Humanity Bloomed During the Renaissance

Humanity Bloomed During the Renaissance The Renaissance, a movement that  stressed the ideas of the classical world, ended the medieval era  and heralded the start of Europes modern age. Between the 14th and 17th centuries, art and science flourished as empires expanded and cultures mixed as never before. Although historians still debate some  causes of the Renaissance, they agree on a few basic points. AHunger for Discovery The courts and monasteries of Europe had long been repositories of manuscripts and texts, but a change in how scholars viewed them sparked a massive reappraisal of classical works in the Renaissance. Fourteenth-century writer Petrarch typified this, writing about his lust for discovering texts that  had previously been ignored. As literacy spread and a middle class emerged, seeking out, reading, and spreading classical texts became commonplace. New libraries developed to facilitate access to old books. Ideas once forgotten were now reawakened, as was interest in their authors. Reintroduction of Classical Works During the Dark Ages, many classical European texts were lost or destroyed. Those that survived were hidden in churches and monasteries of the Byzantine Empire or in capitals of the Middle East. During the Renaissance, many of these texts were slowly reintroduced into Europe by merchants and scholars. In 1396 an official academic post for teaching Greek was created in Florence. The man hired, Manuel Chrysoloras, brought with him a copy of Ptolemy’s Geography from the East. A huge number of Greek texts and scholars arrived in Europe with the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The Printing Press The invention of the printing press  in 1440 was the game-changer. Finally, books could be mass produced for far less money and time than by the old handwritten methods. Ideas could be spread through libraries, booksellers, and schools in a way that wasnt possible before. The printed page was more legible than the elaborate script of books written longhand. Printing became a viable industry, creating new jobs and innovations. The spread of books also encouraged the study of literature itself, allowing new ideas to spread as cities and nations began establishing universities and other schools. Humanism Emerges Renaissance humanism  was a new manner of thinking and approaching the world. It has been called the earliest expression of the Renaissance and is described as both a product and a cause of the movement. Humanist thinkers challenged the mindset of the previously dominant school of scholarly thought, Scholasticism, as well as the Catholic Church, allowing the new thinking to develop. Art and Politics The new artists needed wealthy patrons to support them, and Renaissance Italy was especially fertile ground. Political changes in the ruling class shortly before this period had led to the rulers of most major city-states being â€Å"new men† without much political history. They attempted to legitimize themselves with conspicuous investment in and public flaunting of art and architecture. As the Renaissance spread, church and European rulers used their wealth to adopt the new styles to keep pace. The demand from the  elites wasn’t just artistic; they also relied upon ideas developed for their political models. The Prince, Machiavelli’s  guide for rulers, is a work of Renaissance political theory. The developing bureaucracies of Italy and the rest of Europe generated new  demand for highly educated humanists to fill the ranks of governments and bureaucracies. A new political and economic class emerged.   Death and Life In the middle of the 14th  century, the Black Death swept Europe, killing perhaps a third of the population. While devastating, the plague left survivors better off financially and socially, with the same wealth spread among fewer people. This was especially true in Italy, where social mobility was much greater. This new  wealth often was spent lavishly on arts, culture, and artisanal goods.  The merchant classes of regional powers such as Italy  saw a great increase in wealth from their roles in trade. This growing mercantile class sparked a financial industry to manage their wealth, generating additional economic and social growth. War and Peace Periods of peace and war have been credited with allowing the Renaissance to spread. The end of the Hundred Years War between England and France in 1453 allowed Renaissance ideas to penetrate these nations as resources once consumed by war were funneled into the arts and sciences. By contrast, the Great Italian Wars of the early 16th century allowed Renaissance ideas to spread to France as its armies invaded Italy repeatedly over 50 years.

New Trends in Digital Marketing for 2016

New Trends in Digital Marketing for 2016 New Trends in Digital Marketing for 2016 Content marketing. That’s the term for anything that is done online to promote a company, and its products/services. Also known as digital marketing, it has been going on for years. Companies of all sizes utilize online marketing, and it is in many ways the great equalizer – it is cheap and allows a small startup to grab a huge audience with well-placed, catchy, and engaging content. But digital marketing keeps changing, and those changes are coming more rapidly than many marketers even realize. Here are the new trends that we are already seeing as we move into 2016. What is not changing is this: Consumers will only do business with companies that know and trust. Efforts to build trusting relationships and to get one’s brand to be the one shared and recommended are all intertwined and will continue to be so. Visuals will increase in importance – all kinds of visuals. Photos, images, infographics, and such will become more sophisticated and allow interaction. Interactivity: When consumers are engaged, they remember the brand. And if they are engaged by interacting, they are more inclined to share that interactivity with their communities. Surveys, polls, quizzes and even interactive videos will capture viewers, engage them in fun ways, and cause them to share. Videos: 2016 will be the year of the video. This is the most popular medium for getting information and entertainment to customers and potential customers. Research shows they share videos more than any other content. Marketers will need to meet this demand. Live-Streaming: New apps like Meerkat and Periscope will begin to revolutionize marketing and many other things as well. Consumers demand immediate information, news, and entertainment, and marketers can adapt to this demand by live-streaming their events, their new products, their happy customers, etc. Tracking Technology: Technology will provide big data – data that will continue to let marketers know where their targets are, both digitally and physically. Currently, technology informs marketers when their targets are online, where they are online, and what devices they are using. Now, those targets will be tracked physically as well. Thus, when a known customer of Starbucks walks close to one of their cafes, s/he will receive a tweet that tells him he can get a discount right now on his favorite latte. (Yes, tracking also knows what his favorite latte is). Privacy: Because of the new tracking technology, consumers will become increasingly concerned about their privacy rights. Marketers will have to tread very carefully so as not to offend or look creepy as they continue to target customers. Storytelling: This has been important for some time now, but it will continue to drive effective marketing efforts. People are drawn in by stories, and they are now told in ways other than words. Instagram, for example, has introduced its carousel – a venue for marketers to have a sequential picture/image story to tell. Social Responsibility: Consumers will also demand that the companies they do business with have a sense of being of help to people and to the environment. Marketers will need to publicize the good works that their companies do. It promotes trust, relationships, and good will. Social Media will continue to be the single most important venue for marketing. Marketers will have to stay â€Å"current† as social media changes. For example, Facebook 360 will become a reality, and marketers will need to jump in quickly. It’s difficult to stay on top of all of the major and rapid changes in technology. And every single one of the impacts digital marketing in some way. Successful strategies to promote a brand, develop relationships, and widen a company’s reach will be challenging indeed.