Skip to main content

The race to the bottom

When anyone has the ability to announce breaking news, urgent updates, RIGHT NOW, steal attention and emergencies, then sooner or later, many will do just that.

Attention is scarce, scarcer than ever, and we’ve given everyone a machine that can steal attention, and a keyboard that can be used to steal even more.

The race for cheap, unearned attention is a race that can’t be won. As soon as someone gains the lead, someone else will lower their standards and take a shortcut to get even more. The players have already surrendered their self-esteem, so it’s simply an escalating hijack of trust. And so we have dark patterns, once-respected media outlets with shameless headlines and an entire industry based on clickbait, come-ons and trickery.

It’s pretty clear that there’s an alternative. A chance to work toward the top instead. To deliver anticipated, personal and relevant messages to people who want to get them. The opportunity to create remarkable products and services for a focused audience, stuff so good that people want to talk about it.

This is marketing. To choose to race to the top and then to do it well.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Protesters stormed the US embassy in Baghdad and torched parts of it on New Year's Eve

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images Protesters have stormed the US embassy in Baghdad, setting fire to a reception area. The demonstrations were sparked by US attacks on a militia in Iraq and Syria Sunday, in which 25 were killed. President Trump in a tweet accused Iran of being behind the attack on the embassy, and said the US had launched the strikes in retaliation for an attack in which a US contractor was killed.  Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories . Supporters of Shia militias in Iraq have stormed the US embassy in Baghdad, setting fire to a guard tower and reception area, according to reports.  An Associated Press reporter at the scene reported seeing flames rise from inside the compound, and at least three US soldiers on its roof. See the rest of the story at Business Insider NOW WATCH: How Ocean Spray cranberries go from the bog to your Thanksgiving table See Also: Greta Thunberg will interview David Attenborough in a special edition of the BB...
Post a Comment
Read more

The future of flying? AI that shames you into being a better passenger

The AI-powered airport of the future is full of promise–and peril, writes Teague futurist Devin Liddell. The first biometric airport terminal is already up and running, thanks to Delta’s collaboration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Transportation Security Administration, and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Similar systems are now operational at Dubai International Airport , at least for first- and business-class passengers. While groundbreaking, these systems—powered by artificial intelligence—are early exemplars of the emerging technological transformation of airport and airline operations. They are working preludes to artificial intelligence’s eventual forays throughout the passenger experience. Part of these forays will be driven by technology; we’ll have increasingly smarter and capable tools for independently managing enormous complexities and creating new efficiencies. Another part will be driven by new c...
Post a Comment
Read more

The market's favorite recession indicator has stopped flashing red. But the Duke professor who created it told us everyone should still be prepared for the worst.

Screengrab/YouTube Campbell Harvey, the Duke University professor who uncovered the inverted yield curve as a recession indicator, says his model could some day give a false positive signal. It's something that's top of mind right now, as the curve has univerted in recent weeks. But Campbell argues his model isn't broken or flashing a false signal because the same conditions from prior economic downturns are also present now. He says that everyone should heed the indicator's latest warning as there are other signs that a downturn is coming.  Read more on Business Insider. Campbell Harvey, the Duke professor who pioneered the inverted yield curve's use as a recession signal, says his beloved model will break one day. "I'm not naive about this — the model is very simple," Harvey, who is now a professor at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business, told Markets Insider in an interview. "There will be false signals."  See the rest ...
Post a Comment
Read more