Be More Human.
Last night I attended the Pump Up Your Line 12! event put on by the UT Federal Credit Union and had the privilege of hearing from a marketing and social media great, Mark Schaefer.
His presentation was hot off the press from the South by Southwest event. I got to hear it. It was stocked full of statistics, advice, and predictions on the future of social media. Incredible stuff. I jotted down a few comments he made.
“Connect to people in their point of need.”
“Data will increase by 600% and 73% of content will be created by consumers by 2020.”
He went on to explain that by the time 2020 rolls around the Internet we know now will be like the size of 6 Internets. Can you imagine the depth and expanse that even covers?
“Google is the new 800 number.”
“Influence doesn’t just come from content, but content that moves and ignites.”
“The next revolution: augmented reality and filters.”
There is so much data out there that we’re consuming…we’re a bit overwhelmed. What we will see start to happen is a filter to customize the data, to get specifically what we want and what we are interested in – cutting down the noise.
“We’re now coming into wearable technology.”
“In the future, we will have the Internet all around us. We won’t be bound by the size of s sheet of paper or the computer screen or our clunky smartphones…”
“We’ve created a digital divide. Be more human. We forgot that’s how real business gets done. ”
When he used the phrase “Be more human” – he attributed it to someone he interviewed.
“Knowing leads to loyalty and loyalty leads to trust.”
2 points I’ll make:
1. One key phrase that I’ve dwelled on – “be more human.” There is nothing like going out and shaking hands + meeting people and developing relationships. This digital world can entangle us at times; we can hide behind it. With LinkedIn and Twitter we become lazy in a way as connections are at our fingertips and it doesn’t require much effort. But, there is nothing like a face-to-face interaction – now that’s golden.
2. Keep it simple. Mark and I were actually emailing this morning; he was shooting me some advice in regards to my blog. He said the blog post doesn’t have to be a PhD thesis. It should show my personality. If you’re considering starting a blog – I say go for it – but don’t fall into the trap of over thinking it.
Highly recommend purchasing his most recent book: Social Media Explained: Untangling the World’s Most Misunderstood Business Trend. He knows his stuff. Check it out.