Why do you want to study digital marketing? My coursemates and I were asked this question during our very first lecture. Although Dr Molesworth received mostly crickets in response (likely due to our shyness or lack of sleep), I know we each have our own explanation as to why we chose to pack up and move across the globe to become postgraduate students at the University of Southampton.
My story can be summed up in one word; YouTube. As such, I have the feeling that the majority of my posts here will be YouTube-centric (you’ve been warned). The obsession began in 2009 with a beauty video linked from the homepage. A seemingly innocent “Christmas Gift Guide” introduced me to an entirely new world. The beauty videos soon branched into comedy, news, lifestyle, and fitness. These days, I regularly favour watching YouTube videos over traditional television shows. I was excited to find that my coursemate, Pasinee, has a similar story, as I’m sure do many others.
YouTube has come a long way since its inception in 2005 and is now a billion-dollar business. The site has allowed some of its content creators to earn 7-figure salaries, create their own beauty brands, and star in their own television shows, not to mention create (and subsequently sell) their own production studios. As Dr Molesworth put it last week, these “girls showing you how to put on lipstick” have caught the eye of major brands and are turning hobbies into careers. This is exactly why digital marketing appeals to me. I aim to take my “hobby” and move from the consumer end of YouTube to the business end by joining the companies that work with the content creators.
Now to tie this all in with MANG6262. An interesting topic we’ve spoken about in lecture is globalisation and how it leads to cultural exchange. Per Dr Molesworth’s lecture, digital technologies collapse distance, and I could not agree more. I’ve experienced this first-hand through watching British content creators. Although I had previously visited the UK before moving here, it’s safe to say that I’ve learned more about British culture and products through watching day-in-the-life video blogs (or “vlogs”), than from my own past experience or research. For me, there’s something more appealing about hearing a person you’ve been subscribed to for years vouch for a product or rave about a meal, as opposed to hopping on Trip Advisor or MakeupAlley. Before moving, I had already drafted a list of products to buy and restaurants to try without once referencing the traditional review sites.
So my question for this first post will come as déjà vu for most of you; why do you want to study digital marketing? Hopefully it will be a bit easier to answer this time around since we can all respond safely from our keyboards.
Also, have you experienced your own form of globalisation, whether it be from YouTube or any other platform? If so, do you consider it to be positive or negative?
Lastly, if anyone has their own YouTube channel, feel free to leave a link below! No judgement for self-promotion here.
Ashley Stout 
Hi Ashley,
First of all, nice to meet you here! We could have met in the class but there were just too many people, weren’t it?
I cannot even contain my excitement when you mentioned “YouTube” was your reason to be here. Well, it is mind too! It’s kind of weird sometimes to think that YouTube has such a huge impact on my decision to apply for this course but I do not regret any one minutes in class. It’s been awesome!
I cannot help smiling while reading through your blog, it is so true. I haven’t spent time on television or TV series programs for ages because of YouTube. I did have a shopping list of British make-up brands before I flew here too. I have my plan on visiting so many places I saw on vloggers’ videos. And oh yes, the first restaurant I visit when I got here is Nando’s! The one and only they (British vloggers) were all raving about on YouTube.
For me, globalisation is not only leads cultural exchange but it also helps people from developing countries to learn more of what is going on. And most importantly it leads me to meet new friends and new communities 🙂
Love you blog so much,
xx
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Hi, Pasinee! I’m definitely with you on being happy with my decision to take this course because of YouTube, it’s been great. I feel that there are probably many other people like us who favour streaming YouTube videos over watching traditional television shows. Perhaps it has something to do with shortened attention spans? I personally like the fact that most of the videos I watch are only 10-12 minutes long.
I love that you included the fact that globalisation has led you to meet new people in other countries. It’s a bit crazy to think how easy that is to do nowadays. I suppose it’s today’s equivalent to having a pen pal!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog!
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Hi. To keep it short, I became interested in Marketing in my former job. It was part of my secondary duties but as I read more about the subject I realized the importance and oportunities that a good marketing plan for a company, big or small.
My own experience in globalization would be youtube, most of the media I consume is in english, and in my former job I had the oportunity to know several foreign clients most of them from the US.
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Hi, Fernando!
If you don’t mind me asking, what industry were you working in for your old job? Is it something you would like return to after we finish the course, or do you have other plans?
