Report on Social Media

I don't think it's an exaggeration to say social media has changed the world. The implications social media sites have on communication and public opinion are massive. No matter what angle you look at it, whether from a business, person-to-person, or societal viewpoint, the Facebooks, Twitters, etc. of the world have changed the way we communicate, who we communicate with, and why we communicate.

When it first came about, social media was thought of as a purely personal thing. You could have your Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, whatever it was, but it wasn't intended to be seen by anyone but the people closest to you. I remember being thirteen years old with a Myspace for the first time, and I felt like I had unlocked a whole new world of limitless social potential. I felt I could express myself in whatever way I liked without fear of judgement or punishment from parents, teachers, relatives, or anyone else. But as I grew up and social media evolved, all of this has changed. I am now friends with my 70 year-old aunts on Facebook. My profiles are now on the radar when it comes to job searches. And a parent or professor or boss could easily google my name and find my online presence in a few clicks. Now I realize how important it is to be just as careful online as I would be in real life, if not even more so. Social media is no longer just for small, close friend circles. It's now for the entire world.

Being that the majority of my education has been in the business field, I want to focus on how social media has affected this area in particular. Just like with parents and older generations, business were slow to get involved with social media in it's early days. But now, they're seen as out of touch if they don't have profiles across several platforms. It's almost mandatory now for companies to have Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages, and ones without supporting Instagram, Pinterest, and Linkedin pages, just to name a few, are fighting an uphill battle. According to Search Engine Watch, who researched Fortune 500 social media usage in 2013, 77% of the companies have Facebook, 73% have Twitter, and 69% have YouTube. Additionally, 35% have Google+, 34% have a blog, and 9% have Pinterest, Instagram and Foursquare (Slegg). For a reference point, only 20% of Fortune 500 companies had a Twitter account in 2009 (Bennett). But big businesses aren't the only ones bullish on social media nowadays. A 2014 Linkedin study found that 81% of small businesses are active on social media, although specific site use wasn't included (Gravel).

It's clear that social is becoming more important for businesses, but just having an account is no longer enough; it's all about how you use it. Now that so much of the world is social media savvy, businesses have had to learn the most effective ways to use these new platforms to reach both their core consumers as well as new ones. It's clear that one of the easiest and most effective business functions social media can handle is marketing. Social media is a marketing machine, as anyone who follows your profile will automatically see your posts on their timelines, giving companies a surefire way to get in front of consumers eyes. Rightfully so, 93% of businesses that use social media use it for marketing (Qualman). Going hand-in-hand with marketing is promotion and advertising, both of which are comparably easy to do on social media. Social media promotions provide an easy way to engage consumers, and social media advertising is one of the surest ways to ensure your message gets seen by target consumers, given all of the wonderful demographic and psychographic filters social media sites provide. Outside of marketing purposes, social media is a useful tool for lead generation and can help companies get a feel for current trends, both in the industry and on a larger scale.

Though using social media for consumer engagement in the form of marketing, promotion, advertising is a no-brainer, there are right ways and wrong ways to do it. In my best practices post, I outlined some of the best ways to use Twitter and Instagram, but some of these practices can also be applied to other platforms. Some of the key considerations I touched on that could be applied on a broader scale are:

• Post several times daily. A profile is of no use if it isn't continuosly posting new, engaging content.
• Make use of multimedia. Varying posts in the form of text, picture, video, gifs, etc. add variety and appeal.
• Use a genuine voice and display brand values. Staying true to your brand on social media is a must, as it gives your business credibility and respect.
• Don't over-sell yourself. Promoting and marketing to consumers is great, but not every post should be "selling" something, or even talking about the brand. Be relatable and have a two-way conversation with your consumers.
• Capitalize on trends and use them as avenues to interact with your brand specifically.

By taking note of these practices, businesses that use social media can optimize the effectiveness of their operations. Though they are by no means absolute and all-encompassing, they give a general baseline of what to do to make sure your company is getting the most out of social media usage.

All in all, social media has become of incredible importance for modern businesses. No longer are Facebook and Twitter (and everyone else) solely personal platforms. They now connect people and organizations on a global level and have completely changed the way we all communicate. Making use of them is no longer suggested; it's required. Knowing what you want out of social media and applying the best practices should help any business have success in this still-emerging, and world changing media platform.

References:

Bennett, Shea. "The Social Media Statistics Of Fortune 500 Companies." AllTwitter. Media Bistro, 30 Mar. 2012. Web. 12 May 2014.

