Marshall McLuhan coined the phrase, “The Medium is the Message” in 1964. His theory postulated that how the media is deployed is equally important to the actual content, as it influences how the message is received. In his theory, there is no distinction between paid and non paid media and while this is an older definition, it is still held true today.
At a November 15, 2008 U.S. forum on digital media, P&G marketing executive Ted McConnell, stated that “I think when we call it ‘consumer-generated media,’ we’re being predatory. Who said this is media? Media is something you can buy and sell. Media contains inventory.” Mr. McConnell really defined Media as “paid” placement, whereas social media and user generated content on places like Facebook had no merit as being termed Media.
The two definitions of media are different. Our belief is somewhere in between the two definitions. We believe that media can be paid or non-paid and it’s the context that matters. Simply throwing up a banner type placement within a social media environment does not effectively communicate any marketer’s message. However, determining tools to engage and encourage communication within these forums can effectively use the medium.
Simply put, Media can be the message as long as it is put into the context of understanding the environment and the users’ mindset, needs and motivations.
Tags: LiQuid Thoughts, Media