3 words... Mental Digital Shift!! Today I'm talking to Media stations!! #LongPostAlert ;-)
A few years ago CCK pulled the analogue plug forcing the country to go digital and the monopoly media players went into a frenzy!! My dear friends.... that was but a slight tremor warning you to wake up to the inevitability that is CHANGE!! The mother of all earthquakes is coming... and those not ready are going to feel her full wrath!!
I don't even know where to start with this one... there's just toooo much to say so in the spirit of trying to keep this post short I'll jump straight into it. #Legggggooooo #CTA101
(1) Facebook LIVE - So a few days ago I watched the heartbreaking video of a woman Facebook live-ing (yes I just created a word) her black boyfriend dying after being shot by a white cop. Now this status isn't about "black lives matter" (thats a whole other status for another day), this status is about the creation and distribution of content to an audience. Facebook Live has completely CHANGED the game!!! Let me say that again... Facebook live done changed the game!!! So today I did my first facebook live video in support of my brother Noel Nderitu's video release (shameless plug watch his video here - http://bit.ly/29zkvjT). No camera, no sound equipment, no setup complications... just a smartphone and an internet connection! And voila!!! No OB (Outside Broadcasting) Van needed!! By the time the reporters are arriving on the scene the story has already being broadcasted on social media!! To add onto this media station are now collecting content directly off social media and broadcasting this on their platforms. Media stations are no longer "breaking the news"... they're simply recycling the story!!
(2) Social Media Clout - I can't count the number of presenters and media personalities that have both being hired and fired based on their social media clout/influence. Qualified tv and radio presenters are being shown the door simply because they have ZERO social media influence... and at the same time radio and TV are hiring individuals because of their social media influence!!! Social media clout is becoming a prerequisite for such positions!! How crazy is this!! I'd even go further and say... be very very VERY careful if you're in mainstream media and not actively engaged on the digital platform! I can more than assure you that your days are numbered. (don't shoot the messenger, digital mental shift is NOT an option!!)
(3) Digital Revenue - The ignorance around this one has completely baffled me! Dear mainstream media, the people who pay your bills (advertisers) have and are shifting to digital platforms when it comes to their pushing their products and services.... yet YOU still think you are in control?? You are very slow to adapt to the reality that digital is here to not just stay... but become the primary mode of content consumption and communication!!! Big ups to NTV Kenya for the radical decision that they made a couple of days ago... couldn't have been easy but it definitely (in my view) was the smart decision!
I'll also add and say that because this whole digital thing is new to a lot of media station they are losing A LOT (i'm talking millions here) or potential digital revenue... not being educated and informed about the digital platforms is NOT an excuse!!
(4) Content - Content is what hooks the viewer/listener. With that said your content thus needs to be relevant to your audience. It needs to be attractive to your audience. It needs to be inaccessible to your audience. E.g. A few years ago music videos were inaccessible to a Kenyan audience... TV producers, TV DJs and Music shows created superstars! Musicians had a TV and radio first distribution model. In today's day and age it's YouTube first... heck! A lot of musicians don't even bother distributing their content to radio and tv stations... thus forcing the content distributors (DJs, VDJs, etc) to look for the content on YouTube. Content is KING!!! And the Content Creator has taken back the power from the Content Distributor.
(5) Redefining Media Houses - There's a new kind of media house in town. A media house is basically a platform that creates or collects content and distributes it to a given audience. That content attracts the audience... and the audience attracts advertisers. Introducing the "Digital Media House" i.e., Vloggers, bloggers, big wigs, etc! Advertisers are switching their revenue from mainstream media to these more target, cheaper and more relevant platforms. The shift has happened and the shift will continue to happen!! People like Caroline Mutoko, Clare's Take, Xtian Dela, Amina Kenya have started reaping the benefits from this migration. Here's an extract on the effects to the digital migration thanks to http://www.digitalvidya.com/
"Magna Global is a marketing consulting and investing firm whose study found out that digital advertising revenue will surpass traditional television advertising revenue globally by 2017. Furthermore, in the U.S. alone, the study projects digital advertising will completely overtake TV advertisement spending by 2016. At present, 38% of global ad spending is on television and about 32% is on digital platforms. According to the firm, total ad revenue in the U.S. grew by 2.1% in the year 2015 and reached $167 billion. This year, the industry’s revenue will more than double in growth at 5.2%, with digital advertising leading with $68 billion revenue compared to TV’s $66 billion. Magna Global believes that ad sales will grow 4.6% globally and earn $526 billion this year."
I'll end with this... Mental Digital Shift is NOT an option!! Have thyself a superb weekend #CTA101
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