HOW SOCIAL MEDIA IS USED IN BUSINESS
The main use of social media for the business industry is to allow businesses to extend their reach to billions of people and showcase their brand. There has never been a time where businesses could instantly access billions of people and share their values and show what they represent. Growth has been exponentially been boosted because of what social media has done. But for everything that is created in this world, there are also drawbacks. We have witnessed for the first time where the nation’s presidential elections have been affected by the “availability” of information. And if not monitored correctly, information could be misicommunicated and be mis-leading. Social media also has the ability to disconnect human beings from each other. We see this all around us where people’s connections are to their phones and not into another person’s eyes. Social media is a technology that if used correctly, can be a resourceful tool for all types of markets whether it be the private sector, government, military and in law enforcement. Social media history and the current universal culture of our society allows social media to be a necessity for the life and existence of an organization.
What's Reality?
“Reality TV” has been recorded to have an introduction as early as the 1940’s (wikipedia) This genre of entertainment really took off in the 1980’s and 90’s. Shows like the “Real World” on MTV started to give way for ideas of entertainment where the audience can have more of a personal connection with the people on the show because it was “unscripted”. This same idea goes with what the “World Wrestling Federation” created. The audience identified with the cast because of the “realism” of no script brought to the table. As more and more reality TV shows started to come out, the more it became apparent that human connection is what drives people’s motives, ideas and actions. This human connection is what most people forget we have in the world and that is relationships. The birth of social media allowed relationships to form without being physically present with other people. Facebook was not the first platform to do this, but it became the most successful.
Remote Relationships
The birth of Facebook revolutionized how we are able to maintain connections and relationships. It has come to a point where asking permission to connect on Facebook has become another way of asking for people’s phone numbers. What is astonishing is that people feel less threatened and at risk when they give their Facebook profiles away to people. But in reality, they are allowing people to see their lives. Facebook shows others where they have gone, who they have connections to, what people do for a living, and so much more. It gives a transparency to who people are. Of course, there is a sense of dishonesty that could easily be made up on someone’s profile, but nevertheless, people who use Facebook the moral way are using it for what Facebook was created for - connection. Currently, Facebook has 3.5 billion users. That is half the world. Before the age of the internet, the average person would be very limited by their geo-location.
Social Media = Culture Disruptor
Facebook has become the leading platform of advertising for businesses. With 3.5 billion users, it would be irresponsible for businesses to not use Facebook to reach the masses and promote their brand. But Facebook is more than just advertising and promoting. Businesses use Facebook to have a sense of transparency. It allows an informal way to connect with their audiences. People like to be a part of something; especially if that something creates a cultural movement. Apple for example, has created a culture where people don’t necessarily buy apple products because of the hardware. People buy Apple products because what the company stands for, which is “going against the status quo”. Social media has played a huge role in the exponential growth that Apple has seen in the past decade. Smart phones have been enhanced and modified to fit better into the social media world. “Selfies” inspired engineers to create cameras on both sides of the phone. Instead of journals and diaries, we now have social media to record our lives and share it with the rest of the world. People share their lives so that they can have a human connection. When people share something on Facebook for the world to see, they are inviting people into their lives. Businesses use social media so that they can invite their audience into their experience. This invitation empowers people and let’s them know that they are valuable enough to be part of the experience and the “family”. Not only has social media become a tool of world connection, but it has become a tool to empower people to become a celebrity.
Self-Made Celebrity
YouTube has allowed this self made celebrity to rise. People love movies because it transports a person’s mind into a fantasy world where they can emotionally connect with a character. People connect to what’s on the screen. Stardom was something that many people wanted but was restricted from the availability of a camera and delivering it to the world. Youtube has crushed that barrier where now education has become a genre of film. Millions of “How To” videos have been uploaded. The access of free education and knowledge has blown up thanks to the availability that a social media platform like Youtube has done. Youtube has created a culture of entertainment where people can watch what they want and when they want on their phones. It’s allowed a culture of people to create film and share it on the spot. Live videos have become a way into the future with portraying rawness and authenticity. Both Youtube and Facebook have become avid platforms for people to be “live” with the world. We have the ability to become real like “Reality TV” shows without the auditions, bureaucracy and restrictions of the entertainment industry. What social media platforms like Youtube has done, has created an “instant” culture. People now what things now. People want value now. People want a conversation now
Open Conversation
And that’s what social media has also created more of. It has created a world forum of open conversation. Instead of just asking the local populace of their thoughts, businesses are able to open the conversation with people all around the world. Perspectives of certain subjects are endless. People used to be very sheltered with conversing with another person especially when it came to controversial matters. But now people are starting to speak up. However, there is a con to that where people’s opinions start to become fact and reality. And that is a potentially very dangerous effect on the world. We would not be able to distinguish fact from opinion. That is why Facebook has updated their platform to delete anything that cannot be supported by factual evidence. It is a new update that will continuously evolve and get better. But people are starting to open up and participate in conversations that they would have otherwise been uncomfortable or not care enough to be active in. Again, social media invites audiences to participate and be an active member of industry's growth. We as people, just have to be careful about what and how we post things on social media because to every story, there are multiple sides to it. One recent example of this is the situation that happened on the United airplane. As hard as it is, we cannot allow opinions on social media become fact and not see all sides of a story.
Viral Assumptions
And this is the downside to social media. Once a video surfaces, people already make assumptions. But even a good movie that wins an Oscar, would not be as successful if editing was not involved. How a story is told has a dramatic affect on what a person can feel and think during the film. Same thing that is presented on social media goes the same way. We cannot allow one side of the story be fact. What the availability of posting something to social media should do is allow transparency of people or organizations. People’s actions must be well thought before deciding because everyone has a camera on their fingertips. But we cannot allow one side of a story be the deciding factor of all possibilities. Although it may make it harder for law enforcement to make quick but sound decisions during a life or death situation, social media also ensures quality assurance and invites people to take an active role.
Like many disruptors in technology and our culture, we have to take a side of caution. There will always be those who always want to take advantage of others and situations. At the same time, we can't let disrupting technology take fear over us. Embrace changes and use evolving technology to the degree of ethical means. We live in an age where businesses and entrepreneurs can thrive.