Do consumers dream of digital advertising?

New communication rules in social media

Abstract

This paper aims to analyze the recent forms of communication and the rhetoric rules that are used nowadays to optimize the advertising impact on social media. After having described, with the help of the literature, the main communicative guidelines for new media and social media, the new communication rules will be tested with the consumers. Therefore, to better elaborate on these topics, we will make use of an exploratory research conducted in the IULM University of Milan in spring 2019. The research will provide answers as to the likes and dislikes regarding the social media communication and advertising. Thus, the consumer research findings can help researchers and marketers to better understand the rise of those new forms of communication. This research will also focus on analyzing whether the social technology is a bias and to what extent. Finally, do consumers love digital advertising on social media? Actually, every new technology requires new languages and, a fortiori, this must happen when the new technology impact is related with the media. In sum, the social media seem to be fertile ground to explore recent changes in communication, and specifically in advertising communication. The findings of the exploratory research can lead to new questions, such as: do communication and advertising change in the same manner? At the same pace? Do they go in the same direction? And to what extent? Does advertising simply have to follow the new communication rules or is it forced to use and invent new forms of communication? This paper will only be able to outline and quickly schematize possible answers to the questions that, indeed, are bound to lead to further considerations and further researches.