AOL’s prophet warns youth shutting out brands as they ‘privatise’ their networks

AOL’s digital prophet David Shing has warned that brands are losing touch with the vital youth market, which is the key to the future, as the next generation of consumers shuts out the outside world.

David Shing: Companies should look to the views of their employees who reflect the audiences they want to connect with

Speaking at the AANA Reset Conference in Sydney, Shing, whose role is to chart the next opportunities for the US-based digital arm of telco Verizon, said that younger audiences were seeking deeper connections with the people they knew and trusted, and brands were being shut out.

He said that often just as companies understood and started engaging with audiences on a new platform, app or channel, like moths they would suddenly “swarm to a new light”.