.
It would be at the very least insanity and recklessness to deny the long list of benefits the Internet has brought to everyone. But most of the time, it’s just that side.
And no, we are not going to demonize or bring you a list of everything that is possibly not so good, your “flaws” or what needs to change. Besides, it would be at the very least pretentious to believe that a simple post would have the power to do so.
However, everyone who creates content needs to adopt visions that are more in line with reality if they want more lasting, consistent and realistic results.
Therefore, it is important to start with a question that has become increasingly common…
Is life on the Internet perfect?
From what you can see out there and especially on social media, it seems that yes, life in the real world is perfect when seen under the screens that show the Internet.
Maybe only yours that isn’t!
Yes, because as we said and to a greater extent on social media, couples are always the perfect and ideal partners who declare eternal love for each other. Everyone can get rich without working hard and it’s just not, who doesn’t want to. Vacations are always perfect, in the most beautiful places in the world, under perfect weather, 5 star hotels, Michelin Guide restaurants and a long list of details that seem to have come out of a Hollywood movie script.
Everything is glamorous, everything is beautiful and everything is wonderful! If it’s not perfection, it’s very close to being.
And there are even a lot of people who know the success formulas to achieve equal status. Invariably, they try – and not rarely succeed – to convince that they know the “path of the stones”, showing their own life as proof. Some even propose to tell us the secret to be like them.
Very generous, isn’t it?
But what if by chance – just, by chance – you do everything right as they advertise and you don’t get there?
Well, something you didn’t do exactly the way they said it should be done. Or who knows, you are not capable enough. Maybe you insisted for only 798 days, when it was right, it was 801. It took 3 days of commitment and, therefore, it’s your fault! Now you have to start all over again, from scratch, if you want the results they promised you.
And soon you will find more testimonials from people who used to be like you, but who are now like him – the most followed and liked digital influencer today – and who also conquered the perfect body, the multi-digit bank account, the full schedules. of parties and popular events, the best friends in the world and the social network with 3 trillion followers, even if that means increasing the entire population of the planet several times.
Come on! Try again, be resilient and never give up.
But in addition to the sculptural body, achieved with a little unconventional chemistry, very simple diets, 10 hours a day and 7 days a week at the gym and some silly Photoshop filters, there are other situations that are often in the background, but that can be equally relevant.
It is very easy to find an “expert” for any subject on the Internet and most of the time, you don’t even need to pay attention to contexts, reliable sources or anything else. He ends up becoming the “consultant” and the “solver” of all problems.
Why do I need to go to a doctor, to take medicine, or to hire an engineer or architect to renovate the house, or any other professional? I found someone on the Internet who knows all about it and gives all the tips and it’s free!
What’s wrong with self-diagnosis and self-medication? Or just three new rooms on top of the house?
It doesn’t matter that his YouTube channel is sponsored by the brands he promotes or that that small number of views earns him six-figure monetization every month. It’s free, after all I won’t have to take a single coin out of my pocket.
Why do people worry about indications, professional history, higher education and various aspects that attest to professional competence in real life, but do not do the same in the virtual world?
Is the number of followers, likes or positioning on search engine results pages (SERPs) enough?
Where is the concern with the source of the information that is consumed? Is it checked that this information is not actually producing disinformation? Or even worse, if it’s not fake news?
Why does the life shown on the screen move people so much? What is the power that the life of others exerts? When did content – regardless of its quality – on the World Wide Web start to determine behavior and be the standard of what to do or be?
Shouldn’t it be the other way around? That is, shouldn’t the content be guided by needs and interests and real, instead of these being determined by that content?
Debatable and difficult answers to such questions…
So far, we’ve talked about relationships – albeit virtual – only between people and people, and that would already be a problem that deserves concern. The thing takes on even greater proportions, because it is not today that companies are following the same steps.
The glamorization of companies on the Internet
It is true that it is not the Internet’s “fault” that brands and companies “borrow” the image of famous people to promote themselves. Conventional advertising and marketing have been doing this for decades.
The subtle but important difference is that before the use of “propaganda boys” was based on principles such as quality or safety, for example. “So-and-so uses the XPTO brand, because he knows that you can trust”, is a hypothetical slogan of a campaign based on this concept.
Despite this almost subliminal message of still linking someone famous – even if before the reality show it was someone totally “ordinary” – with a brand, the message is now another.
The celebrity that has its doors open anywhere and at all times, invitations to events, interviews, gifts and perks and combined with this lifestylethe use of the brand and the word that has become frequent – ostentation.
Ostentation is a feminine noun that indicates pomp, demonstration of luxury and wealth and showing oneself to others in a theoretically superior condition. In other words, it is to be more, to be differentiated, with emphasis on the ego and vanity.
Let’s think about specific brand products, such as cars.
It is as if they no longer need to be economical, provide low maintenance and when necessary, their cost is affordable. They do not need to be reliable and “jack of all trades”. Nor are they the result of a lot of technological evolution. It is more important to be icons of ostentation, class and success.
Not that a Ferrari didn’t already work in this kind of aspect, but it was part of a select and restricted group of brands and not those that are the cars that anyone can have.
What’s more, they were machines capable of making dreams come true, reaching incredible speeds and providing unique experiences. A fortunate few have such a privilege. By the way, a Ferrari doesn’t need to borrow the image of any celebrity. She fulfills this role alone.
This reveals that many brands are following in the same footsteps of influencers and this is precisely why they increasingly turn to digital influencers in their Digital Marketing strategies. If such an influencer uses it, if he recommends it, it’s good. It doesn’t matter if it is!
Note that it is okay to associate with someone who influences other people. The issue is different.
When it comes to one of those many “instant celebrities”, the relationship with them becomes ephemeral, as far as their fame extends. If it’s that 15 minutes, then you have to look for a replacement.
Another side effect, if that’s what we can call this type of situation, is the emptying of everything that should be associated with the branding process.
In other words, those millions of followers or those who live under the influence of what the algorithms choose for them based on their behavior, just reinforcing their convictions, will be impacted to some extent.
But what about the others who are also potential customers, but are not under influence, either because they are not on social media, because they are analog natives, or because they have a different worldview?
Does the brand simply choose to ignore them?
Is the social network, blog or even institutional website of these brands in fact the online representation of the company?
It is necessary to reiterate that it is not a matter of simply defending that people should not aspire to those models of lives considered ideal, even those that seem like a fairy tale. Neither, to disconnect from the online world, or even to be placed on the sidelines of all these movements.
It is about making a more professional and, why not say ethical, use of Influence Marketing, which has the Internet, its current and main instrument.
Also not neglecting everything that must be related to the brand, regardless of how good the association with a person’s image is. Does the company focus on safety, quality, the relationship with its customers, the services associated with the products and the service, or is it only concerned with how it appears on the Internet?
She’s been performing in a seemingly perfect way, but is it realistic?
It is very common to identify this, when you see the reviews of many companies on Google and the good reviews are answered and thanked by the administrators of the business, but the criticisms and dissatisfactions are often ignored.
How far have we reached that a company gives itself the right to ignore a complaint?
It should be precisely the customers who complain, those responsible for the improvements and identification of possible failures, what is not done considering the company’s raison d’être and its victory over the competition.
But apparently, companies are also more concerned with showing themselves as perfect, even if in reality they are very far from being.
Conclusion
Companies have behaved like people on the Internet and social networks and often imitate the associated glamor, giving the impression that they are perfect.
.
