Content first, technology second

Our latest blog is slightly delayed, due to the fact that 8 weeks ago I became a dad for the first time. Readers who are parents already will have a knowing smile at this point and for those who aren’t, well I wont spoil the surprise!

Given my partner and I work in and around technology, it may not surprise you that during the pregnancy we used a whole range of apps – charting progress, simulating the size of the baby, providing information about growth and development, and generally scaring the hell out of us. During labour we used an app that faithfully recorded every contraction and even provided graphs charting changes through the night, something which at the time seemed very important to know. Since our baby has arrived we have continued to use apps to show us development phases, feeding statistics, growth charts, sensory development and just about every other baby related progress that you may want to know about. To be honest, it’s hard to imagine how it could be possible to parent a baby without the aid of Steve Jobs conceived products.

So knowing that we work in the digital space; we make apps, touch tables, websites and more for clients and as new parents we have relied heavily on tech, it would be a fair assumption that we had already registered our baby’s Facebook and Twitter accounts and be wondering whether phone or tablet is the way to go for her first birthday present. Strangely, however, we are the exact opposite. We don’t want her to get hooked on technology. I know this is like saying we also don’t want her to grow up, drink alcohol, speak to boys or talk back to us, but I can of course only reflect how we feel just now.

I think the reason for this, is that for us, our phones are not about the tech, but about what they allow us to do. I am not impressed that my phone has processing power capable of launching a spaceship to the moon (it’s not on my bucket list), but I am impressed that I can write shopping lists, check out how to cure nappy rash and know what time our baby last fed, on something that fits so neatly into my pocket. In short it’s the content that I love.

So how does this fascinating insight into our family life relate to Ammba and warrant a place on our blog? Well the connection is content, in the same way we don’t want our daughter using tech just for technologies sake, we also don’t think our clients should start a new development with the idea that they are commissioning some new tech or social media platform. We always look at the content we have first and try to figure out how best to deliver it to our clients’ audiences.  That’s why, for just now, we don’t want our baby to be too engrossed in technology, because the content that we think is important for her is plentiful in the physical world. If a swinging multicoloured butterfly that hangs from her cot, a random puppet toy she wears on her feet keep her engaged and entertained, then that’s all the content she needs. As her little world grows, we will expand the content she has access to and I suppose in time it may be the case that the content she wants is best delivered via some sort of mobile device. In that case, maybe we will cave and get her one. But if we do, it will be because there is a specific content need that is best delivered via a mobile device, rather than just giving her some tech incase there happens to be content she may want. It is a subtle distinction maybe, but as new parents and in our professional lives the argument for content first, and technology second seems to align.