It’s been really interesting to hear about people from other countries using YouTube as a tool to strengthen their English. I feel that’s certainly an example of globalisation breaking down boarders. Was this the case for you as well, or did you just prefer the channels of the English-speaking YouTubers?
Thank you for stopping by!
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Actually it’s been like that for me since I was in junior high. Watching american sitcoms kept me busy in the weekends. In college we had some classes taught in english and part of our assignments was reading foreign news and making reports.
Finally, in my former job I was in charge of international sales & exports, most of my prospects were from the US because of the Free Trade Agreement that we share.
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Sorry, I was in the textile manufacturing industry. I don’t know right now if I will get back to it. It’s too early right now to decide.
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Really interesting subject here, YouTube is a globe by it’s own, there are so many opportunities on that channel; But, what would like to do with that channel? Do you just want to have relations with content creators or do you want to be the one who is creating content? what does really attract you to working with that channel, is it the 7 figures salary?
There is no absolute answer for the good and bad of globalisation; however, i really like how YouTube can be an alternative channel for your daily news, you can watch one video and on the same channel search for an opposing video, where then you can make a more accurate judgment (bias free one).
I have youtube channel, but nothing major, I use it to upload my music productions (in my free time). feel free to check it out:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtubNR-hEJwanI0CTUqz7yw/featured
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Hi, Mohammed!
Thank you, I’m glad you like what I’ve chosen to blog about. As of now, my goal is to be a part of the companies that work with the content creators, as opposed to actually having a channel myself. What attracts me to that type of position is that I will (hopefully) be working for a company that I truly support and will have the opportunity to talk about products I’m passionate about with other people who have similar interests.
It’s definitely true that YouTube provides a massive variety of news that you can choose to watch, separate from traditional news outlets. However, I feel like you almost have to be wary of the information you choose to consume. I know we previously spoke about being the “bad guy” on these blog responses, so to play devil’s advocate…do you think that because YouTube channels have so much creative freedom that they sometimes lack factual accuracy?
Honestly love your music channel, thank you for sharing!
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Hi~ happy to have the same class with you, even though I study marketing analytics.
I also like to visit Youtube. It is really fun and useful platform. I like to learn something new on it, such as make up, computer software…and you’ll find out the way and style of make up are different between Asia girls and western girls. I think maybe it is a kind of culture interaction. For me, there are more benefits I can get on Youtube.
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Hi, Laura!
Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. I really love the fact that you included both makeup and computer software in your comment. It’s a great representation of the variety of information you can find on YouTube.
I agree that viewing styles/trends from different countries can be seen as a cultural interaction. Did it give you an idea of the types of clothes you’d be seeing here before you moved here?
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Really good point, Ashley. Although Youtube is not what encourage me to choose digital marketing (you know, Youtube is blocked in China, i can barely hear it before i went aboard.) Its influence shocked me when I really come into it. the sources, the comments and the impacts of it are what I never met before.
Actually, there is a social network like Twitter in China called Sina Weibo, it excites my curiosity about the power of marketing online. Some words and pictures posted on that can easily drive people’s intentions. It makes me want to dig out how it works. Also, the Wechat (mentioned in my blog), whose users are hundreds of millions. The functions and products of them are benefited from themselves to a great degree. It is like snow ball. These things really interest me a lot.
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Thank you so much for sharing your story, Shawn! I think the thing we have in common is that we are both amazed by the influence that these digital platforms (YouTube and Sina Weibo/WeChat) have had on so many people.
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Hello Ashley, so nice to see you!
First, I have to say, your marketing thoughts about YouTube is awesome that I can’t agree more. Talking about YouTube, I really enjoyed the videos on it that I can find everything I am interested in, different languages, fantastic ideas, culture exchanges… Also, YouTube is a great platform that has huge potentials.
For me, I chose to study the Digital MKT is not because of YouTube as you (of course ;P). I had an internship as Marketing Assistant and I found my great interest in it, so I finally came to study here and hope to explore more.
Well, it is really good to meet you, let’s keep sharing our ideas in the later time! 🙂
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Nice to meet you too, Megan! That’s great that you’ve already had experience in the marketing field. I’m sure it makes our course that much more interesting, as you can link our discussions to your real-world experience. Thank you for sharing!
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