Delivered daily: The future of advertising

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Introduction

Two articles, together, provide a tough look for advertising’s future.

From Europe to Asia, Apple’s market lead in the premium bracket is growing, and polls show that people in their teens and early 20s, known as Gen Z, increasingly see the iPhone as a must-have. Converts say they are drawn by its design, cameras and AirDrop features for sharing photos.

That’s the ‘device’ future, in the palm of a younger generation’s future.

What’s interesting, and likely not surprising, is the lack of mentioning ‘privacy’ as a must-have for these converts.

Whether these young buyers realize it or not, their purchase habits are shaping how we interact with the data and world around us.

(Why isn’t it surprising ‘privacy’ is missing? I’m assuming their locations have something to do with that.)

Then there’s this from the business development angle.

Brand sponsorships will remain most creators’ No. 1 revenue stream in 2023. But many creators are now branching out from promoting brands to developing brands of their own.

That’s the ‘business model’ future (and, really, present).

While the creator economy may be pulling back from an investment perspective, that may ultimately indicate its maturity.

And moving into a business-first focus will see more focus on partnerships versus advertising.

And in the B2B world, partnerships drive long-term relationships and business development.

Connecting the future

How do these two stories connect to tell the future of digital advertising?

In two distinct ways:

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The device: Today it’s the phone, tomorrow it’s the ???.

Whatever the device, this younger generation is starting to live in a digital world without the constant annoyance of digital advertising (the tracking, the following, the exploitation, the data-safety concerns).

As this becomes the new norm, the industries and businesses around them will need to shift their methods of effective message delivery.

Especially as this younger generation’s disposable income and purchasing power begins to rise.

The device is the foundation of advertising’s future success.
The business model: Admittedly, this shift will be more discreet yet will likely be first to completely change.

As the younger generation is introduced to basic business concepts, there’s a realization that growth at all costs doesn’t fit their personal or professional ethos.

Once the rush to gain followers ebbs, these business owners and operators will start to think how topics like margins and scale can co-exist.

And the realization that follower count may not be the key to long-term success (or happiness).

The business model shift will be the foundation of how we (ie, the users) engage with brands and organizations.

What’s next

I mentioned at the close of yesterday’s article that I’d get off this advertising-is-bad soapbox soon.

There seems to be a few underlying stories this week (I’m not event including the changes coming to platforms like TikTok) that scream out “the future of advertising is not good!”.

One more article this week on advertising.

Next week, I’d like to get into the federal infrastructure act and in particular, broadband investments.

Closing

In yesterday’s article, Delivered daily: Lost opportunities (more advertising), I made this comment:

However, I think we’re now on the verge of doing something different. Something new. Something better.

The future of the device and business model make me excited about the future of something better.

Thank you

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