Author Archives: Arena

Second Screen Tech: Should You Buy vs Build?

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Second-screen experiences – watching TV with your smartphone as a second screen – has fast become the new way to experience TV. Research shows that most Millennials and Gen Z audiences experience Gen Z this way. If you don’t offer a second-screen experience to your audience, your audience is at risk of disengaging.

The Second Screen Decision: Build or Buy?

Rolling out a second-screen experience to your audience is an important organizational decision. Like other transformational changes, there are a few ways to pursue this objective. Broadly speaking, you can build a solution using your technical talent or buy an existing solution and configure it for your needs.

There’s no single ideal choice in the buy vs. build debate. Instead, it’s important to think through the options to select the best choice for your circumstances.

Download our white paper “Generation Z and the Rise of the Second Screen” and transform your engagement strategy today.  

Building a Second-Screen Solution

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Creating your second-screen solution from scratch is a good idea in some situations. Discuss these issues with your team to see if this route fits.

1. Available development resources

Creating a new technology is resource-intensive. The first step is checking the availability of development or engineering resources. You may need multiple specialists to cover back-end development, front-end development, and the user experience (UI/UX). If you have staff available, creating a bespoke solution is powerful because you have a blank canvas to create your solution.

2. Priority on technological innovation 

Building a second-screen solution may also be a good option if your organization emphasizes technical innovation. Once upon a time, this consideration applied mainly to technology companies with deep pockets. However, some media companies are increasingly establishing significant apps and other technologies. Building from the ground up is a good pick if this is the case.

3. Maximizing broadcast rights 

Broadcast rights and similar arrangements give an organization a unique asset, mainly when these rights come with exclusivity. In this case, your organization has a substantial staff dedicated to video production, editing, and related disciplines. With that level of talent and unique content, creating your second-screen solution may be a good choice. 

4. High levels of fan engagement

For organizations with exceptionally high fan engagement levels, building a custom second-screen solution might be a good fit. If you already have millions of fans on your website and apps every month, developing a custom experience makes sense. You already have a significant amount of first-party data to draw upon to inform your solution.

Buying a second screen solution

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There are a few situations where buying a second-screen technology off the shelf and customizing it for your needs is wise.

1. Limited development resources

What can you do if your organization’s technical and engineering talent is fully booked? The answer lies in using a low-code or no-code solution. Arena Live Chat may be a good pick in this situation. You can install Arena in less than 10 minutes and launch your first session in less than an hour. 

Arena is designed with a non-technical end user in mind, so that marketers, content teams, and producers can quickly get up and running on their own.

2. Fan engagement challenges

Do you need help to hit your fan engagement goals? If so, you are far from alone. Earning and retaining Gen Z engagement can be difficult because of their digital preferences. 

Gen Z are social natives, so focusing solely on TV isn’t common for them. Many Gen Z (and Millenials, for that matter) frequently use their smartphone to check email, social media, chat with friends, and look up information while watching TV. To keep them engaged, offering a compelling second-screen experience on your website is vital.

Buying a second screen solution for your website is crucial when fan engagement levels are low or falling because of the speed it provides. For example, you can add Arena Live Chat to a website in less than an hour. Your audience already knows how to use online chat, so there’s a minimal learning curve for your audience.

3. Limited or no access to TV or equivalent streaming content

Creating a second-screen experience when you don’t have rights or access to TV or streaming content takes creativity. It may not be possible to create short video content like highlight clips or clips from TV shows. In this case, your brand has to offer something highly engaging and easy to access for your audience on their second screen.

Let’s give an example. Your online audience includes a large number of music fans. You’ve found out that many of them also enjoy the annual Grammy awards show. There’s just one problem – you don’t have the rights to broadcast the show. Don’t worry – you can still keep your audience engaged on their smartphones while watching TV. 

In this situation, a live blog on your website is a great option. Before the event airs, your team can post interviews and speculation about the upcoming awards. As the awards show airs, post reactions, context, and short interviews about the performances and surprises in the show. You can win your audience’s second-screen attention by regularly posting new updates as the Grammy Awards are given out. 

To increase audience engagement even further, offer a live chat experience on your website to discuss the broadcast live. Your live chat will compete against social media, email, and other digital activities for your audience’s attention. Make your live chat unique by inviting exciting guests and experts to share their thoughts and answer questions to stand out and win.

Two Second-Screen Solutions To Take For a Test Drive

Choosing the right second-screen technology for your needs takes time. Testing a tool with your audience is one of the best ways to find out if the solution is right for your needs. Arena’s leading second-screen solutions – Live Blog and Live Chat – offer a free trial to see how they work for your audience. 

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Both can be installed on your website in minutes without any engineering support. Learn more about how Arena helps you build online audiences on your website. You can grow audience engagement, earn more first-party data and win with Gen Z.

Get More Gen Z Sports Fans With Second Screen Strategies

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Keeping Gen Z and Millennials engaged with sports requires new strategies. Relying on a traditional TV broadcast to connect with fans is no longer enough. Find out new ways to reengage your younger audiences. The solution starts with understanding the rise of second-screen behaviors.

What Is The Second Screen Experience?

The data on TV and digital habits is clear. The majority of Gen Z (born 1997 to 2012) and Millenial (born 1981 to 1996) viewers are switching back and forth between their TV and other devices while watching. The smartphone is the primary second-screen device for most Gen Z and Millennials. 

Switching back and forth between the TV and their phone is the new reality. You can either fight this tendency by insisting that audiences put down their phones, or you can adapt. There are only a few situations where asking people to switch off their phones is feasible, like live theater or movie theater. The best bet for sports is assuming your audience will check their phones during a game. The question is this: will they find your content or not?

Download our white paper “Generation Z and the Rise of the Second Screen” and transform your sports strategy today.  

Sports Team Strategies

For sports teams, increasing fan engagement is critically important for a few reasons. Sports teams earn billions of dollars from ticket sales: an estimated $20 billion in 2019. There are also merchandise and other product sales to consider. Unfortunately, many in Gen Z – 47% – have never attended a pro sports game. That low attendance figure puts the industry’s future in question.

Adapting to changing viewing patterns starts with giving fans more opportunities to engage with your brand.

Leverage your athletes are creators

Start by looking for ways to involve your athletes in the creative process. Sports fans love understanding their favorite athletes’ daily life, training, and lifestyle. Take a look at Neymar Jr, a well-known Brazilian football player. His social media accounts have over 200 million followers. Some of his most popular online content includes a training video (over 250,000 views) and a video about his family story (1 million views).

