In 2024, going viral on the web can spell almost certain disaster.<\/p>\n
The worst place for that to happen? On X, in what\u2019s known as the \u201cmain character effect.\u201d Ryan Broderick, the author of the hilarious \u201cGarbage Day,\u201d explains that, unlike most other forms of social media, when you go viral on X, it will most likely cost you your job.<\/p>\n
One X user sums it up<\/a> perfectly, \u201cEach day on Twitter there is one main character. The goal is to never be it.\u201d This, dear reader, is sage advice.\u00a0<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The concept of virality is a relatively young phenomenon \u2014 a mere 15 to 20 years old \u2014 and it\u2019s completely facilitated by social media platforms turbocharged by algorithmic newsfeeds. These fierce guardians of information flows have been so finely tuned by algorithms that they create all kinds of bizarre situations online \u2014 going viral included.\u00a0<\/p>\n The goal of giants like X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Tumblr and even the almighty Google is to shoot for the most engaging user experience. But as Neil Postman suggests, the only way to get there is if we\u2019re \u201centertaining ourselves to death<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n For around 20 years, we\u2019ve been immersed in this algorithmic experiment, gradually substituting traditional institutions and significant portions of the entertainment industry with social media and online content platforms.\u00a0<\/p>\n Although it has significantly contributed to democratizing growth and opportunities, enabling businesses of various sizes to expand through paid ads and keeping the internet accessible for billions, I believe that, from an ethical and societal health perspective, this experiment has missed the mark.\u00a0<\/p>\n We\u2019re diving headfirst into a turbulent epoch in today\u2019s digital world, where social media\u2019s ugly side is hitting us hard. It\u2019s messing with our heads, getting our teens down, making democratic elections significantly more challenging, sidelining intellectual discourse and turning many folks into attention-seeking growth hackers.<\/p>\n You only have to look at the impact Facebook and Instagram\u2019s \u201cbenefits\u201d<\/a> have on Myanmar\u2019s society or delve into this report<\/a> revealing that numerous web platforms are saturated with pro-Beijing content. You\u2019ll get a sense of what I mean by the problems arising from ubiquitous access to social platforms designed to provoke outrage and encourage incessant clicking.\u00a0<\/p>\n But it doesn\u2019t stop there: The U.K. NSPCC recently came out with worrying research<\/a> revealing that online child grooming using social media networks like Snapchat and Meta has risen by 82% over the past five years, mostly involving girls and primary-school-aged kids.\u00a0<\/p>\n A tipping point is on the horizon.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dig deeper: 2024 Predictions: Social media\u2019s evolution<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Free-thinking innovators will approach behavior and monetization differently than content creators<\/a> aiming to appease their algorithmic overlords. This distinction is becoming increasingly evident.\u00a0<\/p>\n Figures like MrBeast are celebrated as contemporary media maestros for consistently achieving millions of views on YouTube. However, MrBeast dropped everything long ago in favor of a life that solely revolves around gaming the YouTube algorithm, which is why swinging by his YouTube channel gives you this:<\/p>\n MrBeast has obviously worked hard for his YouTube success, allowing him to expand into CPG and food and beverage \u2014 not to mention his \u201ccharity\u201d project. This decidedly miserable content strategy exploits underprivileged people for views<\/a>. But there\u2019s a certain type of person who likes to consume that content regularly, and I\u2019m afraid it\u2019s not the Einsteins of the world \u2014 far from it.\u00a0<\/p>\n MrBeast is the most obvious example of this, but millions of others follow his advice on crafting the perfect YouTube thumbnail or raking in millions of views. And for creators on other social networks, maximizing follower counts is the number one goal.\u00a0<\/p>\n Disgraced viral sensation Andrew Tate learned this early on. He funneled his massive follower base into a course that teaches men how to exploit women<\/a> through preaching the \u201cvirtues\u201d of toxic masculinity, which even now reaches millions of young people. I don\u2019t know how his court case will go, but if he\u2019s guilty of one thing, it\u2019s hacking the algorithm for what people want \u2014 divisive, coarse and harmful content.<\/p>\n The lesson from these content creators is that marketers need to stop giving people what they want. When everyone creates for the algorithm, all we get is homogeneity \u2014 things become less interesting.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s destroying the viability of anything innovative and original to enter the mainstream consciousness and degrading our perception of what\u2019s possible. People are boycotting these platforms because they want something fresh and perhaps challenging.<\/p>\n Dig deeper: <\/em><\/strong>These are the best marketers in the world<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n In today\u2019s digital domain, we\u2019re seeing a similar scenario where two powers emerge as the ever-changing landscape of content creation and consumption evolves.\u00a0<\/p>\n As these conflicts develop and stakes rise, we\u2019ll start to see mainstream media completely back out of their relationships with the large tech platforms. The New York Times\u2019 legal action against OpenAI<\/a> is one example here. The Times is suing OpenAI for training on its content without remuneration and for good reason. High-quality content isn\u2019t free, so what gives OpenAI the right to use that material to create a monetizable product people will eventually consume as news?\u00a0<\/p>\n After all, if these platforms are increasingly saturated with generative AI trash and growth hackers, people will start to make for the exits, and the audiences with the real purchasing power (the smart ones) will leave first.\u00a0<\/p>\n Social media, AI and search platforms need trusted, reputable and recognized media institutions to stay in the game. But unfortunately, that ship has already sailed for media: The tech industry has been too extractive and unforgiving for too long.\u00a0<\/p>\n The ability to build online platforms is a solved problem. We now have an open battle between media, governments and big tech for who should own what, what\u2019s considered valuable and how content can be used for commercial purposes.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the kicker is that these \u201clegacy\u201d media companies have real technological sophistication now. The Times is A\/B testing everything online<\/a> just as much as most big tech platforms.\u00a0<\/p>\n The odds could shift in traditional media\u2019s favor. We might see these companies exit social and search platforms to find better opportunities within their spaces that meet consumer demand for bespoke content. <\/p>\n If they do, they\u2019d better get cracking: the gap is getting ever wider between the algorithmic and the genuine, the artificial and the human, the time-worthy and the distracting, and the paywall and the newsfeed.<\/p>\n Going viral will soon become a position devoid of virtue, and the value of discovery found in hand-crafted content will become an in-demand rarity. But these are all opportunities for media companies to regain their advantage.\u00a0<\/p>\n We might just see the day Big Tech is left out in the cold, huddling over whatever engagement they can farm with the growth hackers, the spammers and Andrew Tates of our world.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dig deeper: Top 5 strategic trends for social media marketing in 2024<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Get MarTech! Daily. Free. In your inbox.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n \n<\/div>\n Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily MarTech. Staff authors are listed here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\nThe rise of algorithmic influence<\/h2>\n
Molded by the machine\u00a0<\/h2>\n
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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nThe battle for supremacy<\/h2>\n