Seminar emphasises on development of social media | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Seminar emphasises on development of social media

Syed Masood Hashmi of Orient McCann emphasised on the development of social media and eradication of boundaries in today’s world, while speaking at a seminar on ‘Swiss Knife of Social Media’, organised by Navitus. He said “Technology has advanced at such a fast pace that you can virtually tour the world at the comfort of your home and transact any business and build brands. Consumers prefer evolution over revolution”.

He cited many dot com examples of the nineties and said, “During the 90’s, the dot com era was in full swing. It soon becoming a buzz word and then collapsed later to became death coms.” Hashmi further elaborated his point by stating that old mediums co-existed with new ones. “The first newspaper was published in 1830. After that when the radio was introduced, many people thought that its introduction would spell the end of the newspaper. And in 1925 when television was demonstrated to the public at large, it was deemed as an end of the radio. Likewise, during 1982, when the internet came along, many people thought that the television would become obsolete and people will start doing all business through digital. They thought shopping centres will turn into theme parks. However it never happened because consumers love the experience of shopping”.

Even after many years, all these mediums still co-exist proving that marketing is about understanding consumer psyche and consumer insights are key. Whether it is TV, radio or internet, these platforms just provide a medium, although internet is an interactive medium with many advantages. Hashmi explained that “digital marketing should not be used as an icing on the cake. It should be an integral part of the creative and brand development process. Digital strategists should be the part and parcel of this process from the initial briefing stage.”

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