While individual star athletes likely have the greatest name recognition, you don’t have to restrict yourself to those parts of your team. Clips and interviews with your team’s coaches, trainers, mascots, and others can create content. For example, check out Gritty – the official mascot of the Philadelphia Flyers – who has 1 million TikTok followers. 

Host an ask me anything (AMA) for your fans

The chance to ask questions and connect with your athletes is another way to connect with your fans. Use live chat on your website to organize an ask-me-anything with fans – a great way to grow fan engagement right before your next game.

Second Screen Strategies for Publishers

Your approach to second-screen content and experiences depends on your assets. For publishers with broadcast rights or another onsite reporting presence, your second-screen experience should support the TV experience. For other publishers, you can create a few different kinds of coverage like reaction videos, or AMAs as described above.

1. Improve your short video experience

Short-form video content – think TikTok videos – are one of the most popular forms of media with Gen Z. According to a 2022 survey, Gen Z uses YouTube and TikTok more than any other social platform. Meet this preference by creating more short videos like short interviews, reactions, and highlights.

For inspiration, take a look at the NBA’s TikTok channel. The channel’s videos include classic content like highlights from games. Other videos include “Celeb Row In Miami,” – featuring the celebrity guests attending a Miami game. 

To grow engagement further, use a mix of scheduled posts (i.e., explainer videos explaining the free agent process) and live posts (e.g., comment on a record-breaking game). 

2. Explore the intersection of tech and sports 

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Innovations are coming to sports, and fans want to know more about it. For example, some sports coverage has recently looked at the impact of artificial intelligence (e.g., robot-umpires). There are other angles to explore, like advances in sports medicine to improve training and performance results. 

Offering coverage on brand-new technologies – or including new technology directly – is a powerful way to make your coverage fresh and engaging. For example, Stats Perform offers performance analysis of more than 500 sports teams worldwide. This kind of data-driven sports coverage offers a new perspective. 

3. Use a live blog to cover games

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Most Gen Z and millennials watch TV with smartphones in their hand or nearby. The most popular second-screen behaviors include checking email, browsing social media, online shopping, chatting, and searching for information. 

With these behaviors in mind, you can succeed online by giving your audience a timely mobile experience. A live blog is a great fit for a second-screen experience. Your audience can quickly look up the latest post, skim it for additional information, and then go back to watching TV. 

A live blog is a great venue to invite sports influencers to participate in your coverage. One approach is to ask outside contributors to create content on a specific theme.

Take inspiration from the NFL, which invited Lisa Nguyen and Katie Feeney to create content related to the NFL draft in 2023. Working with influencers with millions of followers may be outside your budget. Fortunately, tools like Upfluence and Storyclash make it easy to search for influencers by audience size and other filters. 

Inviting influencers to contribute to your coverage is a great way to augment your in-house talent. Even better, working with Gen Z influencers goes a long way to unlocking Gen Z audience engagement. 

How To Launch Your Second-Screen Experience Quickly

Designing a detailed strategy for second-screen engagement may be wise if you’re working on a high-profile event like the Super Bowl. In other situations, there’s significant value in just getting started, launching a second-screen experience fast, and seeing what kinds of experiences resonate with your audience. 

Launching a second-screen experience on your website is fast and easy with Arena. You can install Arena in minutes without any development resources. Find out more about how Arena helps publishers and brands build online communities. 

5 Second Screen Habits To Connect With Gen Z

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The growing popularity of second-screen behavior while watching TV is here to stay. It’s vital to understand these new habits to win in keeping your audience engaged, especially if Millenials and Gen Z matter to you. Together, they make up 41% of the US population and are the future.

Second Screen Habits: What The Data Tells Us

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Once upon a time, second-screen behavior was described negatively as multitasking. The world has changed – these habits are how today’s audiences engage with TV programming and online information. 

Let’s examine how common second-screen behaviors have become with Millenials and Gen Z audiences. The following data is based on a 2021 survey of 1000 adults. 

1. Three Quarters of Millenials and Gen Z Are Heavy Second-Screen Users

A recent survey found that the overwhelming majority of Gen Z (76.5%) and Millennials (76.4%) state that they “often” or “always” browse the internet on a separate device while watching TV. In contrast, the same measure for overall US adults is 62%. 

2. The Smartphone Is The Default Second-Screen

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Not surprisingly, smartphones are the second-screen device of choice for Millennials and Gen Z. Surveys estimate that 96-98% of Gen Z own smartphones, while about 95% of Millennials own a smart phone. In comparison, 85% of the US population as a whole owns a smartphone. 

3. These 5 Types of TV Shows Have The Highest Second Screen Usage

The story starts to get more nuanced when discussing the specific TV shows associated with second-screen behaviors. The top five TV genres with high second-screen usage include reality shows, talk shows, game shows, live sports, and children’s shows. 

While second-screen usage is widespread in these genres, it is still common elsewhere. For example, the sitcom genre has 50% second screen usage. 

If you’re unclear where to focus your second-screen resources, start with the top 5 genres first. You’re likely to get the greatest payoff for your efforts there. 

Download our white paper “Generation Z and the Rise of the Second Screen” and transform your engagement strategy today.  

4. What Second-Screen Activities Are Most Popular?

The most popular second-screen activities include the following:

  • Check email
  • Social media
  • Texting/message
  • Playing games
  • Shopping
  • Looking up information

Only a tiny fraction (10% of the population is engaged in professional work while watching TV. For the most part, second-screen behaviors are leisure-oriented.

5. What About Second Screen Social Media Usage?

Social media platforms are not equal regarding the second-screen context. For Gen Z, Instagram is the most popular second-screen platform. Millennials prefer Facebook while watching TV. 

What The Rise of Second Screen Behavior Means For You

There are a few significant implications for second-screen behaviors. Your audience’s attention will drift away toward their smartphone regularly while watching TV. Given that tendency, the next question is: how can you offer a compelling digital experience that keeps your audience engaged?

Start by checking that you have the right building blocks for second-screen success. The following checklist will ensure you have everything you need to start.

1. Have You Participated In A Second-Screen Experience Recently?

There’s nothing like direct experience to understand the second-screen experience. This is one of those rare times when you can watch TV and call it work! 

Pick a show and pull out your smartphone while you watch. Go through the most common second-screen activities like checking email, social media, and texting with friends.

Reflect on your second-screen experience. What did you like most? Did you find your attention wandering from the TV? Did you connect online with other people watching the same show?

2. Are Digital and TV Teams Aligned?

For broadcasters, aligning your TV and digital teams is a powerful way to deliver a second-screen experience. For instance, if your new season launches on Thursday night, then your online team should have content prepared to build anticipation in advance. 

