“Lot of people who are not part of this generation bemoan what is happening to this generation,” Ian Calvert, Instant Grass co-founder, said late last week at the Digital Lab workshop held at the University of Johannesburg in conjunction with Dion Chang's 2010 Flux Trend Review conference.
Who are they?
But who are ‘these people'?
Calvert quoted New York-based Emily Nussbaum, who said of this generation: “They have no sense of shame. They have no sense of privacy. They are show-offs, fame whores, pornographic little loons who post their diaries, their phone numbers, their stupid poetry - for God's sake, their dirty photos - online.
She added: “They have virtual friends instead of real ones. They talk in illiterate instant messages. They are interested only in attention—and yet they have zero attention span, flitting like hummingbirds from one virtual stage to another.”
Some say these people are anti-brand, fringe, socially inept, thieves, loners, schizophrenic, egocentric and don't understand privacy, Calvert said.
Refutes accusation
However, Calvert refutes the accusation that digital junkies are anti-brand, citing an Instant Grass study that reveals the following: 52% have blogged about a brand, 69% have provided feedback on brand's website, 77% watched a TV commercial on YouTube, and 69% have read a corporate blog post.
Furthermore, 73% have posted a product or brand review, 40% befriended a brand, while 26% follow a brand on Twitter.
To Calvert's understanding, ‘these people', whom he called a bunch of informed and opinionated people and vocal extroverts, are simply being misunderstood.
Instead of brands bemoaning and wondering, Calvert said they should start a ‘digilogue' (digital dialogue), which consists of listening, participating, influencing and collaborating.
“Brands created in boardrooms will not survive the streets of today,” he said, adding that the easiest way to get consumers to notice your content is to get them to create it.
Calvert revealed 10 key drivers which he said drive the digital generation:
According to Calvert, the 10 key drivers could be translated into the following:
The Digital Lab was organised by Studio 4332 (formerly proximity#ttp) in association with Flux Trend Review. For more, go to www.instantgrass.com, www.studio4332.com and www.fluxtrends.com. Bizcommunity.com is a media partner.
In February 2010, Bishop Geoff Davies, Dianne Bayley, Dr Craig Nossel, Ferial Haffajee, Menzi Mthethwa, Mokena Makeka, Randall Abrahams, Sylvester Chauke and Toby Shapshak –10 of the country’s leading thinkers in a broad array of disciplines – will gather to present their insights into trends beyond the economic meltdown at a one-day conference in takes place in Johannesburg: the 2010 Flux Trend Review powered by BlackBerry.
Hosted by trends analyst Dion Chang and building upon the recently published Flux Trend Review The State We’re In (published by Pan Macmillan and available at bookstores now), the conference will give a unique South African perspective to social, business, technology, political and marketing trends. For more trends and information about the conference taking place at the University of Johannesburg Theatre (Kingsway campus) on Thursday, 25 February 2010, go to www.fluxtrends.co.za. Cost is R2280 per delegate. Bizcommunity.com is a media partner.