Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc, are now in total monetisation mode – and their evil plan is paying off.
The days of “free” social media marketing for businesses are all but over. Companies looking to reach their fans, prospects and customers via social channels are increasingly paying to do so.
According to a recent Ad Age and RBC Capital Markets poll of 1682 marketing and media executives, organic reach in social networks is in dramatic decline.
In yesteryear, in-program product placement and sponsorship were the norm for companies wanting to reach prospective customers. Remember Hey Hey It’s Saturday’s “Chook Lotto” brought to you by Inghams?
Marketers have been slowly moving away from this type of advertising for many years.
But hold tight, riders, native advertising is back! And becoming a major part of the social media marketing mix for most companies.
This shift will have far-reaching implications for social media users – and brands.
Is not publisher-produced branded content really just a traditional advertorial masquerading as an article? “Other content you might be interested in” – actually, you probably won’t be.
Authenticity, that fine line between what is and isn’t journalism, the role of publishers and agencies – whether the future of social media is more “social” or more “media” remains to be seen.
My money’s on the latter. Where’s yours?
Fi Bendall is the managing director of Bendalls Group, a team of highly trained digital specialists, i-media subject matter experts and developers.
Fi Bendall is chief executive of The Female Social Network and a Westpac-AFR 2015 100 Women of Influence, who was described by CEO Magazine as “The CEO’s secret weapon”. An expert and pioneer in digital strategy, she has over 23 years’ experience in the digital and tech sectors.
