Search This Blog

Monday, May 9, 2011

Social Media is Social, respect that

It is no longer news that we are right in the middle of a global revolution, probably in the biggest in human history. Communication is increasing becoming fast-paced and irrepressible. And the hub of it all is the social media networks.


The events of the last few months in Tunisia, Egypt and other parts of the Arab world shows that a desire for freedom is growing alongside the social media, which is a collection free communication platforms. The Arab revolts, underscores the power of the social media, which is still growing.
The point is: ‘The social media is social’, if you try to change that, you will lose out and the rest of the world will move on.
The old ways of communicating are fading away, and will soon be completely gone. I can’t remember the last time I wrote a letter to a friend, and that is happening globally. Newspapers are gradually phasing out. More people now read news on the internet with their computers or mobile devices.
The main reason is that people are getting busier and prefer more convenient, on-the-go means of getting information. That way, they can also easily share the information with their friends. People like to be recognized as intelligent and well informed, so when they get a hold of a new fact, they are likely to share it quickly. ‘It is really cool to be the guy that breaks the news’.
For example within minutes after President Obama announced the death of Osama bin Laden, the news was all over the Internet. In fact some reputable media organizations got the hint from Facebook and Twitter. It is however not surprising that it appeared on these social media networks hours before some newspaper websites, because the processes of the newsroom are relatively slow and cannot match the speed of tweeting of a line or two from a smart phone.
In the social media, everybody is involved. We are both the senders and the receivers of myriads of information. One role seamlessly spirals into the other and the chain continues.
The first rule of the social media is “Let us communicate.”
If your business fails to allow a multi-directional communication, it will be indirectly encouraging your customers to revolt and walk away.
Go and ask former President Hosni Mubarak, what it means to lose age-long control, suddenly. It is never a sweet pie, I’m sure.