SensoryMetrics

The Internet is a Lot Slower than You Might Think.

We’re so used to thinking about the internet as instantaneous.  It’s on, so we’re connected.  If I do something now it will show up a few seconds somewhere else.  If you use VoIP then you can easily come to think of the internet as live and real time which it is, I won’t argue with that.  However, when it comes to social media and broadcasting content on the internet, there is no ‘live as it happens’.

Internet sites like this one have a long interval to broadcast content.  It is very slow at reaching its audience, but it reaches a significantly large audience nevertheless.  Today perhaps only a few hundred people will read this, but over months it could potentially reach thousands.  In theory, this post will increasingly reach its targeted audience if it contains information of value on the given subject.

The best viral content on the internet won’t reach its audience in a single week.  It might sit on YouTube for weeks or even months before it gets noticed and distributed.  There’s just so much content out there to compete with.  My guess is, viral marketing is pretty hit and miss, but if you’re going to try to do it, give it time to happen.  If you’d like to promote an event next year, start writing about it on your blog or MySpace page now.