3. Is Your Social Media Prepared For Engagement?

Social media is one of the most popular second-screen activities. Given that reality, getting your social media staff ready for engagement is vital. You can start by creating and scheduling content to align with the TV show. Aligning is easiest with traditional TV broadcast schedules. With streaming, there is usually some online buzz when a popular series is about to become available. 

There’s an even better way to engage your audience socially: set up a live blog right on your website. All the social features your audience expects – liking, commenting and sharing – will be there. Even better, you can curate a brandsafe experience, so that your audience doesn’t get turned off by inappropriate or off topic content. 

4. Have You Tested Your Website For Mobile Lately?

Searching for information about what they’re viewing is one of the most common second-screen experiences. With that behavior in mind, taking a few minutes to test your website on an actual smartphone is smart. Smartphone simulators are helpful for testing but don’t capture the experiential side.

While viewing your website on your smartphone, take note of the following:

Speed

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In a second screen context, the speed of your mobile website is critically important. Your audience might check their phone for a few seconds, and if your website is too slow, you’ll lose engagement.

Navigation

Is your website navigation easy to use on a mobile device? Plenty of websites streamline navigation for mobile, but it is easy to go too far with this.

Sharing Features

The most common second-screen activities are using social media and looking up information. To grow your audience, your website needs to make it easy to share pages, articles, videos, and more on social media. Check if your sharing functionality runs smoothly on a smartphone. 

5. Offer A Chat Experience

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Chatting and texting are one of the most common second-screen experiences. That’s an opportunity to increase audience engagement on your website! With Arena Live Chat, you can plan and launch a live chat experience in minutes. 

Arena Live Chat includes both manual and automation moderation features which means you can offer a brand-safe experience to your audience, on your own properties, while collecting first party data.

Our research has shown that Gen Z prefers curated social experiences – think Discord – versus older feed based platforms with less relevant content. Arena makes it easy to meet these expectations right on your website.

For more guidance on getting started fast, check out our guide: How To Setup A Second Screen Experience In Less Than An Hour.

The Next Step To Launch Your Second-Screen Experience

Second-screen behavior is very popular with Gen Z and Millennial TV audiences. Your audience is going to pick up their smartphone while watching TV. The only question is whether or not they will pay attention to your brand at those moments. Offering an online community experience on your website is one of the best ways to grow audience engagement. Find out more about Arena’s community experiences.

6 Second Screen Habits To Know

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Second-screen experiences are the default way that Gen Z experiences television. Keeping Gen Z engaged means adopting second-screen thinking. The first step to meeting Gen Z’s expectations is understanding their current habits.

What The Gen Z Second-Screen Experience Looks Like

Surveys find that the majority of Gen Z Internet users – between 85% to 89% – use a mobile device while watching TV. That raises the question: what are Gen Z TV viewers using the second screen for?

1. Social Media

Gen Z audiences are often described as social natives. They’ve never known a time without social media. Their favorite social platforms include YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and Facebook.  

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Keeping Gen Z engaged with TV starts with aligning your TV and social media presence. Start by aligning your TV schedule with social media. As Gen Z watches your TV show, your social media accounts should release new information, quotes, images, clips, and more to keep Gen Z engaged.

2. Chat and Messaging

Gen Z also loves chatting and messaging with their friends and family. Texting and chatting with companies for support is a popular way for Gen Z to engage. Almost half (44%) of Gen Z check text messages within a minute of receiving them. 

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Gen Z’s passion for chat is starting to carry over to the workplace. Wipro, an IT company, recently revealed that 10% of its 260,000-person workforce doesn’t check email “even once a month.” The Gen Z preference for chat over email isn’t absolute, so email still has a place. However, shifting more resources to chat and messaging experiences is a vital part of connecting with Gen Z.

Adding live chat to your website is a great option to meet Gen Z’s chat preferences. Arena Live Chat is fast, mobile-friendly, and easy to set up. Choose a live chat solution that lets you quickly set up and launch a chat session to capture Gen Z viewers. 

Want to go even deeper with your fans? Host a special event with celebrity guests! Actors, athletes, and other notable people are showing up for online interviews, Reddit sessions, and more. Offering a moderated chat session with a special guest right the same day as a TV event is a powerful way to keep Gen Z focused on your brand. 

Download our white paper “Generation Z and the Rise of the Second Screen” and transform your engagement strategy today.  

3. Playing Games

While watching TV, many Gen Z audiences love to pick up a mobile game. 

Like TV, gaming comes in multiple genres which appeal to different people. Gen Z’s top 10 most popular games include several action titles like Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, Red Dead, and Halo). However, Minecraft is the number one most popular title for Gen Z. 

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From a second-screen perspective, it’s essential to know that most (86%) of Gen Z use their mobile devices to play games. The most popular mobile game genres include action-adventure, puzzles, and role-playing. 

Your approach to adapting to Gen Z’s passion for gaming will depend on your goals and capabilities. One option is exploring partnerships with successful games – like Gucci in Roblox and Balenciaga in Fortnite. 

If direct involvement in gaming isn’t a good option, there are other options. Get educated about the most popular games, the trending memes and look for ways to include those themes in your online experiences. 

You also can create gaming experiences through chat. For example, host a trivia contest in the lead-up to a finale of a buzzy series like “Last of Us.” That kind of experience combines two digital activities that Gen Z loves – gaming and chatting!

4. Online Shopping

The pandemic was a formative experience for Gen Z, accelerating the generation’s passion for online purchases. Newer technologies like flexible payments (e.g., Buy Now Pay Later) and mobile wallets are also popular with Gen Z. 

An easy online purchase experience is essential to connecting with Gen Z buyers. A smooth online purchase experience is required to have a chance. To be truly competitive with Gen Z, more is required. Sustainability resonates: the majority (73%) will pay a premium of 10% for sustainable products (source). Influencer product recommendations on social media are also an essential driver of purchases.

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In a second-screen context, the online shopping experience needs to be fast and tailored to Gen Z. Plan ahead to spotlight products related to the TV experience, like the technology used by actors, apparel, and more. 

Anticipating all of Gen Z’s potential shopping interests is difficult. That’s why a new generation of chat tools is coming. Arena is creating a solution that makes offering an AI-powered “Chat Concierge” that will recommend your brand’s products (and content) easier. 

