Most of us know the saying “money makes the world go round”. But with the introduction of the internet as a new platform for us to inhabit, we have found new units with which we could advance our businesses and transact with each other.
Here are some of those units and how they seem to have substituted money in the digital world.
Words
Even before the internet was built, humans have known the power in words. However, this power is elevated in the digital world. The words do not even have to be in a sentence to exert power online, single words could easily make a digital impact. In digital marketing, for example, search engine optimization or SEO solutions make use of words to build up the online presence of various entities. SEO banks on content and keywords to improve the search engine ranking of a webpage and increase its traffic.
Words have also been crucial in spreading social movements on the internet, especially through Twitter hashtags. What makes hashtag activism such an effective form of mobilization is the speed with which it could spread throughout the globe.
A hashtag only needs to be trending globally and it will easily catch on. Hashtag activism is not only confined to the internet too. Many recent movements have been taken to the streets and some have even achieved notable results in regards to their causes.
Data
Information technology is at the core of the internet and technology itself. Information is so essential in the internet, that almost all of the laws, regulations, terms and conditions online are administered to ensure the security of data. Online, data is like a raw material that can be harvested and processed to provide a degree of understanding about its source. Anyone, from individuals to governments, gives and receives data through the internet.
The most notable entities that utilize online data to their advantage are private companies. They can buy data from online platforms to study their target markets and tailor advertisements to target specific demographics. This is especially significant because businesses nowadays invest a lot in online advertising and lots of online platforms profit through it.
Cryptocurrency
In terms of the literal equivalent of money in the digital world, cryptocurrency would be the digital currency.
Aside from being its digital equivalent, what sets cryptocurrency apart from physical money is that it is not controlled by any central authority — it merely flows all around the internet, basically immune to any government control and interference.
However, this does not mean that cryptocurrency is not secure. It is made with cryptographic protocols to ensure that transactions made using cryptocurrency are secure and difficult to fake. Its decentralized nature also makes it easier to conduct transactions, and there would be less processing fees that are normally charged by traditional financial institutions.
Whether you transact online with the more metaphorical currencies and the literal currency of the digital world, be aware that your security may still be compromised. Malicious entities are also present online, and even more dangerously so because it is difficult to be aware of them. Aside from prizing your words, data and cryptocurrency, you should also be frugal with how you invest your trust online.
