An Interview with Mark Babbitt, Author of ‘A World Gone Social.’
The Shift Towards Social and Digital Media
It’s no secret that the world is more connected than ever. Internet penetration is growing exponentially, and with Facebook’s mission to ‘connect the world’ by providing Wi-Fi connectivity to remote areas in the world, that are otherwise inaccessible, you can be sure this shift in the way we live our lives is here to stay. Curaçao is very much at the forefront of this shift, with an Internet penetration of 86.7%, far surpassing global Internet penetration numbers and those of the Caribbean region, and Facebook penetration at an astonishing 93.1%. (Source: Internet World Stats – www.internetworldstats.com/stats2.htm). TEXT BY MARUJA BOGAARD
There’s no question Curaçao is riding the digital wave. But what does this mean when it comes to doing business? How can we benefit from this disruption in the way we live and the way we
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consume, or – perhaps more importantly – the way our customers consume? We spoke to Mark Babbit, co-author of ‘A World Gone Social’, to gain an enlightened perspective.
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Mark Babbitt has been named on the list of ‘Top 100 most desirable mentors’; been quoted in The Wall Street Journal and Forbes; runs one of the top 5 online communities for college students entering the workforce; and is a true advocate of how social and digital media can enrich the way we do business today.
MB – Mark, one of the things that stuck with me, when reading ‘A World Gone Social’ was the inspiring story of how your company YouTern got started, and the influence social and digital media had in turning it into what has been recognized as one of the top 5 career sites for college students. Can you tell us more?
Mark – The success of YouTern was an accident – that’s the best way to put it. Inspired after
