I’ve been thinking a lot about market research lately. But while I noodle more on a good post on that topic, I’ve come across a couple of things this week that remind me of a lesson I try to teach in my research classes. The lesson is that the internet isn’t about education, it’s about commerce. I mean sure, we learn a lot, there are fantastic information sources online, great blogs that keep us informed, open access journals, plentiful .edu and .gov sites that claim education in their mission. But the vast majority of traffic online appears much more concerned with selling me something. In fact, those sites are increasingly concerned about selling me exactly what I want, before I even know I want it (the magic of market research).
I teach this lesson in my research classes as a way to convince students that they shouldn’t limit themselves to browser searches (I try not to say Google, because seriously I love Google, and I don’t want to point fingers at any one browser). I want my students to be better consumers of information, to know when they’re a student and when they’re a customer, and to know there’s a lot of gray area in that space today. Every peer-reviewed article I show them isn’t actually a gold standard for education – but at least having the conversation about sources and intention gets them thinking – who wrote this? Why did they write it? Is it accurate information? Is it useful information? Why are there so many ads on this page? Does it matter?
So why am I thinking about this today? First I saw this post on Stephen’s Lighthouse, a library blog I enjoy reading. He links to a graphic that demonstrates the complexity of web advertising, and a reminds me that “[e]nd users are just eyeballs and hits and profiles.”
Next I read a post from Fast Company. Apparently J.C. Penney has opened a store on Facebook. Not an ad on the side that I ignore. Not a page I can “like”, “join”, “share” or be a “fan” of. A real store where I’m supposed to buy stuff. I mean, I knew it was coming (it’s been coming). With so many corporations on Facebook, Facebook in the news everyday. Facebook. Facebook. Facebook. But now that place where I reconnected with high school friends and college buddies, where I fanatically adjust my privacy settings, that place is now just another online shop.
““Retailers want their channels to be where their customers are,” said Jason Taylor, vice president of global product strategy for Usablenet, which built the Facebook operation for J.C. Penney. “They’ve recognized that Facebook is another place they need to be in front of their customers.””
Yep, that’s us. Customers. And Facebook is a “channel”, not a community. So as I say to my students in class, and students reading this blog, it’s okay to be a customer (I mean, hell, half of you are trying to start online companies yourself), I just want you to be able to tell when you are a customer – to know it when you see it. And maybe seek out some other sources of information via our library subscriptions – research in your field, unbiased data sources, investigative journalism. Because I can tell you one thing for sure – you are not MY customer, you are my student. And I’m not selling you a single thing today.
