In 1997, at a conference on the digital economy, American physicist and economist Michael Goldbacher said that the income of global "stars" and brands grows in proportion to the attention they receive. This is, on the one hand, a regularity, and on the other hand, a profound thought. It underpins networking, promotion of social media pages, video blogs, messengers and everything we know about the web at our user level. After 1997, in more than 20 years, digitalisation has allowed the attention economy to take deep roots.
Let's start from the beginning
The attention economy is a concept whose main resource is human attention. It is this attention and the items on which it is focused that determine the offer of manufacturers. And now let's expand our attention to global cultural and political events, high-profile premieres, significant events and speeches by public figures. Let's go a step further and look at the social media pages of friends of the brand's target audience. Let's take a closer look at this example, which will help explain the principles of the attention economy in clear language.
Have you ever noticed that sometimes simple content - two photos, three words, "surzhik" spelling, blurry and low-quality visuals, etc. - gets several hundred likes, a couple of reposts and about 100 comments? No, we're not talking about hype topics that only lazy people don't talk about, but about simple "real life" content. Have you ever noticed that content that requires you to think about it for a long time, to comprehend every word, perhaps to revise your paradigms, often garners a few dozen likes, few comments, and even fewer reposts? If so, let's analyse it further. We're dealing with the mass market and its target audience. They are attracted to humour, simple truths of life, "few letters" and "simple like me" bloggers and friends. The economy of attention works in such a way that the simplest content does not allow the target audience to get to more complex content. And there's no need for it, because "people eat it up". In more complex content, the competition is higher, the reader is more sophisticated, and their attention is more selective, so the attention economy is not in favour of those who bring thoughts to a higher level of the pyramid.
Is that clear enough? Let's get back to the brands
In the attention economy, the main task of a brand is to follow the focus of its target audience and offer products that are relevant to the current situation. For example, you've watched a film or trailer, and all the collaborations between brands and producers that are available for purchase or that match your income level start appearing in your feed. Have you noticed?
Another example. You mentioned brands or products in a conversation with someone, and your phone was close by, and then - once - social media starts offering you this product under discussion. Did you get it?
And finally. You said on the phone that you were leaving the house and would be at the meeting point in an hour. And Google Maps instantly suggested the best route. Isn't it amazing? The economy of attention!
How does it all work and why did it come about?
First, today every user can freely receive and create information, as well as share data, sometimes refuting it: social networks, websites, online media, forums, etc.
Secondly, the algorithms of websites and social networks. They limit the entire ocean of information to topics of interest to the user. This is how brands catch the customers they need
Third, the ability of users to influence their information environment. For example, hiding news from uninteresting accounts, buying ad-free subscriptions, blocking ads, etc. Thus, the attention of an individual becomes even more scarce for brands.
To sum up. Brands use several strategies in the fight for attention: independent content generation, creation of newsworthy events, collaborations with exclusive brands/individuals and hype, and of course, targeted advertising rather than world-famous brands.
Is it worth fighting it? Of course not, it's useless. All tools should be used in your own struggle for attention.
Source: AgroPortal
