Advancements in Technology Are Improving Our Online Experience, Not Destroying It.
It seems like everywhere you look these days, some politician, media expert or pundit is calling for fixing the internet, solving all of the issues with social media or putting an end to advancements in technology that they believe are destroying our culture. Today, a large percentage of the population believes that social media has a mostly negative effect on the way things are going in the society today. Sociology experts like Professor Frank Furedi and Harvard Professor Shoshana Zuboff warns us that social media is a seriously powerful tool that is creating cultural toxicity, a place where tech-giants are using technology to slowly blind us to the overwhelming exploitation of our personal data that is quickly becoming a threat to freedom and democracy as we know it (Kavenna, 2019).
I will admit that social platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter do have a few issues that need addressing, but as technology advances, society and culture adapts with it, and any improvements that can change society for the better, are a good thing. In my blog series, I have argued that our new virtual world has created new improvements in communications technology, 5G internet capabilities and a stronger reliance on social platforms that are driving social change. Users are being forced to create safer, more business-friendly accounts that will actually improve the social experience (Brenner, 2021).
We are seeing that new advancements in communication technology are driving increases in Telehealth visits and reducing the need for in-house doctor visits which will be a big convenience for many people (Uzzaman, 2021). In the education sector, we are seeing new advancements in technology that can help at-risk students get the access they need to manage their academic information, and receive important guidance and counseling help, but critical training is still required before we can drive overall student success.
In communications, exciting new developments in the data sciences are driving faster processing power and dramatically reducing the costs of data storage. Improvements in cloud-based technologies are allowing marketing and communications professionals to collect more important behavioral data, allowing them to develop interest-based targeting strategies that are designed to provide a drastically improved online experience (Jensen, 2019). In her recent book, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power, author Shoshana Zuboff claims that tech giants like Facebook are mining user data that is then computed, packaged and sold into behavioral future markets. These technology surveillance capitalists are using consumer data to sell certainty to their business customers who need to know with certainty what we will do, how we will respond and how we purchase (Laidler, 2019).
The reality is, there is no certainty to human consumer behavior, it can change with the wind. One bad user experience, and somebody tweets how terrible the service or product is, and it can literally change an entire communities buying behavior, almost instantly. Understanding how customers expect to be treated is nothing new, in fact, focus group testing started as early as 1937 at The Princeton University Office of Radio Research when the U.S. Government wanted to discover what messages were most effective to increase support for the war (Hardwick, 2014).
Today’s tech-giants – like the government – need important data to better understand what they can do to improve the user experience on their platforms because digital native audiences demand it. When Millennials, Gen Zer’s, and Gen Xer’s engage with a brand they expect an immediate response and instant gratification, and they are more than willing to share any personal data necessary if it means they will receive a special offer or shopping experience that is tailored to their exact needs (LiftIgnighter, 2016).
Advancements in technology are helping us create a better world – faster, safer communications, improved healthcare experiences, improved access to higher education and increased student success. As audiences become increasingly sophisticated in the use of mobile technology, demand for better, faster experiences will also increase, and the only way to better understand consumer demand is through data science. So the next time you hear some expert demanding that we wake up and fight for a different digital future, let them know you prefer to wake up to a better, more targeted digital future.
References
Brenner, M. (2021). The Future of Social Media. Marketing Insider Group. https://marketinginsidergroup.com/social-media/future-social-media/
Hardwick, N. (2014). History of Focus Groups – Improving With Age. Hardwick Research. https://www.hardwickresearch.com/history-of-focus-groups-improving-with-age/
Jensen, J. (2019). Ethical Aspects of Surveillance Capitalism. LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/ethical-aspects-surveillance-capitalism-jostein-jensen
Kavenna, J. (2019). Interview: Shoshana Zuboff: Surveillance Capitalism Is An Assault On Human Autonomy. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/oct/04/shoshana-zuboff-surveillance-capitalism-assault-human-automomy-digital-privacy
Laidler, J. (2019). High Tech Is Watching You. The Harvard Gazette. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/03/harvard-professor-says-surveillance-capitalism-is-undermining-democracy/
LiftIgnighter. (2016). What Digital Natives Want. https://www.liftigniter.com/blog/blog/digital-natives
Uzzaman, A. (2021). The Top 10 Technology and Business Trends of 2022. INC. https://www.inc.com/anis-uzzaman/the-top-10-technology-business-trends-of-2022.html