Categories
A.I Augmented Reality Marketing Virtual Reality

The dangers of Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is becoming more and more important these days and many sectors are affected. For example, marketing has evolved since the arrival of these new technologies, as perfectly illustrated by Charlotte Brodsky in her article about the appearance of virtual KOLs that can replace the old ones. To read her article, it’s here: https://dmb-shanghai.com/virtual-reality/virtual-kols/ 

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a technology that allows machines to learn and make decisions based on data. While AI has the potential to improve many aspects of life, it also has potential dangers that must be considered. And we’ll talk about those potential dangers today in this article.

  • Job loss

The first danger of AI is related to its ability to replace human jobs. Machines equipped with AI can perform repetitive tasks faster and more efficiently than humans, which can lead to fewer jobs available for human workers. In the near future, many jobs could be automated with AI, which could lead to high unemployment for low-skilled workers. Governments and businesses must work together to find solutions to prevent AI technology from creating a major social problem.

 

  • Unpredictable

The second danger of AI is related to its potential to make unpredictable decisions. Machines equipped with AI can learn from large amounts of data and make decisions based on that data. However, it can be difficult to understand how these machines made their decisions, as they often use complex algorithms that are difficult for humans to understand. If the AI makes a mistake in its decision, it can have serious consequences, for example in the field of medicine or road safety. AI developers must be able to make their algorithms more transparent and ensure that the decisions made by the machines are understandable to humans.

 

  • Physical or financial consequences

The third danger of AI relates to its potential to cause physical or financial harm. Machines equipped with AI can be used to perform dangerous tasks, such as driving autonomous vehicles or operating nuclear power plants. If these machines are not properly regulated and controlled, they could cause significant physical harm. In addition, AI-powered machines can also be used to perform complex financial tasks, such as trading stocks on the stock market. If these machines make unexpected decisions, they could cause significant financial losses.

 

  • Potential for misuse

The fourth danger of AI is related to its potential to be used for malicious purposes. AI-equipped machines can be used to create fake images and videos, known as deepfakes, which can be used to deceive people and create false information. In addition, AI can be used to automate cyberattacks, which can lead to financial loss and violation of user privacy. Governments and businesses must work together to ensure that AI is only used ethically and for the common good.

More specifically, virtual KOLs can create a false image of reality, as they are not real people and do not represent the human experience. While these digital avatars may be designed to resemble real people, they don’t have the same understanding and feel as humans, which can lead to a disconnect between the brand and its target audience.

 Additionally, virtual KOLs can be expensive to create and manage. Companies must invest in sophisticated 3D graphics and software to create these avatars, as well as a team to manage them and have them interact with customers. This can be a high cost for small businesses.

 Finally, virtual KOLs can also be seen as misleading or unauthentic, as they are not real people and cannot share real experiences with customers. This can lead to a lack of trust and brand loyalty.

In sum, while using virtual KOLs may seem like an attractive option for companies, it is important to consider the negative aspects such as creating a false image of reality, high cost and lack of brand trust. Companies should carefully evaluate whether this marketing method is appropriate for their target audience and brand image before deciding to invest in virtual KOLs.

Sources :

https://dmb-shanghai.com/virtual-reality/virtual-kols/?preview=true&_thumbnail_id=11400

https://builtin.com/artificial-intelligence/risks-of-artificial-intelligence

https://bernardmarr.com/is-artificial-intelligence-dangerous-6-ai-risks-everyone-should-know-about/

Categories
Marketing Réseaux sociaux Strategy

CSR in Social Media Marketing

More and more people are concerned about the future and corporate social responsibility, also known as CSR, is even more important today. It implies an obligation of commitment from everyone, whether individually or collectively.

