Social Media Marketing in 2016 is a new world for businesses in Santa Cruz. Things are evolving both regionally and globally to make it possible for some exciting opportunities to emerge here, today. We have incorporated the Internet into our lives through smart phones, tablets and apps more fully than ever before. The Internet is currently our passport to the larger world. How does it look and feel for your business to be a part of this increasingly connected world? What are the consequences of participating in social media marketing or not?
One of the main changes the Internet has brought to US American culture if not to global culture as a whole, is the transformation of privacy and publicity. A shift in the form of public and private spheres has taken place. What are privacy and publicity in the digital age? Who has them, how much privacy and publicity can be obtained, and at what cost? How has this shift in the accessibility of public/ private spheres changed our culture? How has this transformation affected your ways of living and your views of culture?
Privacy has never been a quotient that was given equally to all people. Neither is publicity.
The ability to keep things private or to broadcast them publicly has always depended upon a subject’s ability to hide or disclose things from and to the public at will. This ability, to keep things concealed or to circulate them, is a form of power. Control of self-representation is key to successful social media marketing. This is the power of social media, generally: you get to tell your own story. Other digital services like Yelp often frustrate business owners who feel victimized by the sometimes wildly erratic criticisms users post on these review sites. Being proactive about your social media marketing is the most effective way of building the image of your business the way you want it to be viewed.
Exposure: this is the number one change the Internet has facilitated in the world. Social Media Marketing gives you the power to control your business’ exposure.
It is easier to expose things in the digital age, for good or bad. On the one hand you have crowd-sourcing projects giving exposure to the creative ideas of eco-activists and entrepreneurs, and you also have activist groups like the #BlackLivesMatter movement exposing the frequency of police brutality against disempowered people. Whether it is something you want to promote into greater being or something you want to eradicate from the face of the earth, the Internet has become a forum for public debate. Social Media is a megaphone and a whistle.
Topics that are trending are the ones that matter to people, but people are not always driven by a love of accuracy or adherence to reality. As a result, being right is not the most important thing: being part of the conversation is.
Why certain things trend is another question and is full of mysterious processes. On the one hand, you have some sort of indication of group consciousness.
It was another great week for Jackiemacro as well. Continuing her daily posts she’s kicking ass on Instagram and is starting a new series that will be shown as prints at the Santa Cruz Mountain Brewery in June 2016.