Grazel, Jennifer. "Social Media: A Hotbed For SMB Growth and Fertile Ground for Financial Services Prospects." Linkedin Marketing Solutions. Linkedin, 13 Feb. 2014. Web. 12 May 2014.

Qualman, Erik. "Social Media Revolution 3 (4:15 Version via Erik Qualman)." YouTube. YouTube, 22 June 2011. Web. 12 May 2014.

Slegg, Jennifer. "Fortune 500 Social Media: 77% Active on Twitter; 70% on Facebook." Search Engine Watch. N.p., 25 July 2013. Web. 12 May 2014.

What Are The Current Social Media Best Practices?

Simply having social media accounts is one thing, but using them effectively is whole other ball game. While it's true that being present on social media is half the battle, there are a lot of ways companies can optimize their feeds to create interesting and engaging profiles. For the purposes of this post, I'll explore the best ways to use two of the most important platforms on the web: Twitter and Instagram.

Using Twitter effectively, like anything else, requires time and effort. While anyone can type out 140 characters in a few seconds and circulate it through their following, thinking more carefully about type of content and timing can help users leave a bigger impact on the web. Though brands will inevitably do some things differently based on need, here are some universal practices that can help out any user:

• Use a profile picture that clearly depicts the brand logo. Companies should want their avatar to be instantly recognized by anyone scrolling their timeline. Keeping a familiar logo as the main photo accomplishes this.
• Companies should also make sure their background photo (and cover photo) are branded. They may use an alternate logo or design, but there should be a level of consistency between profile photo and ancillary artwork.
• Profile descriptions should include, at the very minimum, company website and location. Companies would do well to also post short bio for what the brand is about, accolades and accomplishments, as well as favored hashtags.
• Tweet several times daily. Though the number may vary based on the type of organization, it is crucial to get at least a few tweets up a day.
• Time your tweets. Companies should have a calendar as well as a daily schedule for tweeting that best matches their consumer base. Though timing varies considerably, the general rule is that weekends are best for engagement, and during the most important during-the-week tweets should go up near the end of the workday (5-6pm).
• In terms of actual content, there should be a comfortable mix between text, photo, video and links to other sites. This will skew based on type of company, but it's important to consider all media forms when tweeting.
• Brands should make use of hashtags, but not in an exploitative manner. Instead of using 10 hashtags to increase a posts connectivity, use one or two that best fit the content without seeming spammy.
• Brands should actively seek out their consumers and engage them. Reply to comments both positive and negative to show consumers they are interested in what they have to say.
• Creating new, brand specific hashtags is also a good way of engaging consumers and generating buzz.
• Stay aware of relevant trends can capitalize on them, even if they're unrelated to the brand and/or industry. It doesn't have to be all about the company, all the time.

Now that we've looked at some ways to best use Twitter, lets move on to Instagram. Here are some general pointers for companies looking to optimize their Instagram feed.

• Like Twitter, brands should use an easily recognizable logo as their main picture. Though this is probably of slightly lesser importance on Instagram, it's still a good practice to keep.
• Pictures posted on Instagram should be consistent with brand identity. This doesn't mean every picture needs a company logo- but the vibe and feeling of the brand should shine through no matter what the picture depicts. Followers should feel like they're truly "experiencing" the brand. Easier said than done of course, but this is of utmost importance.
• Though this may seem obvious, pictures should be of professional quality. This means making sure there is no blurriness, the colors pop, and there is an inherent aesthetic appeal. Instagram makes this easy by providing filters, but companies must also make sure the original picture quality is up to par. 
• Instagram content should be exclusive to a degree. There is value in knowing there is only one place to see certain photos, and it gives people a reason to follow.
• Brands should shine a light on the parties that help make them successful. This means brands should show appreciation by displaying photos of employees, customers, partners, and anyone else who helps their success. 
• Content should seem thoughtful- don't post a picture just to post something. Make sure every post is compelling and relevant in its own way.
• Hashtags are welcome, though like Twitter, there is such thing as oversaturation. Similarly, captions should be short and sweet as to not lose the viewers attention.
• Frequency and timing of posts is important. Just like Twitter, companies should update their feed at least daily, and should tailor the time of their posts to their consumers. Once again, weekends are the best for engagement.
• Share Instagram photos on other social channels for maximum exposure, including Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, etc.

References

https://business.twitter.com/best-practices

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/belle-beth-cooper/a-scientific-guide-to-pos_b_4262571.html

http://instagram-business.tumblr.com/post/29441248656/instagram-best-practices-to-see-more-tips-and

How Is Social Media Activity Measured?

