People don't listen to the radio anymore, my daughter forthrightly exclaimed the other day. As someone who is working to start a radio station this bothered me a bit.
"How do people find out about new music?" my daughter was asked. "We used to hear new music on the radio."
My daughter sighed and then patiently (sort of) explained that there are tons of way to find out about music, movies, books, TV shows, fashions, etc.
"Pinterest!" I said excitedly, trying to sound like I knew what was going on. After another sigh, she explained that some of that happens on websites, but a lot of it happens from people sharing recommendations with each other. She explained how easy it is to share a rave about a movie or a song with all of your friends, contacts and more.
I think this raises an interesting issue.
I wrote a cranky blog a couple of weeks ago, taking issue with the popular phrase that content is king. A link to that blog is at the bottom of this page. I posited in that blog that content has ALWAYS been the most important thing.
"How do people find out about new music?" my daughter was asked. "We used to hear new music on the radio."
My daughter sighed and then patiently (sort of) explained that there are tons of way to find out about music, movies, books, TV shows, fashions, etc.
"Pinterest!" I said excitedly, trying to sound like I knew what was going on. After another sigh, she explained that some of that happens on websites, but a lot of it happens from people sharing recommendations with each other. She explained how easy it is to share a rave about a movie or a song with all of your friends, contacts and more.
I think this raises an interesting issue.
I wrote a cranky blog a couple of weeks ago, taking issue with the popular phrase that content is king. A link to that blog is at the bottom of this page. I posited in that blog that content has ALWAYS been the most important thing.
I recently saw a video (it is embedded at the end of this blog) that had a different take on the whole issue of the importance of content. The CEO and co-founder of the website Klout, Joe Fernandez, feels that influence is king of the internet, not content. If you are not familiar with the website Klout, it is a website that attempts to measure your internet influence by measuring the contacts and connections you make online. It is interesting and can be strangely addicting.
Influence is the currency of the social web, Fernandez posits. Word of mouth has always been the most effective way to grow a business. But now, for the first time, it's scalable, he says.
One need only look to the recent events in Boston to see the value and importance of quality content and the connection between content and influencers. Watching the commentators on CNN rush to get out "facts" and then spend hours discussing why those facts were inaccurate would have seemed like visiting journalism on its death bed if it wasn't such a common experience for so long.
Contrast that with the excellent, reasoned and careful reporting by many reporters. Pete Wilson from NBC is mentioned most often as providing credible, valuable insights into the horrific events. I think many of the local print journalists were equally worthy of praise.
Pete Wilson and Brian Williams on NBC increased their influence with excellent, carefully prepared and presented content. Some on CNN didn't.
I think that the content vs. influence debate is somewhat of a chicken and egg debate. If there isn't word of mouth about a website, blog or whatever, then the content isn't seen. If no one sees it, how valuable is excellent content? If influencers don't have worthwhile content to direct people to, they have no way to exercise their influence.
We have always had influencers directing us toward certian content. While it used to be Wolfman Jack and Larry Lujack playing us the latest hits or Siskel and Ebert's thumbs pointing us toward (and away from) movies, now we have friends on Facebook and playlist on 8Track.
You've nailed it again, Bill. Excellent post! My own Klout is meager, but I work kind of in the shadows producing content for "influencers." For example, I've been asked to contribute a book review for an extremely influential literary resource. (I can't wait to get the advance copy in the mail!) The content I write will directly influence purchasing decisions. I'm fascinated by the commodification of content, which I believe informs today's "Content is King" assertion.
ReplyDeleteThanks for continually spinning my wheels!