of creating more engaging formats of content and distributing it in bite-sized payloads to the platforms where our audiences are spending their time. So that means featuring content on services like Scribd and Slideshare and finding new ways to feature content on publisher websites. It also means making your blog one of the primary destinations for your marketing messages. After all, the content changes regularly and is generally mercifully short.
Thank you for reading to the end of this post. It must have been difficult not to follow any of the embedded links or checking the status on your social universe… I’d be interested to hear your thoughts.