5. Search For Information Related To What’s On TV

Another popular Gen Z activity is seeking out information directly related to what they see on TV. This type of second screen behavior takes multiple forms, including:

Viewing influencer or reviewer feedback

Passionate Gen Z viewers enjoy following influencer commentary, analysis and reviews online. For example, online influencers published episode-by-episode commentary for HBO’s “House of the Dragon” series. Sponsorships and partnerships with these relationships with these influencers are a proven strategy. 

Finding additional information on people shown on screen

Does a show have a surprise cameo appearance? Or perhaps a lesser-known actor breaking out for the first time? Gen Z audiences will likely search for those details online on their second screen.

These searches can lead your audience to social media or entertainment websites like IMDB. Or you can leverage this opportunity with a live chat or live blog. Pay attention to trending comments on social media and use those comments to inspire your content.

6. Consuming the News

A 2022 survey of Gen Z audiences found that the top three sources of daily news information were social media, streaming services, and online-only news sites. Podcasts, cable news, and newspapers are still drawing engagement but less often. Providing an engaging second-screen experience is vital to keeping your Gen Z engaged and returning for more coverage.

There are a few ways to offer a second-screen experience for Gen Z interested in news coverage. Start by looking for a breaking news event, such as elections or a high-profile court decision. 

Once you have your theme, use the right tools to keep your audience engaged on your website. 

Live Blog

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A live blog to share updates every hour (or more frequently). A live blog is an excellent choice for publishers, sports teams & media companies, mainly because your staff can quickly rewrite some content, like explainers, context, and background posts, to keep audiences engaged.

Live Chat

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Organizing a live chat experience on your website is another powerful way to keep your audience engaged. Take an election, for example. They may see the updated voting totals on their TV. But what does the election mean for Gen Z voters? That’s a rich question to explore with a few panelists in a live chat session.

The Simple Way To Create A Second Screen Experience For Gen Z

Speed matters when attracting and engaging Gen Z audiences. Waiting weeks or months to get your mobile experience ready means losing engagement to the competition. Arena has engagement tools that can be installed on your website in less than an hour. Find out more about Arena’s solutions.

How To Grow Your Gen Z Sports Audience: 5 Key Trends

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The professional sports industry has a Gen Z problem. Gen Z ticket purchases are falling – 47% and many have never seen a professional sports event in person (source).

That’s not all – Gen Z viewership of major sports events is lower than other generations. Ignoring this problem will cripple future growth. Improving Gen Z sports engagement starts with understanding what Gen Z likes. 

Trend 1: Sports Clips Are Growing In Popularity

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Sports highlight clips have been around for years. However, Altman Solon’s 2022 Global Sports Survey found that nearly one-third (27%) of US sports fans prefer clips to watch a full-length sports broadcast. 

The popularity of short video content is no surprise when you look at the success of short videos on social media. TikTok – famous for its 60-second videos – is pulling in impressive viewership numbers. TechCrunch reported that teens are spending 91 minutes a day on TikTok in 2021, compared to 56 minutes spent on YouTube.

The success of sports clips can take a few forms depending on your content access. For broadcasters and publishers with broadcast rights, it’s easy to create short highlight clips that show significant moments, like a star player performing at their best or a controversial foul call. If you don’t, then hosting a reaction video, or AMA with an expert or athlete can be a great way to create clips that resonate with Gen Z.

There’s still an opportunity to succeed in this sports short video content. The 2022 Global Sports Survey uses the term “snackable content” to describe short-form videos. Think of ways to highlight sports in short video formats. 

Short video creation is one way to connect more effectively with Gen Z audiences.

Download our white paper “Generation Z and the Rise of the Second Screen” and transform your sports strategy today.  

Trend 2: Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Are Drawing Interest

The appeal of sitting back on a couch and watching sports on a TV alone is falling for today’s sports fans. Industry research shows that AR and VR technologies continue to grow in popularity. AR technology is particularly significant because using many smartphones already support this capability.

AR technology presents an exciting opportunity to drive revenue. Retail Dive reports that 92% of Gen Z shoppers want to use AR in shopping. AR can help lift sales of apparel, collectibles, and beyond for sports.

VR technology is at an earlier stage of adoption. Twenty-six percent of US teens own a VR device as of 2022, according to a Piper Sandle survey, but only 5% currently use the devices daily. That gap between VR ownership and usage suggests a need for more engaging VR experiences. Filling that gap may unlock higher engagement with Gen Z audiences.

There are a few different ways to use VR to boost engagement. Altman Solon’s research suggests using VR to simulate the in-arena viewing experience. That could mean allowing people to view the action from prime seats near the 50-yard line in a football stadium. 

Further, VR technology may allow Gen Z to connect more deeply with their favorite players. Picture your star players wearing helmet cams to share their perspectives on the action. That experience is better suited to sports like ice hockey and football, where players wear protective helmets. 

Trend 3: Second-Screen Experiences Are Growing

A growing number of Gen Z viewers experience television as a second screen experience where the TV is a primary screen, and a mobile device is the second screen. 

Given that behavior, publishers and brands have two choices. They can create integrated second-screen offerings that pair well with TV – the most powerful way to sustain engagement. Or they can ignore the second-screen opportunity and hope that Gen Z doesn’t tune out… 

Creating engaging second-screen experiences can take a few different forms.

Mobile Communities

As we talked about in our recent blog “Gen Z Wants Something Different From Social Media: Are you Ready?” The majority of Gen Z prefer community based, vs feed based, social experiences. Creating your own community, specially optimized for mobile, is a great way to get Gen Z to engage. And with options like Arena, you can set one up in minutes, on your own brad properties.

Social Media Feeds

While community based wins over feed-based with Gen Z, part of the reason might be because most feed based platforms come packaged with a lot of public noise.  By contrast, creating your own, curated feed – complete with reactions, comments – is a great way to give your fan base the relevant content the crave in a brand safe environment. Arena’s live blog is perfect for this, and comes mobile optimized right out to the box.

Trend 4: Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Are Popular

Cryptocurrencies are popular with Gen Z. According to a 2021 estimate, “Gen Z [cryptocurrency] buyers outnumber Gen X buyers by 3.5x and Boomer buyers by 14.3x.” 

While popular with Gen Z, launching a cryptocurrency may not make sense for a broadcaster or sports brand.

Another way to leverage Gen Z’s enthusiasm for crypto is to offer non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Sports NFTs are digital collectibles. Unlike traditional items, it’s easy to create variations and limit supply. The cryptographic aspect of NFTs is tricky.

Multiple sports brands and athletes have already launched and sold NFTs. NBA Top Shot is particularly interesting since it aligns with the first trend. When a person buys an NBA Sop Shot token, you own an official NBA video clip. Many well-known athletes like Serna Williams, Tom Brady, and Shaquille O’Neal have also bought NFTs.

