There’s no denying that technology has revolutionised the way we work, the way we connect and the way we interact and engage with one another.
But it’s not all sunshine, rainbows and unicorns. For all the positive attributes, there are negative ones too. It wouldn’t be real life if we didn’t experience polarities, but has the increase in technology created a decline in authenticity?
(We’ve written another blog on the topic of AL and authenticity, which you can read here)
IT’S ALL FOR SHOW
When we’re online we can show up as whoever we want to be, presenting a different, or a ‘better’ version of ourselves. We can alter images and make it look like we’re living a life that isn’t our true reality.
When this happens, all we’re doing is disconnecting ourselves further from the truth, which then causes us to start behaving differently to keep up the pretence. Before we know it we’ve created a life we can’t run and hide from.
It becomes exhausting, can lead to burnout and cause relationships to break down. What started as lighthearted fun has turned into a monster you no longer control.
THE POWER OF INFLUENCE
According to Data Reportal, there are 5.07 billion social media identities. That equates to 62.6 percent of the global population. The report also shows that people spend an average of two hours per day on social media. That’s the equivalent of 10% of our waking hours.
If you consider that we spend eight hours sleeping and eight hours working, then that two-hour window of doom scrolling is eating into 20% of our downtime’. Within that two-hour window we’re also being shown images and absorbing messages that can seem genuine to the naked eye, but are inauthentic in real life. We’re only seeing what the person posting the content wants us to see.
The scary thing is, how do we decipher what’s real and what’s exaggerated? How can we tell if someone is being genuine or inauthentic?
With so many brands working with influencers to promote their product or service, and creators sharing affiliate links, we also have to question the integrity of the partnership and ask: “are they recommending this brand because their values align and they love the product, or because they’re getting paid?”
And what impact does that have on your decisions to buy something?
DOPAMINE DECISION MAKING
Entrepreneur and documentary filmmaker, Jia Rizvi has written a really insightful article for Forbes titled: “With over 5 billion social media users, authenticity is key”, which you can read in full here.
The article states that social media has become addictive by design. Getting ‘likes’ and engagement on our posts feeds into our desire to be wanted and feel loved or admired. That little ripple of excitement we feel in the pit of our stomach is referred to as a dopamine hit and dopamine is addictive!
The more likes we get, the more we chase the dopamine hit, making it difficult to prize ourselves away from our devices. We want to recreate that feeling over and over again, so we continue to create content, chasing that ‘high’.
The downside of this is that the more time we spend online, the harder it becomes to distinguish between reality and fiction.
As Jia says in the article: “This effect is why social media users aim to portray a distinctive image of themselves that may not be realistic, but (it) conforms to what other users are doing online.”
THE PATH TO AUTHENTIC COMMUNICATION
In 2021, PR Agency Fleishman Hillard conducted their annual ‘Authenticity Gap’ study. Named ‘The Power of Authenticity’, the study looked at the nine drivers of reputation, outlining how authentic communication builds brand awareness and reputation.
It also reveals that consumers evaluate brands by their societal impact and managerial behaviours, not just the products and services offered.
The nine drivers of reputation are split into three sections:
- Customer benefits
- Society outcomes
- Management behaviours
Each section is then split into three sub-sections
Customer benefits include: better value, customer care and innovation.
Society outcomes include: employee care, community impact and care for the environment.
Management behaviours include: doing right, consistent performance and credible communication.
Interestingly, when you compare the results from the study over time, customer benefits have decreased in importance (from 51% in 2017 to 47% in 2021), along with management behaviours (decreasing from 24% in 2017 to 21% in 2021, despite an increase to 25% in 2019).
The biggest increase has been in society outcomes, which has increased from 25% in 2017 to 32% in 2021, showing how important it is for brands to communicate what they’re doing to improve the planet and the people using it.
LESS GLOSS, MORE GRAVITAS
It’s no longer enough for businesses to post shiny, attractive posts with little to no substance, other than to point people to the ‘buy now’ button. Consumers want to know what brands are doing from a social impact and environmental perspective.
The values of a brand are so much more important these days in terms of influencing buying behaviours, increasing brand loyalty and earning trust from their customers.
When there’s a distinct lack of radical transparency from those we follow online, or choose to buy from, it’s our responsibility as consumers to become more discerning before making decisions to ensure we’re not falling for a glossy facade that’s non-existent in reality.
BE TRUE TO WHO YOU ARE
Whether you’re the CEO of a global brand, a soloprenuer or an employee, it’s important to remember why you’re posting the content that you’re posting. What are you hoping to achieve, how do you want people to feel hen they engage in your content, and more importantly, how does that shape what they say about you behind your back?
Your reputation is the greatest asset you’ll ever know, yet it works silently on your behalf. Inn a world where integrity and values seems to be at an all time low, the least you can do is be true to yourself by showing up online and IRL as the unique individual you are.
Our next live event takes place on Saturday 28th September at Hoxton Hall, where our line-up of incredible speakers will be diving into the theme: Be True To Who You Are. To be in the room and part of this life-altering experience, purchase your tickets here.