THE LONG TAIL & MARKETING THROUGH NETWORKS

Whilst catching up with lecture notes and readings this week, I am amused by how linked this week’s prompt of “Networks” is with my last blog post. Last week, I discussed my interest in the way Instagram content isn’t authentic to the platform itself, as images and video are stolen through the accessibility of other social media networks in our current day and age. My main priority was discussing networks and today this will be my same priority.

However, something which interests me more than just networks themselves is the concept of marketing through platforms such as Instagram and Facebook and how accessible and easy it has become for the everyday user to promote a product due to the existence of the Internet and the World Wide Web. A quote I really liked from Martin Lister’s New Media: A Critical Introduction was “we can note the way in which the development of the Internet has not only given rise to new cultural practices that have actually become a threat to the interests and business practices of huge corporations but at the same time given rise to new media behemoths in online distribution, retailing and services” (Lister, 2009, pg. 163.) More specifically, I like how Lister mentions that the creation of the Internet has become threatening towards traditional business practices that have worked well in the past. Traditional styles of advertising such as using the television, cinema and billboards (although still used today and effective in their own way) are now not as popular as opting for advertising through social media networks.

Scrolling through an Instagram feed, you are bound to come across some form of advertisement, whether it being a sponsored ad or an “influencer” promoting a product through their account.

My example, here is Tammy Hembrow: a popular social media influencer on Instagram with 9.3m followers. Due to her high exposure to an audience, Tammy commonly links up with fitness brands (due to that being her passion and interest) and promotes their product. In return for giving the brand exposure of their product, Tammy gets a % of profit gained by people using her code WB25 at checkout. This style of promotion is completely different to simply advertising a service or product by purchasing an advertisement slot in between breaks of a television program. As discussed further by Lister, this has become possible through the concept of the “Long Tail.” The “Long Tail” refers to two factors: the lowering of costs in regard to the production of digital media and the effects of search providers on modern digital marketing.

Lister mentions, “for most of the past century, companies of all types strove to introduce products and services that were blockbuster hits and could capture the mass market. Bigger was better” (Lister, 2009, pg. 198). However now, due to the lower costs associated with new digital advertising, companies are drawn to different approaches and appealing to niche markets rather than the mass. This is reflected through Tammy Hembrow and how her simple Instagram caption is an example of how the Long Tail culture has come into play.

I am really intrigued with the way the Internet has changed the concept of digital marketing and I believe I will further my knowledge on this topic as the weeks go by.

IMAGE: https://www.instagram.com/p/Burz2Ycg-lY/

READING: Lister, M et al 2009, New Media: A Critical Introduction. Routledge, 2009. (Sections: Networks, Users and Economics pp 163-169; Wiki Worlds and Web 2.0 pp 204-209; The Long Tail pp 197-200; User-generated content, we are all users now pp 221-232.)