Trend 5: Reimagine The Stadium Experience For Gen Z

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Drawing Gen Z audiences into the sports stadium is challenging. It is estimated that nearly half (47%) of Gen Z have never watched a sports event in person. That behavior is a significant concern for sports teams and others in the arena space. In the United States alone, ticket sales generate over $13 billion in annual revenue (source).

Affordability is one reason that may be holding Gen Z from attending live events. Team Marketing Report estimated the cost for a family of four to attend an MLB event at $256 and NFL games at $590.

There are a few ways to solve the affordability issue. First, look for ways to offer more ticket options, including low-priced tickets or special prices based on age. Second, make the live sports experience more appealing by offering more Gen Z-friendly amenities like better connectivity.

High-performance digital connectivity is critical to engaging Gen Z. Wi-Fi 6 technology, launched in 2019 because Gen Z loves to use bandwidth-intensive video. In addition, Network World points out that implementing “private 5G” services is becoming more popular. Verizon has already started working on dedicated connectivity services for stadiums.

Now Is The Time To Engage Gen Z Audiences 

Most of the Gen Z audience are in their 20s and younger. Now is the perfect time to create experiences that inspire loyalty and engagement for the long term. Act on one or more of these trends fast to succeed with Gen Z. 

Gen Z Wants Something Different From Social Media

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Gen Z’s passion for social media is well documented, so much so they’re often referred to as “Social Natives,” but a recent development is challenging our understanding of this generation.

Gen Z (born 1997 to 2012) is increasingly moving away from traditional feed-based social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. According to Impero research, 65% of Gen Z users feel more confident using community-focused social media apps like Twitch and Discord. This shift in focus is a return to the pre-social media Internet communities like bulletin boards.

What We Know About Gen Z’s Online Habits

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To put the shift in Gen Z online behavior into context, it’s helpful to look at a few numbers.

  • Facebook: 49% of Gen Z use Facebook according to a 2022 survey, making it the 4th most popular social platform. In contrast, 69% of Millennials prefer Facebook over other social media platforms.
  • Twitter. 47% of Gen Z say they use the micro-blogging platform in 2022. Once again, Millennials are a larger share of the Twitter user base. One estimate pegged Millennials at 80% of Twitter (source).
  • Discord. While much smaller in absolute terms, Discord has attracted significant Gen Z engagement. Insider Intelligence estimates that 35% of all Gen Z are on Discord. Gen Z is an influential audience for a platform with approximately 140 million monthly active users in 2021.

Of course, there are exceptions to this pattern, like TikTok, which has a similar feed-based experience. Nonetheless, the increasing popularity of smaller online communities tells us something important about the evolution of Gen Z in the digital age.‍

The Problem With Big Platform Feeds‍

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Imperso’s research Gen Z’s top concerns in the online world includes seeing themselves as unique, a sense of community, voice, and privacy considerations. The Pew Research Center also points out that “Gen Zers are progressive and pro-government, most see the country’s growing racial and ethnic diversity as a good thing.”

Large social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are not well-positioned to meet Gen Z expectations.

Gen Z’s concerns over the big social platforms are unlikely to be fully satisfied soon. Take privacy as an example. Facebook’s history of privacy scandals is well documented, of large fines, legal problems, and more. Under Elon Musk’s leadership, Twitter has reduced its safeguards that discouraged misinformation, a move that alarmed many and caused advertising spend to plunge 89% since before his takeover in October.

Curated Communities Are Winning

Discord offers an interesting case study showing how to create more focused communities. While Twitter primarily operates as a fully public platform, Discord offers more curated experiences. To understand Discord’s appeal, briefly covering a few critical details about the platform is helpful.

Established in 2015, Discord first rose to prominence in gamer communities. The text and audio-based platform offered an easy way for gaming enthusiasts to gather and enjoy games together. Each Discord server comprises multiple channels, some open to all (e.g., general chat) while others are restricted (e.g., announcements or rules).

While video game-related interests remain the most popular on Discord, the platform is evolving. There are Discord servers for book enthusiasts, education (e.g., communities focused on learning a language and science), cars, and sports.

In contrast to other platforms, Discord servers have a few points in common. They are focused on a specific topic. These communities also offer the kinds of social functions that Gen Z has come to expect, like social reactions, private messaging, friend requests, emojis, and more.

In contrast to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other larger platforms, Discord does not have advertising in the traditional sense. The lack of powerful advertising tools may discourage some brands from pursuing platforms like Discord, but building a focused online community revolving around your online brand is worth the effort, even if that specific platform is not for you.

Why Relying On Social Media Platforms To Engage Gen Z Is Risky

Maintaining an active presence on social media platforms is still essential. Gen Z is still very active on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. At the same time, those platforms are noisy, with many different kinds of content. It can be tough to build an engaged community when there are so many distractions one click away.

Putting all your community-building efforts into social media also comes at a significant cost. It means you are depending on another company to access your community. They can change the rules (and pricing) suddenly. Apart from that concern, you’re very limited in how much data you can gather. Building your online community on your website is vital, with third-party cookies set to disappear soon.

3 Ways To Make Your Website More Engaging For Gen Z

Attracting and keeping Gen Z audiences engaged on your website is easier when you use the following best practices.

Mobile Optimized

Smartphone ownership and use in Gen Z is very high. Approximately 85% of the US population owns a smartphone, while 98% of Gen Z has a smartphone. Therefore, your website must look great and respond fast to mobile devices. Gen Z also loves video content – as shown by their heavy use of TikTok – so make sure your videos look great on mobile.

Social Media Style Functionality

Gen Z will not spend all their time browsing product pages or other forms of static content. They expect to have a social experience. Fortunately, Arena Live Chat offers an easy way to offer this experience on any digital platform you manage.

Brand-safe Community Experiences

Deloitte research found that diversity is crucial to Gen Z. Also, Deloitte found that Gen Z judges companies based on their “ethics, practices and social impact” along with the quality of their products. Running your online community in a socially responsible manner is one way to show you understand Gen Z needs.

Offering a brand-safe experience through moderation is also important given the age of Gen Z. Many in Gen Z are not yet adults, so a reasonable level of moderation is essential.

Grow Your Online Community For Gen Z

Gen Z is the future, so it’s time to prepare for them. Find out how Arena can help you build an online community on your website.

The Way You’re Thinking About Gen Z Is Wrong

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Generational trends and patterns are one of the most powerful ways to understand audience behavior. Understanding these patterns is essential to forecasting the evolution of Generation Z and connecting effectively with them. 