Companies are no exception to the rule, in fact, they must adapt their business model but also their marketing strategy. Firms have to keep up with the ever-changing needs of consumers who are increasingly looking to consume products that are manufactured in a more ecological manner and are themselves good for the environment. Nowadays, everything is becoming automatic, faster and simpler. This finally leads to a desire to also find the main needs such as the environment and the social aspect. Thus, companies must follow and show a positive behavior on the environment while also taking into account social issues. This willingness to pay more attention to CSR has been growing for years, laws have even been passed. However, CSR remains a contentious issue that is not entirely clear to everyone.

Thus, there is an increasing  number of research dealing with the impact of CSR issues, and we can see different visions of CSR, sometimes even contradictory. However, a clear and general definition emerges: […] an ongoing commitment by companies to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while showing respect for individuals, communities, society as a whole and the environment“. In short, CSR combines the concepts of global citizenship, environmental stewardship and sustainable development, while keeping in mind the economic dimension at the same time.

Numerous international organizations, non-governmental organizations and groups of individuals fighting for the respect of the environment and human rights, target and pressure companies. The firms had no choice but to adapt.

CSR must be directly integrated into the values of the company but also into the general objectives in order to be effective. The standardization of CSR pushes companies to have the responsibility to implement sustainable actions aiming not only at increasing profit but above all at satisfying the objectives and expectations of the stakeholders. Stakeholders such as the company itself, the employees, the clients, the shareholders, the media and many others.

 CSR has 4 dimensions:

When implementing CSR initiatives, companies are expected to have a real impact on the development of the economy while keeping in mind ecological issues, the well-being of employees, local communities, and society at large. Actions can be :

–  partnerships that have a positive impact on the environment

– participation in voluntary environmental programs

– production methods that meet sustainable standards

– marketing strategies that seek to improve the lives of all by actively involving stakeholders

H&M, for example, hired the singer M.I.A., who is well known and loved by young people in China, to implement an online CSR campaign by making a music video promoting clothing recycling

Companies must therefore integrate CSR into their marketing strategy, such as social media for example. Social media is an effective and inexpensive way to convey a message that can be personalized, such as a company’s CSR commitment. It is also possible to use crowdsourcing to implement a CSR campaign as Yahoo did with its “How Good Grows” campaign. Toyota is also one of the companies that shared a CSR marketing campaign on Facebook with their “Cars for Good” campaign. Or even Starbucks that organizes once a month the “Global Month of Service” event and promotes it on different social platforms.

When a CSR marketing strategy is well executed, it allows, in the long term, to improve the reputation and the brand image of the company . Therefore, it could allow an increase in profits. Indeed, the communication of the CSR commitment allows the company to make public its vision of modern sustainable issues. Thus, firms can position itself on the subject. Communicating its CSR commitment via social media also allows the company to maintain a certain competitive advantage through differentiation. Furthermore, if the company implements good CSR initiatives, employees can be satisfied. This will be reflected in their behavior and attitude. And thus ultimately in their motivation and job performance. It is therefore a win-win situation.

This CSR marketing strategy has its limits. In fact, the fact of communicating publicly on a subject as sensitive as CSR can lead to skepticism from consumers. They will expect a lot of transparency from the company regarding their initiatives.

In addition, some companies proudly display their CSR commitment on their social media, but digging a little deeper, we notice that not all of them are fully transparent about their actions. One of the perfect examples of this is perceived greenwashing. It seeks to manipulate consumers into believing that the company is sustainable and implementing actions that are good for the environment and positive for employees and consumers, by also offering sustainable products and services when this is not always the case.

Sources : 

researchgate.net 

growingscience.com

cairn.info

wiley.com

Categories
Applications Business Digital Business EU-CHINA Lifestyle Marketing Mobile platforms Réseaux sociaux TikTok

TikTok, le social media du moment : Quelques chiffres 

Aujourd’hui nous allons parler de TIKTOK et de ce qui en fait son succès. Mais tout d’abord, pour les rares exceptions qui ont réussi à passer à côté de cette tendance et qui ne savent pas ce qu’est TIKTOK, en voici une courte description :

