ANOTHER GREAT LEAP FOR THE DIGITAL REVOLUTION?
The recession has brought many changes, and there is a strong possibility there will be many more – most associated, of course, with cost cutting.
One of the most significant developments that I have noticed is the huge expansion in the use of information technology in an ever-increasing variety of fields.
The so-called Digital Revolution has been with us for a long time now, and the use of information technology has completely transformed the internal working of companies, with databases, word processing, spread sheets and contact & customer relationship programmes – and where would be without email?
Nonetheless, until recently many areas like advertising, marketing and networking remained largely traditional. There was always something reassuring about newspaper adverts, hard copy flyers, and the face-to-face contact of networking events.
There still is, but increasingly businesses seem to be turning to the electronic alternatives – and as the dissemination of material in this fashion becomes more popular, so does the acceptance of it by the recipients.
Social Media Networks are a case in point. No longer are they just a vehicle to try and contact long-lost school friends, or a means to communicate with like-minded enthusiasts sharing your own particular hobby. Business networking on-line gives access to a world-wide audience. You can’t meet all of them down the pub on a Friday evening!
And it is all very cheap and convenient. The days of a commercial artist to design a flyer, a printer to print it, and a mailing house to distribute it, may be numbered. Newspapers (and TV for anybody in that exalted league of advertising!) are suffering massive down-turns in advertising revenue – indeed, the traditional media themselves are having to concentrate hard on electronic alternatives.
The Chamber movement itself is now much more reliant on electronic media. A few years ago, when I first received an e-letter from another Chamber, I was stunned (and also pretty impressed, I have to admit).
These days they come flooding in from Chambers across the country, including the British Chambers of Commerce, and as you are aware we ourselves frequently email members and use our website for marketing and publicity much more extensively than in the past.
Is it all a good direction to be moving in? I’m not sure.
Intuitively, I am uneasy about it. I still have a good feeling about the printed word, the newspaper advert, the hard copy flyer, face-to-face networking, and all the paraphernalia that goes with traditional business methods.
I am aware, however, that I am not as young as I used to be, and that change is something that comes harder as the years increase. I am also aware that the printing press was regarded by many as an evil invention initially, and that books and newspapers were originally received with suspicion.
When computers first began to impinge on the work environment, we worried that they would de-skill our jobs and create unemployment. To an extent, they probably did; but we adapted to them, and overall employment and economic stability did not suffer at all in the long run.
Change is the name of the game. Adaptability, versatility, flexibility — bywords for business success; especially in the face of the current economic climate. At present the cheaper option could well be a way to survival and success.
Bring on the expanding Digital Revolution!
Jo James, Chamber Chief Executive.