Generational trends tend to rotate every 20 to 30 years. That’s why the 1980s nostalgia wave hit in the 2010s with “Stranger Things,” “Rocket Man” and “Straight Outta Compton.” The revival of 1990s and 2000s trends are quickly become significant as well.

These repeating cycles tell an important story about generational change. At the same time, it’s important to keep an eye on what makes Gen Z (born 1997-2012) – distinct as social natives. 

We’ll also reveal the key technology that will shape Gen Alpha (born in 2012) when they reach early adulthood by the end of this decade.

6 Gen Z Stats: How Gen Z Uses Media and Tech 

When we talk about generations, it’s important to start with data. The following data points reveal just how different Gen Z is from other parts of the population.

1. Gen Z Is A Large Part of The Population

Meeting Gen Z expectations is crucial for two reasons. First, Gen Z is large: 20.88% of the US population as of 2022, which is slightly larger than Boomers (20.58%). Second, Gen Z is the future. Earning Gen Z engagement and loyalty today will pay dividends for decades.

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2. The Most Connected Generation

With Gen Z’s passion for connectivity, it’s not a surprise that they have higher rates of digital device ownership than the rest of the population.

94% of Gen Z own a laptop, far higher than the 80% ownership for the rest of the population.

In North America, 96% of Gen Z own a smartphone, according to a 2017 survey, vs 98% in Europe. Further, most Gen Z consumers say their smartphone is their most crucial connected device. 

3. Smartphone As A Second Screen

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81% of Gen Z uses their smartphone as a second screen, compared to just 55% for everyone else. New to the second screen concept? Find out more in our post: What are second-screen experiences?

4. Significant Daily Social Media Usage 

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50% of Gen Z use social media more than 4 hours / day vs 36% of the general population. Gen Z’s top 3 social media platforms are YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. Image and video-oriented social media content tend to draw the largest Gen Z audiences. For this reason, Gen Z is often described as social natives.

5. Screen Time Per Day Favoring User-Generated Content 

Gen Z spends 7.2 hours per day watching video vs. 6.3 hours per day for Gen X, according to the LA Times. It’s not just the quantity of screen time that makes Gen Z different. The Times found that 48% of Gen Z spend their viewing time watching content creators on TikTik and YouTube rather than traditional media.

6. Gen Z Is Watching Less Traditional TV Than Other Generations

Nearly one-third of Gen Z (30.8%) adults spend 3-5 hours of time on social media per day (source). In contrast, the average Gen Zer only spends a little over 1 hour per day (1:08) watching television. The decline in TV viewing is essential when you compare the 18-24 group to the 55-64 demographic, who watches over 3 hours of TV per day.

As social natives who are online for hours every day, it’s no surprise that Gen Z has many early tech adopters. That is a key reason why Gen Z is positioned to become Gen AI.

The Next Big Gen Z Online Trend 

The launch of Chat-GPT in November 2022 came at the perfect moment for Gen Z. The prior generation of AI tools was highly technical and mainly limited to a small user base of advanced users. Furthermore, older AI technologies emphasized decision trees and relatively simple pattern matching.

Chat-GPT and other generative AI technologies differ from earlier AI technologies in two crucial respects. First, generative AI usually offers a highly user-friendly interface. If a user knows how to chat online and use social media, generative AI will feel easy. Second, generative AI has some general-purpose capabilities like producing essays, blog posts, and even attempting to pass standardized tests.

Arena AI Concierge for Publishers, Content & Affiliate Commerce is here. Request early access.

The Dawn of Gen AI

In 2022 – the year Chat GPT launched – Gen Z ranged in age from 10 to 25. That means that the oldest members of the generation are joining the workforce, and mainly more are moving into college. 

They’re positioned to see the value of generative AI tools and integrate them into their workflows. By the time the majority of Gen Z graduates, generative AI tools will become standard. Early AI adopters are already using AI at work. Forty-two percent of Gen Z – the highest of any age cohort – were afraid to tell their managers they are using AI at work, according to a 2023 survey vs one-third of the general workforce. 

In about 10-15 years, Gen Z’s success with AI will fade into memory because of the rise of Gen Alpha (born starting in 2012). Just as Gen Z never knew a world without social media, the oldest members of Gen Alpha were just 10 years old when user friendly generative AI became widely available. 

The transformative effects of generative AI in education and business will start to grow in the 2020s. By the 2030s – when Gen Alpha or “Gen AI” – comes of age, AI will open up a whole new wave of technology, new forms of business, and ways of learning.

Recent digital history offers reasons to be hopeful about the future. In the 1990s and 2000s, MP3 peer-to-peer file sharing boomed thanks to apps like Napster. For a time, many in the music industry attempted to stop the innovation through lawsuits and other means. 

However, the experience of accessing large amounts of music in digital format ultimately sets the stage for today’s streaming companies. By 2022, the digital music streaming industry was worth over $13 billion. To put that revenue figure in perspective, CD sales revenue peaked at $13 billion in 2000 and fell to a mere $584 million by 2021. 

Generation Z is positioned to adopt AI tools into their work, leisure, and online experiences. They will have more experience – and potentially enthusiasm – for AI technologies than any other generation. 

The key to keeping Gen Z (or Gen AI) engaged with your brand lies in adopting AI throughout your organization. Resisting AI – while popular today – is unlikely to pay off in the long term as this technology continues to grow. 

What The Last 30 Years of Digital Ads Tell Us

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Digital advertising changes every month, right?

The story looks different when you take a long-term perspective. We looked at digital advertising trends from the 1990s to the 2020s. This highlights several significant trends for publishers, and other companies focused on making the most of advertising.

The Big Picture of Advertising Revenue Is Bright

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Hope is the first message we have taken from online advertising trends over the past 20 years.

Lesson 1: Digital advertising spending keeps growing despite short-term disruptions

Looking at digital advertising spending in the short run, spending patterns are highly volatile. As pandemic uncertainty hit the market, many companies temporarily pulled back on some forms of advertising in 2020. Similar short-term fluctuations happened in the 2008-2009 financial crisis. 

Despite these short-term disruptions, the total amount of online advertising spending is increasing steadily. From 2010 to 2015, online advertising spending roughly doubled from $26 billion to $59 billion. Over and over again, the digital advertising market continues to grow significantly. 

Committing substantial resources to digital advertising over other opportunities remains a wise long-term bet. That leaves an important question: Where should companies invest to keep growing their online audiences?