TIKTOK (ou Douyin) est une application mobile développée par ByteDance, une entreprise chinoise spécialisée dans les nouvelles technologies en Chine. Le concept est d’avoir une plateforme de social média et de partage de vidéo. Les vidéos sont courtes pouvant aller de 3 à 180 secondes et les utilisateurs sont guidés par un scroll infini et bien d’autres techniques utilisées par d’autres réseaux sociaux, mais nous y reviendront plus tard dans cet article. De base, les créateurs de contenu se contentaient de choisir un extrait de musique et danser ou faire du playback par-dessus, mais de nos jours ces créateurs sont devenus de plus en plus créatif et propose du contenu encore plus innovant les uns que les autres.

L’application Douyin a été créée en 2016 en Chine et arrive en 2017 dans les autres pays sous le nom de TIKTOK et a vite pris une ampleur assez impressionnante. Après le rachat de leur concurrent Musical.ly, pour la maudite somme d’environ 1 milliard de $, ByteDance fusionne les deux concepts et les regroupe en une application. Dès début 2018, TIKTOK devient la première application mobile en nombre de téléchargements et avec plus de 150 millions d’utilisateurs actifs quotidiens.

 

Et cela n’était que le début du succès de l’application, mais la question règne alors : qui sont ces nombreux utilisateurs et qu’ont-ils vu en TIKTOK qui ne retrouvait apparemment pas ailleurs ?

Voici quelques chiffres clé concernant les utilisateurs :

Pour rentrer plus dans les détails, en 2022, parmi ces + d’un milliard d’utilisateurs actifs mensuels, 61% sont des femmes et leur moitié sont alors logiquement des hommes qui sont ici en minorité. Voilà peut-être pourquoi les marques ayant pour cible un public féminin sont plus populaire sur l’application.

Malgré le fait que 47% des utilisateurs ont entre 10 et 29 ans, on ne peut plus dire que les utilisateurs sont que la génération Z ou les jeunes, en effet, TIKTOK attire de plus en plus peu importe l’âge et l’âge des utilisateurs varient de plus en plus au fil des années.

Cependant, les créateurs de contenu (à différencier des utilisateurs généraux) restent majoritairement jeunes, avec près de 53% ayant entre 18 et 24 ans.

Les très jeunes (4 à 15 ans) utilisent aussi l’application, d’ailleurs, c’est même leur application n°1 en termes de temps d’utilisation, avec une moyenne de près de 75 minutes par jour.

 

De nombreuses personnalités publiques sont également présentes sur ce réseau social, et créer du contenu régulièrement. Que ce soit Meghan Trainor, Nicole Scherzinger ou même l’équipe de France de football, tous créer du contenu en suivant les tendances de la plateforme. Ce qui plaît aux utilisateurs de l’application, car contrairement à certains autres réseaux sociaux, TIKTOK est un moyen sûr de savoir que c’est bien cette personne qu’on suit qui créer du contenu et non pas un community manager qui pourrait se cacher derrière. D’autant plus que le concept de l’application, incite les créateurs de contenu à être eux-mêmes et permet aux utilisateurs de créer un véritable lien avec le créateur qui montre un nouvel aspect d’eux, plus naturel et reflétant plus la vérité du quotidien.

 

Mais que fait donc TIKTOK que les autres applications ne font pas ?

Et bien il y a tout d’abord le fameux scroll infini, dicté par un algorithme très bien fait se basant sur l’historique de visionnage de l’utilisateur, lui permettant de ne jamais manquer de contenu et de découvrir de nouveaux créateurs constamment. Ce scroll infini pousse le consommateur à visionner énormément, en effet, les statistiques montrent que les utilisateurs de l’application passent environ 24 heures par mois sur l’application en 2022, ce qui est plus que YouTube.

Le format de vidéos courtes permet aussi aux utilisateurs de se lasser moins facilement et donc de finalement passer encore plus de temps sur l’application.

 

Quels sont donc les avantages pour les marques ?

