I’m Not A Number Or A Thing So Stop Trying To Pitch Me That Way
Redefining Your Digital Identity Beyond Influence
Consumer Identity in a Digital Age The terms ‘Influencer’ and ‘market’ don’t exactly instil confidence or a sense of connection for me as a consumer. This sentiment aligns with the philosophy that people prefer to actively choose to buy rather than feel like they’re being sold to. Anyone familiar with the sardine can story in the context of the stock and commodities markets will understand the feeling of being treated as just another statistic rather than as a valued customer.
Understanding Market Dynamics: The Sardine Tin Analogy
In his excellent book “Margin of Safety”, Seth Klarman tells a story of a famous bubble you probably haven’t heard of: the sardine bubble in Southern California.
There is an old story about the market craze in sardine trading when the sardines disappeared from their traditional waters in Monterey, California. The commodity traders bid them up and the price of a can of sardines soared. One day a buyer decided to treat himself to an expensive meal and actually opened a can and started eating. He immediately became ill and told the seller the sardines were no good. The seller said, “You don’t understand. These are not eating sardines, they are trading sardines.”
This analogy highlights the difference between speculative trading and value investing in the commodities market. Traders, in this context, are compared to individuals who trade sardine tins, not for the consumption of the sardines but for profit. This behavior mirrors social platforms who focus on market trends and speculation, ignoring the real value of what’s being sold.
We — human beings and our behaviors have become a commodity to be traded.
Ad servers know if you can influence human behavior, you can sell it!
The Internet: A Battleground of Perspectives
The internet has evolved into a battleground of ‘us vs. them,’ dividing the world into sellers and consumers, or holders of opposing viewpoints. This division is a well-oiled machine, driven by the voracious appetite of ad sales. The more polarized the opinions, the more attention is captured, leading to more ads being sold. This cycle reduces us as individuals to mere numbers, and data points in an algorithmic game.
Awakening to the Influence
There comes a moment of awakening when we realize we’re being openly categorized as ‘influenced.’ We’ve even come up with socially acceptable names for the phenomenon. Our preferences and choices seem orchestrated by an unseen puppeteer, prompting us to question the authenticity of our purchasing decisions. Buying trendy items like Balenciaga or yoga tights becomes less about need and more about conforming to a trend. This phenomenon isn’t limited to fashion; it encompasses every choice we make in the digital realm.
Challenging the Commodity Mindset
I don’t appreciate being treated or spoken to as if I am a commodity, reminding me that I am the product. Navigating a world that constantly makes me feel like an object, in a language that assumes my compliance, is challenging. I often wonder if I’m just sleepwalking through life, accepting this concept because it’s what everyone has been conditioned to do. The algorithms are learning, generating bots, and showing content that conditions us to accept being a commodity.
The Disconnect in Digital Marketing
As a copywriter for over a decade, it was crucial to connect with the audience’s wants and needs. However, at a recent social media conference I attended, not one speaker addressed audience needs in marketing. The focus was on trending videos and content designed to trigger impulsive buys without considering the service the company was willing to deliver. This approach neglects the importance of building long-term relationships with customers and barely addresses COA (cost of customer acquisition) vs Customer Lifetime Value (COV). In other words, the cost of getting a customer vs the long-term value of keeping them.
The Architect of Your Own Reality
I struggled to stay engaged online with things that brought me joy and laughter, anything creative and meaningful without being drawn into the vortex of negativity and consumerism.
Writing ‘Social Media Influence’: A Journey to Authentic Engagement
This experience inspired me to write ‘Social Media Influence.’ I aimed to find a way to engage with what I loved online — the creative, the artistic — without feeling like a commodity in an endless cycle of ads and consumerism. It serves as a manifesto for those seeking to navigate the digital world without losing their sense of self, a guide for staying true to one’s passions amidst the noise.
Never mind who else wanted to read it, I needed it for me!
The Big Question
Do you want to be the architect of your own reality, or be mindlessly woven into the fabric of someone else’s? This is a reality for anyone online or consuming news; we are all algorithmically influenced numbers.
What is your life and your (precious) time worth? Are you an eating or a trading sardine?
In writing ‘Social Media Influence,’ my goal was mostly to remind myself to stay in charge of my own sanity, to remember that it’s all just a game.
There are many ways we can remind ourselves daily to stay awake and aware of our decisions — and our moods too. To check in with the inner voice and ask who is thinking this — it is really me or the noise of influence?
With practice, gets easier to notice the difference and make more personally empowering choices.
We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far. Swami Vivekananda
