Marketers: Take a Pin to That 'Filter Bubble'

Give the people you're targeting what they want -- even if they don't know yet what that is.

Algorithms have operated behind the scenes of our best-loved social platforms since their earliest days, but their side effects have only recently been scrutinized in light of Donald Trump’s rapid ascent to president-elect, and the UK’s surprising Brexit vote last summer.

These cultural moments taking place on either side of the Atlantic gained considerable momentum on social media, and in their wake there has been growing recognition of the role of Facebook et al. in bringing about their outcomes.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently weighed in on this debate, suggesting that Facebook and Google be made to disclose their secret algorithms, saying that users are entitled to know how the information they see is selected for them, and that it’s very likely this issue will come under the regulatory microscope. 

Merkel and other critics of the algorithm trend are focusing on what in the tech world is called "filter bubbles" -- personal online networks of content which continuously reinforce our individual bias and worldview.

"Filter bubble" describes the byproduct of social algorithms: These algorithms attempt to align with our own natural tendencies by selecting online content that is personally relevant to us, based on our previous clicks/shares/views. And these algorithms have become increasingly effective at that task. 

The result is that our individual online experiences, from Google searches to Facebook feeds, are more filtered than ever. And content deemed too different to our audience profile is excluded -- creating the "bubble effect" which prevents new points of view from challenging us. My view? Marketers should take a pin to that bubble.

Let me explain. This particular element of our online lives has fascinated us a while, so we delved into the issue here at our U.K.-based Unfolded Talks session, drawing on evolutionary science, psychology and various perspectives about well-being to understand the consequences of the filter bubble.

The result was that we agreed that social algorithms have not only magnified and automated our natural personal bias, but have made these bubbles completely invisible to us. That's a process that should be a real concern for businesses -- particularly marketers.

Freshly filtered news

What, where and how we consume content has never been more important, which is why online platforms have led the way in tailoring that information to users’ needs, based on their past clicks and views.

For social networks, this means suggesting news and connections that align with each user’s typical online activity. For search engines, it means that each user will find different search results than will the next guy for, say, "Tunisia," "climate change" or "best sports car."

In the short term, this scenario can be incredibly useful in an information-rich age. We are bombarded with so much information that surely it makes sense to filter out what isn’t relevant, right?

Maybe not, because when we take a long-term perspective, the problems become apparent. The events of this year are a sobering example. They show us that a long-term side effect of these bubbles has been the creation of extreme "us-versus-them" world views -- demonstrated during the recent campaigns leading up to the U.S. election and Britain's EU referendum.

Parroting isn’t personal, so challenge your audience.

Personalization is the buzzword behind these algorithms, as those in the marketing industry well know. Most ad-funded networks, from news outlets to social media, trade on their volume of audience insight, and it has become accepted conventional wisdom that "relevance" is "personal," and that "personal" is the goal advertisers should aim for.

The problem is, being personal is often interpreted as parroting overly similar content, products and services back to audiences that show related interests.

Instead, I’d like to suggest the value of a challenged audience. This is an audience which recognizes you amid the wave of look-alike content, understands that you stand for something different than do your competitors and is an audience willing to engage with your message, rather than to just "like" it.

That’s what I see as effective marketing, because it's not reliant on simple relevance. Here’s how you can help remove your own audience members from their respective online ruts:

1. Understand the ‘present self’ versus the ‘ideal self.’

Netflix spotted a strange effect among its users switching from DVD rentals to streaming service: Those customers amassed a long queue of items that never got watched. The reason: They were lining up items they thought they’d like to watch in future, but never found themselves interested in watching them "right now."

This tendency is universal. We overestimate our future selves and, when it comes to Netflix, at least, we may queue up high art films, documentaries or classic movies that we know we "should" watch. Yet, in the moment, it’s easier to watch Hot Tub Time Machine instead of investing ourselves in something like Schindler's List.

Considering this tendency, can advertisers encourage audiences to step back from easy gratification and embrace a world of alternatives?

Eli Pariser -- CEO of Upworthy -- described this phenomenon as balancing your "information vegetables" with your "information dessert." As marketers increasingly gain intimate knowledge of our online diets, encouraging us to vary them is simply a question of creativity.

2. Become a provocateur.

Brands can be hesitant to go against the flow, but look at what The Economist did: It recently reclaimed a huge swathe of readers by coming right out and directly challenging its audiences. Its campaign was made up of 60 pieces of creative content -- each one asking its respective audience a tough question and questioning that audience's assumptions about topics ranging from American police brutality to the European migrant crisis.

These provocations were placed directly into rival news sites of all kinds to disrupt audiences’ traditional browsing patterns and show them another point of view.

It was a simple but effective campaign which actually over-achieved on its targets: It delivered five times as many prospective subscribers as had been briefed (3.5 million people versus 650,000), with a return on campaign investment of 10:1.

Crucially, the mechanics of the campaign were fairly typical, and therefore easy to reproduce. Its provocative messaging was all that set it apart from a host of other digital campaigns.

3. Be creative with your platforms (or create a new one).

Spotify was in an uncomfortable position not so long ago. With Google Play, Pandora and more recently Apple Music to compete with, Spotify found itself in dire need of differentiation.

