Not long ago I read Super Sad True Love Story: A Novel by Gary Shteyngart a weird but worthwhile futuristic book that made me laugh and grimace all at once.
In it, the content creators are “so Media” which is a compliment as they are the most popular, successful people in the culture of the future. What are they doing to become so sought after? Streaming content constantly; the trashier, the more outrageous, the better. The rest of the population is so addicted to absorbing information that it’s practically all they do, constantly staring at their “äppäräts” — the next-generation smartphone in Shteyngart’s world. (If there was a prize for BEST USE OF AN UMLAUT IN LITERATURE this would be it.)
Is this where we’re headed?
In a way, I think yes.
As a society we’re constantly increasing the amount of time, the methods and the places we’re absorbing content. Take a look at this information from Nielsen:
We’re spending MILLIONS of hours a month absorbing content from blogs and social networks. We know, statistically, that a website with a blog gets 55% more traffic. There is an exponentially, rapidly increasing value in having employees who create content on behalf of your company.
Are your employees ready for this? Have you built this responsibility into employees’ responsibilities, schedules and performance ratings?
If there’s not a plan for developing this content within your company, are you able to outsource it? How?