As we approach the critical summer box office sales period, there’s no doubt the media industry has experienced a fundamental shift.
We’ve evolved from business models fueled by analog content and scarce distribution to a digital world of empowered consumers who are increasingly in control of where, when and how they consume content.
This has been a gradual but unrelenting shift for every segment of the industry, from studios and televisions networks, online news outlets, marketing and advertising firms, to cable companies. The result is that the “digital era,” which was boldly launched with the introduction of the Internet, is now behind us and a new “connected consumer era” has arrived.
Now, media and entertainment organizations must go beyond ‘being digital’ in order to keep pace with this fast evolving environment. They need to develop strategies that build new value on top of their digital production and multi-channel distribution plans. To do so, firms will need to understand their audience and their behaviors in a much more nuanced way, applying “social intelligence” to communicate directly with consumers via social media. This requires taping into the bi-directional flow of communication and data that was not possible just a few years ago.
The important shift is that consumers aren’t just consuming content on their smart phones, tablets and PCs—they are publishing information as well. Social media outlets such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and blogs are creating a tornado of consumer feedback that has the power to change every aspect of the industry; what brands prosper, how movies are produced and marketed, how TV shows are offered, and where and when ads appear.
