How Social Media Has Changed The World
We cannot help but face how radically our lives have been changed on a daily basis by social media. Let's face it, we've all become social media junkies and it has both positive and negative effects but it is undeniably influential. We now have the ability to instantly share our thoughts, create social gatherings, and receive updates on major world events as they happen. We are connected to each other in a way that was never before possible and it's easy to take it for granted.
Our Personal Lives
In 2012, there is hardly an aspect of your life that is unaffected by social media. How many of you wake up, get your mobile device and check your Facebook like I do?. What did you find of interest? How did that affect your next decision for the morning? You may have read a post that angered you or made you laugh but chances are that left an impression on you as you went about your morning routine. It may have sparked a discussion with your spouse or roommate. Did you receive an invite? Did that help you formulate your plan for the day? This morning I received an invite from my friend to attend a blues performance tonight and I immediately worked my schedule around that. Instead of closing us off from one another, it is actually bringing us together and enhances how we organize real time social gatherings and it facilities real world intimacy rather that shutting it down, as was feared when the media was in its infancy. Humanity has an insatiable desire to find out what's happening out there in the world and Facebook feeds into that as does twitter and even Google Plus, for the few pioneers forging ahead with that social platform. In this way we can keep up with all of the doings in our friend's lives they choose to post on the net.
The Business World
The biggest boon has been for business. Why? Because market analysts have entire teams devoted to researching trends on Facebook and how we interact with each other. What are the Millennials talking about right now? What are their likes? What are their purchasing habits online and what do they say about your company and your competitors? All of it is valuable as it gives corporations an intimate view of you and how to sell you the products you need and want.
Companies look at your peer group and how they influence your purchasing decisions. They know what products sell to different political ideologies and refine campaign messaging to what interests them and appeals to their emotions. What are the marketing trends of this religion or that and how do we sell to them? What are teenagers passionate about and how can we tap into that? Facebook is the one place where everybody is and out of 655 million users, they have a lot of data to analyze. Small businesses have a tremendous opportunity now to engage you directly with strategic marketing campaigns for very little investment. In fact, a local business has a better chance now that they can create a Fan Page and interact with you directly. People tend to buy from who they know and if they see you are a local business, and are actively engaging them and finding out what the respond to they will go to you over the major corporations, given the choice. This means direct marketing and content marketing is far more effective now than it ever has been before.
Our Community
There is no doubt that Social Media has completely transformed how we think of community. Just as in our personal lives, our communities are connected in ways that are still unraveling due to sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Meetup. In 2011, the entire world was changed by The Arab Spring and The Occupy Wall Street Movements. Regardless of your opinion of these events you cannot deny the role that social media played in these movements. We can now organize events, share our collective experiences, and feel connected to the global community.