Here's how it did that: Today, Spotify's weekly Discover Playlists make millions of its users into fans every time it offers them a song they never would have found otherwise, thus throwing those listeners a musical curveball every so often.

The principle works in the bigger-picture sense, too. Toronto-based Million Short is an alternative search engine: It filters out up to a million of the first results that you’d find on the likes of Google and Bing, exposing its users to sites they might never have found before, and stripping away the obvious.

So, there it is: Spotify discovered the magic of serendipity. And Million Short proved (still does) how simple it can be to take users behind a curtain of standard content.

Follow their example! Take inspiration from their experience and give the people you're targeting what they want -- even if they don’t know it yet.

Written By: Yelena Gaufman

Credit: Entrepreneur.com

10 Mistakes Content Marketers Make (And How To Avoid Them)

Anyone in the content marketing world knows how tough it can be to produce stellar, consistent content that does so well that it knocks it out of the park. From thinking about blog topics, writing the content, proofreading, editing and then finally publishing, content marketers do a whole lot more than just publishing content.

The best place in the world to be a marketer

Marketers are a necessity for any business (like it or not) and so we have the luxury of being in demand across the globe. But where is the best place to ply our trade?

The digital era of going viral

If you have ever studied the science of cross pollination, you would realize that the plants that use this mechanism to reproduce need certain agents to achieve this goal. These agents are mostly birds and insects and it is the flowers that have certain features; colourful, sweet scented and sometimes contain nectar that that are pollinated. When the birds and insects settle on the plants and feed on them, they carry pollen on to the next plant; fertilization takes place, leading to reproduction. If you are to explain this in the language of marketing, you would say the pollen has gone viral.

Market Segmentation - Key to marketing Success

Every marketing professional will tell you that the core of good marketing is segmentation, targeting and positioning (STP).Marketing and segmentation are inseparable, meaning marketing starts from the market place and not the actual product. Customers are found in the market and because marketing is basically to identify the needs of these customers, neglecting them will make its practice impossible.

Sometimes people misunderstand marketing as sales and advertising, but the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management - UK defines sales/selling as a function concerned with identifying the specific needs, desires and problems of individual customers and providing satisfaction through benefit or solution in order to facilitate profitable business transactions.

What About Marketing?

Banks, in most cases, have always been profitable and it has been easy for the banks to get clients to open accounts. Even though the banking industry is very competitive, banks have always had the customer coming to them for banking facilities. Banks hardly win customers by going to the consumer; with a presentable branch and great customer service, the customer is easily won.

Now bankers are being threatened by the likes of retail outlets such as supermarkets that have so much information about their customers. Most of these customers would visit these outlets whether offline or online than go to their local banks. Some banks are struggling to get their customers to log on to their websites and use the online banking facilities but these same customers will be found online visiting online retails sites such as amazon.com.

Can You Live Without Your Mobile Phone?

Mobile phones are no longer a preserve for the elite in society. Almost everyone owns one. They are now part of people’s everyday lives. Life without a mobile phone, for some people, is like life without oxygen; an electrical appliance without electricity; the world without light or a football match without a ball.

The International Telecommunication Union has estimated that about seven billion cellular phone subscriptions would be recorded mid 2013 worldwide. Over 50 million people own mobile phones in Africa. Out of this number, 15 million do not have access to their own television at home.

Making the Uniqueness of your Brand Known

Imagine this; you have finally been called for an interview you have been looking forward to for months. Now is the moment of truth and you do not want to miss any detail;  you bring out the new skirt suit and shoes you have been saving for this special day; all necessary documents set and confidence hoisted;  you are indeed poised and set for action. You get to the organisation’s premises; you are ushered to the waiting room and then boom! It happens; two other candidates, all but their faces, are rocking the same outfit as you are. This was totally unexpected and you do not have any backup plan. What are you going to do? For some people, this will be like the derailing moment of their life or more like the Titanic sinking slowly with just twenty lifeboats onboard. Now the question is; how do you convince your prospective employers that despite wearing the same outfit as the others, you have something unique your fellow applicants do not possess? This is where advertising comes in. You need to create awareness about yourself; enough for your potential employers to take action, in other words, choose you!

Finding Innovative Ways to Play the Name Game

Just as nature abhors a vacuum, organizations hate missing an opportunity to leverage their assets. It is an instinct that has led many to consider whether they can get more out of their names – that is to create corporate brands in addition to their product brands.

The question is particularly relevant for companies in the consumer-goods industry, which typically market their wares under a variety of different names such as Kasapreko’s Alomo Bitters, Unilever’s Dove soap or Nestlé’s Maggi Mixpy.

Ambush Marketing

2014 is here with us; bringing in its wake the FIFA World Cup tournament. This is possibly the biggest sporting event in the world. Everyone is talking about the World Cup; who made the list, who is tipped to win, etc. Even me, a sworn anti-football fan is writing about it now. 

Well, while some people (very few), like me, want to run away from this event, others are over the moon about the opportunities that come with it; footballers are eager to show what they are made of, countries are doing all it takes to make sure their teams have the right preparation that will help them win their matches, fans are excited to travel to Brazil and cheer on… In the background are marketers and advertisers, who will be taking advantage of this global interest to advertise and market their brands.