Lesson 2: Major shifts in online marketing tend to happen every ten years

Looking at the total dollar amount of digital advertising obscures several critical aspects of the story. The pattern is clear: there are significant changes in the digital advertising industry every decade or so. 

For instance, the launch of the iPhone in 2007 changed the market dramatically as it became the first widely used smartphone for consumers. Brands and publishers that jumped on mobile advertising opportunities early enjoyed significant advantages.

The same early adopter advantage is apparent in other areas of the digital marketing landscape. The early years of social media platforms offered tremendous organic reach and low-cost ads. 

As more and more brands flocked to the opportunity, competition made success more challenging. The increasing sophistication of MarTech apps and specialized digital marketing expertise partially offset these challenges. 

If you’re looking for an alternative to social media platforms to fuel your digital growth, first-party data is the answer.

The Next Shift In Digital Advertising: The Rise of First-Party Data 

The next major shift in digital advertising is just starting to dawn: first-party data. Third-party data will be dead for all practical purposes by 2023 as Apple and Google change their platforms. For a deep dive into first-party data and why it matters, see our post: What Is First-Party Data?

Without the right data, it’s all but impossible to run target advertising campaigns. That’s why you need a transition to first-party data. 

That’s where first-party data comes in. Instead of relying on third parties like scandal-prone social media companies, first-party data is all about developing a direct connection with your audience. 

Reinventing your marketing systems to thrive in the new era of first-party data will take effort. The best way to thrive in this era is to get the right technology and strategy in place. Adding Arena Live Chat and Live Blog to your website is a powerful way to gather more first-party data. Creating engaging online events is easy to attract your audience.

Adding Arena to your website usually takes less than an hour and doesn’t require any development resources. Find out more about Arena today.

5 Ways To Use Generative AI In Publishing in 2023

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For publishers and media companies, generative AI is an opportunity to win. While there’s certainly reason for some Fear, Uncertainty & Doubt, the emerging consensus seems to be: “it’s not publishers vs generative AI: it’s publishers with Generative AI, vs publishers without Generative AI.”  We believe that, with the right strategies and technologies, generative AI can elevate quality publishers back to the center of the media conversation. 

The current generation of generative AI tools (e.g., chat GPT and Arena’s AI offering) can create text quickly. The output isn’t always going to be perfect, but it doesn’t need to be: it solves “the blank page problem” and can also help make quick edits to get written copy to fit different character limit requirements in seconds. In the hands of capable editors, it is extremely powerful.

1. Fill Your Staff Coverage Gaps

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Most publishers need more talent skills of various kinds, which helps the quality of coverage. There are various ways to fill the gap, like working with special correspondents and freelancers. When a publisher has the opportunity to plan, those strategies may be enough to fill the gap.

There’s just one problem – breaking news is stubbornly tricky to forecast! Who would have predicted the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank? Breaking news, political events, etc are also challenging to forecast effectively, even with the best models and data.

Generative AI can fill the talent coverage gap. You can ask a staff journalist to cover multiple stories and use generative AI as an assistant. This simple use case can raise coverage productivity. Alternatively, you can use generative AI to draft stories on topics you haven’t covered, or fill in supporting paragraphs where the reader may want context, but the editor doesn’t have the time to research from scratch.

Generative AI makes it easier to cover new beats. For instance, your sports coverage audience may increase engagement with data-based articles like top scorers. You can use generative AI to create many player profiles with standardized data. You can then direct your staff to enhance the most popular player profiles with original reporting.

Generative AI can help you release quality coverage faster when breaking news occurs. 

Take footballer Cristiano Ronaldo – his recent move to Saudi Arabia attracted considerable attention. A publisher using generative AI can quickly put that type of move into context by comparing his move to other high-profile athlete moves.

Arena AI Concierge for Publishers, Content & Affiliate Commerce is here. Request early access.

2. Personalize And Remix Content At Scale For Different Segments

Meeting the needs of your audience is vital in today’s environment. People are used to online algorithms tailoring content and recommendations to suit their interests. The traditional approach to meeting this expectation includes creating custom web pages, landing pages, and newsletters. 

That type of customization does work, but it is highly labor-intensive. Another option is to leverage generative AI to support personalization at scale. 

Let’s illustrate this use case with sports coverage and outline how it could attract different subsegments. Your audience probably includes casual fans, data enthusiasts, and followers of specific athletes. Generative AI can help you remix your existing content to connect with focused niches better.

For example, you can use generative AI to enhance your business coverage, such as a section dedicated to the top-performing sticks. When a company releases a new quarterly earnings report, being the first to publish new content covering that win (e.g., updated earnings per share, profitability, and revenue trends) will help you get your data enthusiasts engaged.

3. Fill Your SEO Gaps Faster

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The business of attracting audiences from Google and other search engines remains an essential priority for publishers. Rapidly creating content to meet every potential SEO opportunity is difficult to manage, however.

This is another area where generative AI can support your growth. An editor or analyst might start their day by reviewing SEO trends on their analytics platform. This daily review will likely uncover several underserved queries and keywords that could be served with the publication’s existing content. 

Generative AI has an influential role to play in enhancing existing pages. Using Google Search Console, some of your older pages are starting to lose search traffic. Rewriting the page may be impossible, given your organization’s other priorities. 

That’s where generative AI can help to refresh your page with minimal effort. Make a list of 10-20 keywords that should be included in your page based on your SEO research. Then tell your generative AI tool to revise the existing content to include the keywords. Rinse and repeat this process several times, and you’ll have an excellent opportunity to drive higher search traffic.

4. Match or Exceed Social Media’s Live Coverage

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For years, many publishers have struggled to match the speed of social media when there is a breaking news event. Historically, publishers countered with a different advantage – quality. A news outlet might sometimes beat social media to release news. Still, a publisher may win by focusing on quality: gathering the facts, putting them in context, and verifying critical facts.

With generative AI, the trade-off between quality coverage and speed is starting to change. To be clear, AI tools still lack context, proper understanding, and the ability to develop sources. Despite those limitations, every minute counts regarding a breaking news story. If your publication can release a quality story 15 minutes faster than the competition, it’s an advantage worth pursuing.

The use case for generative AI for breaking news will depend on the user. An editor might use the app to create a detailed brief and suggested list of questions, edit the output, and hand it off to a reporter. In comparison, an experienced journalist can use generative AI as a virtual assistant.

5. Create More Explainers With Generative AI 

According to the Digital News Report 2022, explainers have increased significantly in popularity since the pandemic. The report explains that this content “may draw in a segment of news avoiders who simply want clearer, more relevant information.” 

