Over time, studies have consistently been done to analyze the impact of integrating new technology into society. In 1995, Robert Putnam released “Bowling Alone”, a study detailing the decrease in civic engagement and social interaction since the 1950s correlated with the increased usage of individualistic technologies like television. Recently, these studies have been focused on the impact of Web usage and social network involvement, and have extended past simply studying social effects to learning about the neural implications. The studies provide important insights for marketers on how content production must adapt to meet the new behavior of consumers and one reason why social networking has become so popular.
Two notable studies have revealed the substantial impact Web involvement and participating in social networks have on chemical release and brain activity. Nicholas Carr, author of “The Shallows: What the Internet Does to our Brain,” describes a study done in 2007 by UCLA Professor Gary Small which tested the amount of brain activity in frequent web users as compared to the brains of those who aren’t Internet-familiar. His findings have sparked a variety of follow up studies, but one thing is clear: using the Internet rewires your brain, increasing brain activity in areas of problem solving and decision making.
“The current explosion of digital technology not only is changing the way we live and communicate,” Small concluded, “but is rapidly and profoundly altering our brains.” Unfortunately, these alterations may be decreasing our ability to focus and comprehend substantive information due to our hyper-stimulated skimming. This finding infers that attention spans of Internet users are shrinking, so content will only be valuable it is high quality, engaging, and published consistently. Competition to stand out is ever-increasing, necessitating an innovative way to market through digital channels.
The other study, by Neuroeconomist Paul Zak at Claremont Graduate University, examines the brain’s production of oxytocin, the chemical credited with producing affection, empathy and mother-child bonds. Zak records oxytocin levels in the body before and after a number of events, such as watching a heart-wrenching movie, playing an online trust-based game, and interacting on social networks like Twitter. What he finds is that social engagement seems to be rebounding from Putnam’s findings in 1995 and people are experiencing the feeling of human interaction through online interaction. An increase in oxytocin levels coincided with more generous donations and higher willingness to offer money during the trust game.
Most notably, after social networking interaction, oxytocin levels increased and stress hormone levels decreased in a manner equivalent to how the brain processes in-person connections.
Zak concludes that “social networking triggers the release of a generosity-trust chemical,” which could have a large impact on companies seeking to use digital channels to connect with their consumers. The most effective marketing strategy incorporates the organization’s story so the consumer can empathize. Stimulated brain activity, oxytocin produced from social networking, and a story-driven digital marketing strategy may provide the strong foundation a company needs to establish itself online and acquire the customers it seeks.