TIKTOK est devenu une référence pour les jeunes, avec près de 30% des membres de la génération Z qui vont se baser sur TIKTOK pour la recherche de produits, d’activité ou de lieux de restauration.  La plateforme a donc pris la place d’Instagram, YouTube ou même Google research.

Il est donc nécessaire pour les marques d’être présent sur l’application pour gagner en visibilité auprès des plus jeunes, mais pas seulement. Les marques peuvent et doivent également suivre et comprendre les tendances actuelles afin de mieux s’adapter à leur cible.

Les marques peuvent également utiliser des influenceurs présents sur TIKTOK pour vendre et faire connaître leur produit, cela est une technique très répandue de nos jours.

Autre statistique confirmant ce point : 43% des utilisateurs vont tester quelque chose de nouveau après l’avoir vu sur l’application. Cela représente une réelle opportunité de vente pour les marques.

Et finalement, près de 72% des utilisateurs affirme que les publicités qu’ils peuvent apercevoir sur l’application les inspirent.

 

 

Sources :

https://www.sales-hacking.com/post/statistiques-tiktok

https://www.leptidigital.fr/reseaux-sociaux/chiffres-tiktok-17145/

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/TikTok

Categories
China Chinese E-Commerce Plateforms Events

The ” 520 & 521 ” Days : the e-Valentine’s Day in China.

The 520 & 521 Days are important days in China but what do they represent ?

 

Well, they simply represent love. 

Indeed, May 20th and 21st, are the occasion for the Chinese to celebrate what they callthe virtual Valentine’s Day” or “the e-Valentinein China during the 520 & 521 Days. The choice of the dates is not random, on the contrary there is a logical explanation to it : May 20th sounds phonetically similar to “Wo Ai Ni” which means “I love you” in Chinese.
May 20th is therefore, in tradition, the occasion for men to offer gifts that would symbolize the love that carries to the women who share their lives. And on May 21st , it would be for women to respond to this declaration of love by offering something in return.
This love festival is virtual and very trendy on social networks such as Wechat or Douyin. Indeed, unlike the February 14th celebration, here, the declaration of love is usually done through a screen, which can be easier for some people, which makes this day so popular.

 

"30-second Teaser Video with 'link card' on the bottom left. Master Kang's Jasmine Tea '520' Douyin Campaign" 
“30-second Teaser Video with ‘link card’ on the bottom left. Master Kang’s Jasmine Tea ‘520’ Douyin Campaign”

 

So what does this have to do with e-commerce ?

 

As mentioned earlier, this holiday is an opportunity to exchange gifts, however, the person to whom we offer the symbol of our love is not only restricted to his / her partner, but also to friends and family. This makes even more potential sales for companies that see in this holiday, the perfect opportunity to see their turnover increase.
There are major players in China actively participating in this event, such as Tmall, Taobao, JC.com that will adapt their marketing to this holiday. They will set up marketing strategies especially for this holiday such as discounts, exclusive products in limited edition.

 

We also find a large number of so-called luxury brands that seize the opportunity and launch new marketing campaigns.

 

Here is an example of a marketing campaign designed for this special day in China :

 

 

Givenchy campaign for the 520 & 521 days in China

 

Givenchy campaign for the 520 & 521 days in China 

 

The brand Givenchy launched a limited edition collector’s box containing multiple beauty products such as perfume, makeup and others … All this with a packaging that suggests this spirit of romance.

 

 

Sources :

 

Blog de Mya. 2020. Le 520 Day, la Saint-Valentin chinoise version e-commerce. https://blog.agence-mya.fr/chine/520-saint-valentin-chinoise-sur-internet-ou-chinese-internet-valentines-day/ Consulté le 08 Novembre 2022.

 

 

HyLink Europe. 2021. 520 : Tout savoir sur cette célèbre fête de l’amour chinoise. https://www.hylinkeurope.com/portfolio/520-tout-savoir-sur-cette-celebre-fete-de-lamour-chinoise/ Consulté le 08 Novembre 2022.