3D Printing Yields 3D Advertising

Among all the recent technological developments, there is one piece of seemingly archaic technology that has remained unchanged. I am talking about printers, of course. We've all been there: on the verge of completely losing our grip on sanity when the printer decides to give out, jam, or simply not follow orders minutes before a deadline. Finally, some developments are being made in the printing industry, although not necessarily in the direction we previously imagined.

3D printing, currently popular with architects and prototype designers, is a new technology that creates physical items by layering raw materials on top of each other based on a digitally design. Beginning in 2013, this innovation will revolutionize industries including manufacturing, retail, environmental, and health among many others.

Once 3D printers move from the hands of manufacturers and designers to the those of every individual household, many market changes will ensue. Soon, consumers need only to download a set of data to their computers in order to own any customizable object of their liking. Once consumers purchase the codes, they will be able to print the items on their personal 3D printer and interact with the products in their home that very day. Retailers may no longer need to sell physical products at all, but only their data codes.

The advertising industry is likely one of the first that will bear the weight of the change this advent will bring, so it is important that we prepare in advance for the coming shift. Here are some of my predictions on the impact 3D printing will have on the ad industry:

1. Since online shopping is likely to become even more prevalent as this invention popularizes, digital advertising will, as predicted, become increasingly important. Luckily, this prediction has been foreseen and the industry is well on its way to optimizing for the digital world.

2. Opportunities for promotional giveaways will increase and advertisers will be able to give away not only free access codes for branded items but for the products they are promoting as well. This greatly reduces economies of scale and eliminates wasteful practices of bulk purchases.

3. Not only will video production be completely revolutionized with the ability to easily create model sets and items, but the capabilities in user experience will grow as well. Google does a great job employing 3D printing to enhance user experience in the "Uncover Your World" campaign. Below is a YouTube video which sheds light on the behind-the-scenes process of creating the ads.

ADHD Generation

Millennials are constantly criticized by the older generations for their perceived short attention spans, poor social skills, general apathy, and other undesirable characteristics. Although the critics usually acknowledge that these perceived traits are the byproducts of an increasingly technological society, they fail to recognize that a shift in their own behaviors could make up for the observed shortcomings of this young generation.

Due to the abundant and rapid-paced decision-making processes that occur while navigating the Internet as well as its progression towards concise and digestible content, Millennials' attention spans have proven significantly shorter than older generations'. The flighty attention spans of this "ADHD generation" have caused significant issues for these young adults in their educational and work experiences. The traditional education model, in which professors assign students lengthy textbook readings, no longer aligns with students' learning styles. Students find it excruciatingly difficult to maintain focus on one source when they grow accustomed ingesting bits of information from a wide range of sources. If we want students' declining performance and focus in class to improve, professors must realize that they cannot force a model which was crafted for the minds of their generation on a group whose brains have developed under much different circumstances.

Millennials' brains are optimized for rapidly processing and integrating information from various sources at once. This doesn't mean that they are less intelligent than other generations, but rather that they require different learning tools than them. Furthermore, their high level of participation in social sharing since a young age has allowed them to overcome many social barriers experienced as a child and adolescent at a much younger age. If we change our education and working models to a style that caters to the way they think, we can unleash their full potential.

Although advertisers are not generally looked to for guidance, they can provide a great amount of insight to those working in the education and management industries. Advertisers pay close attention to changing behavioral patterns over time so they can optimize their strategies to align with these observances. If educators and company managers follow advertisers lead and create a system that optimizes for millennials' habits, this young generation may produce higher quality work than we previously thought possible.

A Thank You Note to Facebook

Facebook, which has often been compared to "Big Brother" from George Orwell's 1984, is making some solid steps towards its literary counterpart with the introduction of Facebook Home. Those who choose to use the app will be able to keep all their Facebook activity and messaging conversations open  as they switch between functions on their mobile phones. Thanks goodness we will finally be able to eradicate that awful separation anxiety we always feel when logging off of the social media platform!

Behind its mission to ease communication and sociability between its users, Facebook hopes to maintain and further extend its title as the richest hub for Big Data. If Facebook Home takes off and Apple somehow agrees to allow the app on iphones, its integration of messaging into every other cellular function will eventually eliminate the need for SMS texting completely. Moving all our conversations to the web comes with a price: our privacy, which we have already slowly given up over the past several years with the advent of social media. This integration of mobile conversations with Facebook means that marketers will finally be able to access our texts, the single digital source of information deemed untouchable.

Despite my sarcasm, I really do appreciate Facebook's continual journey towards complete integration. Not only does it allow for its users to achieve greater productivity, but it inadvertently empowers the consumer to contribute to the increasingly consumer-driven marketplace. When marketers know what each consumer spends their time doing and talking about, they know what products will best enhance our individual lives. The market is now about serving rather than selling, and that, my fellow consumers and advertising professionals, is a beautiful thing.

The Choice.

Forthcoming technological innovations provide us with a choice.

We can either:
Celebrate the increasing number of media outlets.

Or we can:
Streamline those already cluttering the world.

Imagine a world without a single billboard to obstruct our view of the earth's natural landscapes or a long walk across town without a single solicitor vying for our attention. If we as advertisers make the second choice to tailor advertising so that it solves problem rather than creates them, we can make that world a reality and re-instill a sense of benevolence in our profession. As the trends towards increased personalization and new technological innovations fully integrate, we can target each individual at the right time and place, and finally eradicate advertising's stigma as "annoying" for the more welcomed description as "helpful." Those in the industry will truly work to fulfill consumers needs with the clients they represent.

Kryptonite to the Creative Mind

It is doubtful that when artist Auguste Rodin sculpted his famous statue "The Thinker," he suspected that the subject's pose would become as outdated as the piece itself...unless of course, it sat with its gaze affixed on a screen shining three inches away from its face. In modern-day Western civilization, we have traded our appreciation for personal reflection for the power of efficiency and maximum output. This bartering act was instigated by none other than our loyal pal, The Internet.

Maybe, The Internet isn't the trustworthy friend we thought it was. Though it has brought many gifts--a wealth of information, an ease of communication, and the ability to work efficiently--it may have taken away something very important. To an advertiser's dismay, The Internet may have stolen our ability to wonder. 

"I'll Google it." Like many others, I find myself repeating this phrase anytime the slightest sense of curiosity crosses my path. Before they have the opportunity to stray in whichever direction they please, Google puts my thoughts in line. Because of the guidance and answers Google and our devices in general provide, my knowledge grows everyday, while in contrast, my creativity shrivels.

Without giving our minds the ability to suggest their own novel solutions , we don't allow ourselves to enter the state of flow needed to think creatively. To those like myself who are planning to work in a creative field, I suggest this: spend a little time every day completely unplugged. Your right brain will thank you.