We all know that the internet is dramatically changing the traditional rules of media and communications, but the real impact on brands remains a big unknown. At the Ad-Tech conference in Singapore in late June, Nick Wreden from FusionBrand reported some dramatic statistics to show the incredible growth of video and social networking, which also gives us some clues on the implications for marketers:

• There are now 530 million users on social networks worldwide
• 10 hours of video are uploaded on YouTube each hour
• Soon 40-60% of all traffic on the internet will be video
• Within 2 years, business cards will list social networks (e.g. like email addresses and mobile phone numbers today)
• When 18-25 year-olds were asked what they would do with an extra 15 minutes a day, most said they would spend it on social networks.
• Hottest terms/concepts for the new media 2.0 world:
o “Engagement” – every marketer wants their consumers to engage with them - must be a two-way street
o “Measurement” – previously a dirty word among creatives, now the entire marketing world seeks to be data-driven
o “Entertainment” – the primary tool for engaging the consumer on the internet
o “Integration” – today every offline marketing campaign must have an online component.

While the internet means less control over how a brand will be perceived, it can also offer significant opportunities for emotionally engaging target consumers and hence strengthening a brand. However, any message to be communicated offline or online will still require sophisticated and accurate research to thoroughly understand the target customer, identify consumer insights, assess the market segmentation, diagnose the appeal of the brand’s key benefits, and finally measure the performance of the new marketing campaign.