COMM Week 5 DQR

Week 5 COMM DQR

Many companies use social media as a means to communicate with consumers. Additionally, companies are increasingly discovering the power of social media "influencers" to promote their brands and products.

Please watch the TED Talk from Rachel David, CEO of Hashtag Communications, an influencer marketing company.  TED: How Influencers Have Transformed Modern Marketing

After reviewing the video, discuss your thoughts on the content. What surprised you? Do you think David is correct in her assertions? What does she mean when she calls social media marketing the "Wild West"?

Mark Nolde 

I thought the video was interesting to learn about influencers and social media marketing. I am active on social media and have three kids that all have phones and two that have social media accounts, so I am very familiar with what she was talking about in the video.  I thought she did a good job breaking down the way influencers do their marketing by making themselves relatable with their audience and even getting connected with other influencers that have more followers to grow their own brand.  I know when my son was about 14, he would watch videos of other kids playing video games and I thought it was so strange that he would rather watch other kids play games than play himself.  Shortly after that he started to create his own content streaming him playing video games and sometimes just talking to whoever he thought was his audience.  I think she is correct and seems to have the credentials to make her case.  The term “wild west” refers to a situation that is new and has very few rules.  It’s reference to the days of outlaws and minors moving west in early America.  Social media marketing being such a new medium I can see how it could be considered lawless.  She did mention that marketing policies and laws are being created to curb bad practices.

Response

Gregory Goens 

Hello Class,

So, after watching the video I learned more about influencers, and how majority of them actually make it a full-time job to get by in life.  I always had the stigma of they all had these extravagant life style but they don't.  Like Ms David stated we are in the technology era and the millennials are driving the market scene being influencers to products.  Ms David stated that millennials are on social media for up to 9 hours a day, which makes influencers to spread the word about products.   You are more likely to buy a product from a normal person just like you rather than a celebrity promoting a product.  The wild west is a true statement when it comes to the marketing scene due to the raw uncensored content that influencers provide to the people. The influencers gain your trust over time and are able to see their flaws versus celebrities.  This can make it more appealing to find out if this product actual works, how it functions, or if it’s worth the money.  Therefore, this can drive people to be more willing to go get these set items seen by these influencers on social media apps.

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