How Social Media Has Changed The Way We Get News
May 11, 2016
I hadn’t purchased a paper newspaper in a few years, but I bought a Sunday newspaper this past weekend. My reason wasn’t to read it. I heard newspaper is terrific to keep weeds out and I want to plant my garden next weekend.
Before using it as a weed barrier, I thought it might be interesting to read it – just like in the old days. To my surprise, the sales ads and Sunday Magazine inserts were missing. Since those had been my favorite parts of the paper, reading it was not as much fun as I had hoped.
News hasn’t changed – The way we consume it has
These days my news comes in my Facebook News Feed, fine-tuned and tailored to exactly what I want to know. CNN, The New York Times, Bloomberg, TMZ, Mashable, Social Times all have a place in my News Feed. I get the exact news that I want to see without thumbing through pages and pages of newspaper. The best part is that it’s free.
Life has changed. Just over 5 years ago I had the daily paper delivered to my front door. I would read the whole thing. I never thought I would be an online news reader. I was wrong.
I don’t even need to “thumb” through websites to find news, I only need to open up my Facebook or Twitter accounts and get my news delivered to me instantly. If I want to read more, the entire article is only a click away.
A new study, conducted by Pew Research Center, found that 63% of Facebook users now say that Facebook serves as a news source for events and issues. This is a 24% increase in just 3 years. (Pew Research Center)
In fact, Facebook as a news source will soon go beyond just print news.
A live morning news show right in the News Feed.
Ad agency DigitasLBi announced last week that it will create a live-streamed morning “feed show” on Facebook, to run three to five times per week and appear on brands’ pages, as well as in News Feed. (AdWeek)
Facebook users can shop for clothing and cars and even houses in their News Feeds. They can get the news and updates on current events, see their newest family member, and view photos from their mother’s last vacation.
Business owners take note.
If you still think advertising in the newspaper is worthwhile, you might want to reconsider. If you still think it is not worth allocating a budget to launch a marketing and advertising campaign on Facebook it might be time to think again.
Facebook is becoming a large part of people’s lives. Your customers are there. If you want to be seen and sell, then your business needs to be there too.
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