• Home
  • How We Work With You
    • Articulating >
      • Motion Graphics & Video Animation
    • Knowing
    • Delivering
    • Design and Print
  • Media and Social
    • Website Design & Development
    • Social Media
    • Video Animation for Social Media
    • Digital Signage
    • Copywriting
  • Case Studies
  • Contact Us
  • FAQs
  • Blog
Future Point 4 Business
  • Home
  • How We Work With You
    • Articulating >
      • Motion Graphics & Video Animation
    • Knowing
    • Delivering
    • Design and Print
  • Media and Social
    • Website Design & Development
    • Social Media
    • Video Animation for Social Media
    • Digital Signage
    • Copywriting
  • Case Studies
  • Contact Us
  • FAQs
  • Blog

Why the Internet is better than you think

24/3/2022

4 Comments

 
It’s easy to forget the positive impact of the Internet and the World Wide Web
Picture
Mention the Internet and the chances are the initial response will be negative or circumspect. It’s easy to see why. The invasive nature of junk e-mails, probable scams and screen addiction are just a few of the latent menaces. Add to that the pain and abuse that come with trolling, cyber-bullying and pornography, and we could be excused for assuming that the web is a dark influence indeed.

The negatives should not be ignored. They really do cause harm and every society has a duty to control and limit those and other pernicious online behaviours.

However, we should be careful about letting the bad overwhelm the good. The huge majority of online activity is good and at worst it does no harm. On balance, the impact on the lives of millions, possibly billions, of people has been demonstrably positive.
​
Here are some striking examples as to why we should be profoundly grateful for the Internet.
Easy social communication

On a personal level, the last two years have emphasised how useful, even vital, online communication can be. With multiple lockdowns and frequent self-isolations during the Covid pandemic, online communication has been a lifeline. Live video get-togethers have enabled friends, families and loved ones to stay in touch when they were otherwise unable to meet.

Even emails, text messages and social media posts have played their part and continue to do so. And while there is no doubt at all that Covid restrictions prevented many people from being with their loved ones in times of illness and grief, it is probably also the case that those experiences would have been even worse with no communication at all.

On a wider scale, online communication has enabled us to keep in touch with friends and family worldwide, quickly and easily. Often the only barrier to contact is a difference of time zone. In developing economies, rural mobile communication has leap-frogged landline phones, bringing with it access to services like banking when none exists locally.

Getting organised – and more democratic
​

Think of all the groups of friends, sports clubs, hobby groups and societies that use the Internet to share information and get organised. Think of buying tickets for a concert or play, of booking rail or plane tickets, or a table at a restaurant. It’s easy to forget how seamless and convenient these processes have become – all because of the Internet.

On a different theme, consider the power of mobile communication in the political sphere. Mass movements, often of oppressed political oppositions, have been given new life and speed of action through digital communiction and social media messaging. It’s no surprise that oppressive regimes fight to keep control of mobile network infrastructures.

Government civil servants too have caught on, so in most countries it is now possible to access legislation, guidelines and information more quickly and easily than ever before – without having to unpick the filtering and unconscious bias implicit in a journalist’s explanation, for example.

The marketplace really is worldwide

The Internet has revolutionised the way we shop. This is not just about Amazon and other online marketplaces; it’s also about supermarket deliveries (another lifeline during the pandemic) and being able to buy on a global basis for goods which would otherwise have been out of reach – physically and financially.

Flipping the coin from consumer to producer or service supplier, it’s easy to see the benefits here too. With the scope and power of the Internet, businesses can communicate quickly (and cheaply) with existing and potential customers. It is increasingly rare to find a business that has no website – even my local greengrocers are in on the act - and it is unusual to find a business that doesn’t do some form of online marketing.

Business will never be the same again – in a good way

Most ‘bricks and mortar’ businesses have a website, very often advertise online and use social media for marketing. However, the Internet has also facilitated something quite different – businesses functioning purely online.

The web has enabled entrepreneurs, professionals and experts to create businesses which have no physical presence. These businesses operate almost entirely online and rely on their websites, social media posts, and social media and search engine advertising; Facebook and Google come to mind but there are other options too!

The benefits are multiple, but coalesce around the ease and immediacy of communication, including an emphasis on the visual, especially video. Think of the attraction and effectiveness of Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube, for example. Consider the versatility of online networking using Zoom or similar.

And, in something of a chicken and egg relationship, online activity is supported by a wide variety of businesses which can help you get the best out of using the Internet commercially. These range from website designers and developers, copywriters, specialists in video and animation, and experts in the use of paid for ads and ‘soft’ social media marketing. Their accumulated experience, skill and expertise keeps the very real ‘virtual’ economy moving forward and more efficient as time goes on.

Pause for thought: it goes back further than we assume

The Internet is not a new phenomenon. However, from the perspective of 2022 the online world really came to life with the World Wide Web in 1990 and the development of smartphones later the same decade. Then in the 2000s came the arrival of now iconic brands such as Nokia, Blackberry and the iPhone - not forgetting the Android operating system in 2008.
​
Progress has been in leaps and bounds since. Now the world really is in the palm of your hand. Use it well, use it wisely and enjoy the benefits it brings.

#INTERNET #worldwideweb #internetsafety #lockdown #onlinecommunication #zoom #zoommeeting #onlinenetworking #onlineshopping #Amazon #Supermarketdeliveries #YouTube #Pinterest #instagram #Facebook #Googleads #onlinemarketing #websitedevelopment #websitedesign #socialmedia #socialmediamarketing

4 Comments
Rob Dunn
28/3/2022 02:21:23 pm

Great piece. Very well balanced. That said, I think I've probably seen the internet as being a positive thing in the main. It seems almost impossible what we all went through during the pandemic. It is true to say from my point of view that the internet was a lifeline. Well done. Thanks for the article.

Reply
Phil Avery link
28/3/2022 05:53:14 pm

Hi Rob,

Many thanks for reading our blog and for your very kind comments. Much appreciated.

We too see the Internet in a generally positive light - not least because it enables us to do what we do.

Thanks again.
Team FP4B

Reply
Joseph Thomas
28/3/2022 02:25:40 pm

Nice!

I'm lucky. 2020 was a good year for me. The internet was essential though.

Reply
Phil Avery link
28/3/2022 05:55:12 pm

Hi Joseph,

Many thanks for reading our blog and for your comments. Much appreciated.

Team FP4B

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Future Point 4 Business

    We work with you for the ideal future point of your business.​

    Archives

    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    November 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    February 2017

    Categories

    All

Future Point 4 Business Limited. 4500 Parkway, Solent Business Park, Whiteley, Fareham PO15 7AZ.  VAT Registered. No. 274 4612 96
Website by Future Point 4 Business. ​2022 © Future Point 4 Business Limited. All Rights Reserved. No copyright infringement is intended on any sourced content or images used.

Picture

Home
How We Work With You
Knowing
Articulating
Delivering
​Media
​
Case Studies
Design and Print
​Website Design & Development
Video Production
​Motion Graphics &  Video Animation
​Digital Signage
​Copywriting
​Go Proactive
​Contact
​FAQs
Blog
GDPR ​Privacy Policy
GDPR Data Protection Policy
​Terms of Business
​
Raise A Ticket

  • Home
  • How We Work With You
    • Articulating >
      • Motion Graphics & Video Animation
    • Knowing
    • Delivering
    • Design and Print
  • Media and Social
    • Website Design & Development
    • Social Media
    • Video Animation for Social Media
    • Digital Signage
    • Copywriting
  • Case Studies
  • Contact Us
  • FAQs
  • Blog