Explainer content is also helpful in situations with a developing news story or scandal. The Review of Journalism defines explainers as “stand-alone articles that support major stories and give readers more reporting context and background than just a single term or concept. Usually written by an editor, explainers read like bullet points of who’s who or what’s what in a story.”

Generative AI can help to draft both short and long explainer content quickly. In some more straightforward cases – like defining standard abbreviations – the generative AI output may be ready for immediate use. In other cases, the tools may be best used as drafting or outlining tools.

Adding more explainers to your publication is another way to increase engagement and keep visitors on your website longer.

The Path To Higher Engagement

Adding generative AI to your publication’s workflow will take some time and experimentation. As you build that capability, it’s essential to keep growing online engagement. Talk to Arena today about using online engagement tools to keep your digital audience engaged on your website.

History of Online Chat: 1973-2023

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Online chat and chat rooms have come a long way in recent decades. In this quick guide to the history of online chat, you’ll find out where online chat started and how that history informed Arena Live Chat, AI and today’s chat experiences.

The Origins of Online Chat, 1970-1990

The first email was sent in 1971, and chat followed soon after. It was limited to universities, researchers, and governments. We see the first online chat emerge. 

1973: Talkomatic for PLATO system

Developed at the University of Illinois in 1960, this early computer network included chat rooms, email, screen sharing, and other networked features. The key development form PLATO was the launch of Talkomatic in 1973. Talkomatic supported multi-user chat interactions. The technology was limited compared to today’s tools – the application had a maximum of six rooms and a limit of five participants per chat room.

1978: Bulletin Board System (BBS)

Bulletin board systems (BBS) can be seen as social media before the Internet. The first BBS was invented in 1978 in Chicago. BBS users mainly used dial-up modems to connect to a BBS, post messages, and download files. By one estimate, there were thousands of active BBS systems active in the 1980s and 1990s before the Internet, as we know it, took over in popularity.

1980: CompuServe CB Simulator

The 1980s saw a significant leap forward, with online chat becoming more widespread. Compuserve, a critical early Internet service provider, launched CB simulator in 1980. This online chat service made history as the first chat service available to the public. 

1988: Internet Relay Chat (IRC)

The launch of IRC pushed the adoption of online chat much further. Internet Relay Chat – along with email – is one of the few Internet communication apps from before 1990 that remain in use today. IRC made history when it was used to report Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1991. While IRC is still online, it has declined in popularity due to the launch of social media platforms.

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The popularity of online chat exploded in the 1990s as more user-friendly technology, marketing, and innovation made the Internet available to millions of people.

Online Chat In The 1990s

In the 1990s, web browsers became popular, bringing millions of people online. However, many people still had slower connection speeds, so text chat was the perfect solution. Chat messages are easy to transmit, which allows near real-time conversations. 

In the 1990s, chat rooms boomed, so it’s difficult to discuss them in depth. Instead, let’s look at some of the most influential services.

AOL Chat Rooms and AOL Messenger

In the 1990s, America Online (AOL) was a prominent Internet service provider. The company also became known for its popular chat rooms. The company offered unlimited access to its chat rooms to its subscribers. In 1998, the company made its instant messenger service – AIM – available to non-AOL subscribers.

MSN Messenger (1999-2014)

Released in 1999, MSN Messenger was another popular chat service. The chat app was widely perceived as a competitor to AOL’ AIM app. The app blended 1 on 1 messaging with some social networking functionality.   

ICQ

Launched in 1996, ICQ quickly acquired millions of chat users. The chat service was notable because it was available on multiple operating systems – Windows, Apple, and Unix. Text messaging between individual users formed the core of the app. At its peak in 2001, the app had an estimated 100 million users.

Customer Service Chat, Chatbots, and Arena: Today’s Online Chat 

As social media platforms grew in popularity in the 2000s, instant messaging apps lost some of their users. Despite that loss, chat and messaging remained popular features. One-on-one messaging (also known as private messaging) remained a key feature on Twitter, Facebook, and other social sites.

Three trends emerged over the past decade that shaped online chat as we know it today.

Customer Service Chat 

Online chat services started to move away from purely social and recreational uses with the rise of customer service chat. This chat service took off by promising greater speed than phone or email customer service. Chat service is also cheaper to provide – about 15-33% cheaper than phone support, according to one estimate. The cost savings is driven by the fact that it is possible for one rep to participate in multiple chat sessions in succession.

Streaming Chat Experiences

Chat and online experiences came together with streaming chat experiences in the 2010s. Across multiple platforms like Discord, Twitch, YouTube Live, and Facebook Live, users could come together and share their thoughts in text chat. These experiences often involved a shared video experience, such as watching a live stream. 

With tools like Chat Analyzer, brands can see how their organization and products are being discussed by users in Twitch chats.

Chatbots

The success of delivering customer service through online chat prompted a question: could computers do more of the work? The rise of chatbots – a kind of automation that relied on scripts and simple automation – provided the answer. These automated chat experiences show that many repetitive questions (e.g., what’s the status of my order?) could be handled through automation.

Using scripts to handle routine questions, chatbots helped companies redirect customer service staff to address complex issues. 

Arena Live Chat

The launch of Arena in 2017 took the history of chat in a new direction. Arena’s live chat brought the social experience of chat rooms back in a new way. 

Brands and publishers can now engage their customers directly on their websites. Social media platforms increasingly struggle with disinformation and toxic content, so people are hungry for alternative ways to connect online. Arena also made live chat more accessible since it is a lightweight application that can run on almost any website.

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What Is The Future of Online Chat?

Artificial intelligence and the need to connect with others beyond social media are two significant trends for the future. Large language models like chatGPT show that chat-style interactions with AI have exciting potential. In some ways, chatGPT brings together a search engine experience with chat.

AI chat experiences are powerful. These technologies are in their early days, so it’s difficult to know how they will used. For example, AI chat tools may be useful in facilitating brandsafe discussions and moderating conversations. AI chat may also play a role in growing online communities and easing the burden of community management. 

Connecting with other people is the core of online chat. The first chat platforms succeeded because they offered group and 1-on-1 messaging. The social need to connect through chat isn’t going anywhere. Instead, we will see the growth of online chat experiences on many different websites.  We look forward to sharing more insights exploring how AI and people can come together to offer exciting digital experiences.

Harnessing The Power of Chat For Your Website

The history of chat has seen many technologies come and go. What hasn’t changed is the desire to connect with other people. Brands seeking higher customer engagement are vital to give your audience a place to connect. Find out how to grow a digital community on your website with Arena.