New Era of Social Media is Phygital
Current Problems
Since the early 2000s, the internet has revolutionized the way we interact, communicate, and access information. With just a few clicks, we can access an infinite amount of information, connect with individuals from all corners of the world, and even conduct business transactions without ever leaving the comfort of our homes. Despite the numerous benefits of digital technology, there remains an undeniable gap between the internet and real life.
The Challenges with Real-life Interactions
One key structural difference is that online interactions offer a greater potential for anonymity and personal privacy. Individuals may feel more liberated to express themselves and comfortable setting their own level of information disclosure. Additionally, individuals may have multiple social accounts or profiles to serve different purposes and networks. Meanwhile, connecting with new people in real life is challenging in many aspects. People do not always have the right opportunities to meet like-minded people or expand their social circle; some might have social anxiety making it demanding to initiate and maintain new connections; and meeting new people in real life can also pose safety risks, particularly if that is a stranger outside one’s current network or in an unfamiliar setting.
This illustrates the need to bridge the gap between online and offline interaction by providing a solution for real-world scenarios with the benefits of digital technology so people can stay connected conveniently without those privacy and security risks. Imagine having the profile-switching function of social media in life, which can act both as a privacy setting and contact management tool. No contact exchange is needed, simply connect and talk more. A trade-off between privacy and convenience should be a thing of the past.
How Important is Social Connection?
The distinction is once again emphasized in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The way we connect with one another has fundamentally shifted. With social distancing guidelines and the rise of remote work, many of us have found ourselves feeling disconnected and isolated from the people and places we once frequented. According to recent surveys by Harvard and the American Psychological Association, about 61% of young adults in the United States suffer from miserable degrees of loneliness. And while the pandemic has certainly exacerbated feelings of isolation and disconnection, the truth is that these issues have been present long before the outbreak of COVID-19. According to a 2021 survey conducted by the Survey Center on American Life, an increasing number of people can’t identify a single person as a “close friend.” In 1990, only 3% of Americans said that they had no close friends, while in 2021, that percentage rose to 12%. Part of the social isolation, poor mental health, and decreased productivity problems is the overwhelming information from the internet and social media’s manipulative algorithms as well as addictive design, which occupy excessive amounts of time and make it hard to focus on real-world tasks.
This demonstrates a strong need for physical interactions and meaningful real-life connections to fulfill one’s social life in a healthy manner. Imagine a new kind of social media that seamlessly integrates proximity and location-based technology with personalization and customizability for a sense of community as well as safe and authentic connection in an increasingly digital world.
An Ideal Situation
‘Phygital’ world is where physical and digital environments are blended and physical and digital elements are integrated into a single experience. ‘Phygital’ is like the love child of the physical world and the digital realm. It’s where the tangible and the intangible get frisky and create a baby that’s both real and virtual. It’s the mashup of atoms and bits, the fusion of pixels and molecules. It’s like the ultimate hybrid, a cyborg of experiences. It sounds like a dream and a dream also means it has not been a reality yet.
Entering a New Era
Introducing Loop, a novel and proprietary platform based on proximity and location technology. Loop is a phygital social media platform that combines the best of both worlds, allowing users to connect with other people and the community virtually while also facilitating real-life interactions and experiences.
Core Functions
Currently, 99% of tech solutions are either built for people’s strong ties or online communication. Meanwhile, the interactions mediated through physical proximity remain a fundamental way for people to connect in which weak ties including random encounters or one-off interactions make up a big portion of people’s social life. Our MVP is a pioneer in the underserved market of physical interaction and unfamiliar connections, which is long overdue for a solution. Loop offers playful layers like ‘I have a crush on you’ of Loop Gift, customizable avatars on the Loop-verse, gamified progress, or virtual bell ringing/car honking on top of a feature-rich experience. Loop paves an entirely new way for people to securely communicate with each other, alongside highly demanded features like neighbourhood communities, places and activities recommendations, asset ownership, contact management, etc. Users can discover people, communities, places, and events in their desired area. Whether you’re looking to make new friends, explore your neighbourhoods, or discover hidden gems in your city, Loop has you covered.
For the Next Generations
Loop is built with the next generations in mind and catered to your needs and preferences. This demographic values community-driven experiences and socialization but in a meaningful way such as shared causes and interests, in-person communication, and real-life values. That’s how Loop comes into play as we provide a platform for individuals and businesses to relevantly connect in real life, leveraging proximity and location-based technology on top of our ML matchmaking engine to create unique, relevant, and authentic experiences. For brands and product consumption, next-generation consumers are more conscious of their impact on the world and are willing to pay a premium for products and services that align with their values, especially sustainability and uniqueness. At the same time, consumers expect personalization and seamless as well as consistent omnichannel experiences. Loop enables brands to offer a phygital experience and personalized touch for their customers and partakes in the sustainable movement by digitalizing unnecessary paper-based communication through a flyer or business card. With their tech-savvy, younger generations do not want to be tracked or be told; they care about privacy and prefer to discover and experiment. That’s why we put the power back into your hand and pioneer the user-defined movement by providing the tools for you to define and control your own exposure and experience on Loop platform.
By leveraging the power of technology to enhance our real-life experiences, Loop is poised to revolutionize the way we connect with one another, helping us all to feel more connected, supported, and fulfilled in our daily lives.
We will be launching publicly this year. Signup on our website for early bird promotions and be the first to know when we launch
