Why don’t YAYA consumers read their local newspapers anymore? It’s because the way they consume news and information isn’t on a one-day cycle. News is now on a 24-7-365 operation, thanks to social media apps such as Twitter and Facebook. YAYAs crave a sense of connection in their rapidly changing world. Even brands such as Snapchat understand the concept of instant gratification that fuels the younger Millennial generation.
All right, you’re probably thinking to yourself, “Thanks for telling me everything I already know.” But in the past week, there has been a revolutionary app that combines all of these features that YAYAs crave: Meerkat.
YAYA consumers’ days begin by absorbing new while huddled over their smartphones. They hope to soak up all of the information Twitter provides can provide before they finish their first cup of coffee. YAYAs want to see things as they happen and feel like they are a part of the story.
Meerkat is a live-streaming video app. It allows users to create their own story or jump into one that already exists.
According to TechCrunch
, “at any moment, you can start a broadcast of yourself on Meerkat, which triggers a tweet of the link to your stream and a notification to any of your Twitter followers who use its app. Anyone can tune in on the web or through Meerkat, and chime in with comments that are sent as Twitter @ replies. When you’re done, your video disappears unless you save it to your phone.”
What does this mean? It means that followers have to click the link in real-time, or they lose the opportunity to see the video. It reinforces FOMO, fear of missing out, and requires viewers to respond immediately to become a part of the story.
In my opinion this is comparable to Snapchat, except for the fact that it forces users to choose to interact immediately. It holds the potential to change how video is distributed and news is reported by giving people the ability to be in two places at once, an age-old adage brought to life.