According to David Allerman‘s classification of marketing budget, companies spend their advertising dollars to buy paid, owned and earned media. “Paid media is advertising inserted next to another’s content; owned media is brand-created content; and earned media is getting someone else to provide content about a brand.” It is evident that today the spending mix in the digital space is very much in favor of paid media, that by paradox is the one that generates the least trust from the consumers.
Here below is a chart that illustrates the current picture as designed by one of the most ingenious mind around the web, Horace Dediu from asymco, with reference to arkimedia’s transition to a new concept of TV.
The point is that marketers today spend the tiniest part of their budget on the earned media component, since it is the most difficult to measure and control, while this component is the most fruitful and interesting in terms of generating results. In order for advertisers to increase communication effectiveness, they have to improve the involvement of the consumers in providing content about a brand: here is where social media comes into play.