4.5 billion. Last year 2020 closed with this number of Internet users. 4.5 billion people already use Digital Communication, or in other words, more than half of the world’s population is “digitized”.
Although we still receive information on paper, and even traditional telephones are still used, it is clear that our daily lives are now characterized by the prominence of online. Information technology, but above all the Internet, has been key to disseminate, extend, and in a certain way impose, the communication of the future: Digital Communication.
Digital communication and its advantages
Formally, the concept of Digital Communication refers to the exchange of information that occurs through digital media. Even so, what is really important is the conception of it as a system that opens the possibility of multiple communicative panoramas at the same time.
With Digital Communication we are not only learning to communicate in a different way than we were used to, but at the same time, our conception of the world, and our habits and behaviors are changing as it expands; we have already seen this with virtual events .
The environment of which this new type of communication is a part is lively and constantly evolving. Moreover, it requires user participation to develop, i.e., the more we use it, the more we discover new ways to exploit it. In this sense, we can affirm that Digital Communication is a more “human” communication, a fact that translates into 4 basic advantages:
- Immediacy: Digital communication allows us to decide how and when we want to talk. In the non-stop era in which we find ourselves, having a system that provides you with an immediate solution is what we crave the most.
- Accessibility: This point goes hand in hand with the previous one, since if there is one thing we love about digital, it is that it is very easy to access it, at any time or place.
- ALL the information at your fingertips: According to data from the company Domo, every minute of 2020 meant more 208,000 people at Zoom conferences, 347,222 stories on Instagram, 70,000 new job applications on LinkedIn, or 500 hours of new YouTube videos. The best thing is that all this information remains on the network, and you can access it .
- Sustainability: The fact of transferring communication to digital format has also had a positive impact on the planet, starting from a strictly paper-based information source. Now we still consume energy, but we save on other costs.
New communication channels
The first time we heard about Digital Communication was through websites or mobile devices. However, the concept has been expanding into new and different channels that, for those of us who are dedicated to communication, allow us to convey our messages in different ways.
From Valkiria we offer you a list of the most used Digital Communication channels in the MICE sector in Barcelona:
- Social networks
- Newsletters
- Mobile applications
- Databases
New professional profiles in demand
The growing development of Information and Communication Technologies, and consequently of Digital Communication, is causing changes in the demand for professionals in the sector. Communication professionals have had to adapt to fit into the new occupations that the digital wave has left behind. Therefore, we are talking about the birth of new digital profiles that have employed more than 418,000 people, according to data from the National Observatory of Telecommunications and the Information Society in Spain.
As a result, companies in the sector have been forced to restructure their traditionally understood production systems. We are not only talking about ICT development, but recently the irruption and evolution of the Internet and social networks has skyrocketed. The need to adapt to constant change and innovation has led companies to increasingly demand these new professional profiles.
Some of the new profiles that have emerged as a result of the development of communication that has become digital are:
- Community Manager: This is the professional specialized in the use of tools and applications of the digital environment, who manages social networks and communication channels of a company, as defined by Manu Moreno in the book ‘El Gran Libro del Community Manager’.
- Content Manager: Professional who is responsible for the content strategy of a brand or company. His main functions are the creation, coordination and editing of content, and his work is aimed at defining a content plan for the company.
- SEO and SEM specialists: The SEO(Search Engine Optimization) concept defines the professional who has skills in editing content or promotional campaigns, in order to achieve a better positioning of a website in search engine results. It is based on managing a company’s online reputation.
Is marketing and communication the same thing?
The line that divides the concept of marketing and communication is blurred, since communication is often understood as a part of marketing. The reality is that there are notable differences that separate the two concepts.
Marketing is oriented towards generating sales opportunities: the main focus is on the product or brand and the actions taken are fixed in the short term. On the contrary, communication is oriented to the management of the reputation of the company or brand, and not on the sale and the product. It focuses on corporate values, culture and brand, and unlike marketing, objectives are set for the medium or long term.
Therefore, having a good marketing team is not synonymous with being able to do without communication tools and professionals. It is good communication, and in today’s times digital communication, that facilitates the success of marketing campaigns and sales actions.
Don’t miss the #ValkiriaAfterwork ‘tastet’ on Digital Communication.