It's not an easy task for organizations to determine how effective their social media presence is at achieving their goals. Though users can get a rough glance at their popularity through the standard number of "likes" or "follows," it takes more than that to truly measure consumer engagement. In order to paint a more complete picture of how an organization uses social media, and how their consumers engage with it, it is important to look at the analytics. Luckily for these companies, there are now a ton of sites out their that specialize in analyzing social media presence.

One commonly used metric is referred to as "impressions." An impression, according to Simply Measured, "...demonstrates the impact you’ve had on those users and the audience it’s helped you reach beyond your inner circle of influence" (Shively). In other words, impressions help users get a better sense of their interconnectivity with the rest of the social universe. This is a good indicator of whether or not something has gone "viral" or not. Impressions take into account things like "retweets," "shares" and "mentions," combining all the data to figure out how far a message really reaches. However, though impressions tell companies how many screens, feeds and timelines they pop up on, they don't take into account how users engage with a message. So although a high number of impressions is always a good sign, there is much more to the picture.

Focusing on the consumer sentiment, in addition to total impressions, has become of utmost importance. While "likes" and "follows" may imply a brand is popular and well-regarded, they can't tell us exactly how consumers engage with it. The actual content of the consumer messages is crucial. The good news is that it has become easier to track these things, as most social networks have implemented search bars, hashtags, and other sorting tools that are at the user's fingertips from the get-go. This makes for an easy, albeit somewhat crude way of tracking ones own social media activity. Though this could be sufficient for small companies, large corporations often need more sophisticated tracking technology for a reliable measure of their reach and the degree of consumer engagement. Your average mom-and-pop business might be able to see all of their consumer engagement with a simple search through the social media site itself, but a company like Pepsi with several million followers needs a more efficient way of measuring collective consumer sentiment.

Many sites have emerged that track consumer sentiment across social media, using algorithms to determine whether a post is positive, negative or neutral. One such site is Trackur, though many others exist. The site essentially works by "reading" social media posts related to your brand and analyzing key words and phrases to determine the overall sentiment of the post. These sentiments are then combined into one "score" that a company can use to determine its "social influence." Though there are flaws to using automated technology to track consumer emotion (ex. sarcasm detection), it's a useful tool and the best way for large scale companies to manage their vast consumer base.

Additionally, there are a host of tools that track who is engaging with a brand. The most popular site is probably Google Analytics, which can track daily visits to a site, the demographics of users, how they got to the site, how long they stay, and which pieces of content are most and least popular (Honeysett). However, the big social media sites like Facebook and Twitter also have their own analytics that can be accessed through their sites.

Overall, social media analytics is a growing field, and there are now many companies that specialize in the discipline. Whatever sites companies choose to use, total impressions, consumer sentiment and user demographics are incredibly important. By using these more advanced metrics to measure social media presence, companies can get a better picture of the state of their brand than ever before.

References

Honeysett, Alex. "4 Ways to Measure Your Social Media Success." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 22 Aug. 2012. Web. 07 Apr. 2014.

Shively, Kevin. "Twitter Metrics Defined: Potential Impressions." Simply Measured RSS. N.p., 29 May 2013. Web. 07 Apr. 2014.

How Do Social Media Platforms Differ

Social media as a whole encompasses a large variety of different sites and platforms. Facebook and Twitter are the most ubiquitous platforms, and are commonly the first sites that come to mind when “social media” is mentioned. But under the umbrella term of social media are many more unique and purposeful sites that keep the wheel turning. For the purposes of this post, I’ll be looking at Instagram and Snapchat as two alternative social media sites that are extremely relevant in their own right.

Instagram is a photo and video-sharing app at its core. The main utility it offers users is the ability to upload their own pictures and video, and view uploaded content from other users they follow. In addition to posting and viewing the content, users can “like,” write comments and “tag” other users. Recently Instagram added an additional feature: the ability to directly message photo and video to particular users. These simple functions are the essence of Instagram.

Upon logging into Instagram, users are placed directly in front of their “timeline,” which is a simple scrolling screen with the content of each user they follow. Newer posts appear at the top of the feed, and all posts are tagged with the users handle, a timestamp, and sometimes a caption. The interface is very clean and user-friendly, making it easy to quickly scroll a timeline. Five tabs at the bottom of the screen control navigation throughout the app. The first tab from the left is the timeline tab. Next to it is the “Explore” tab, which allows users to search for particular hashtags and users as well as view photo and video from people they don’t follow. The Explore tab is extremely useful for finding new, appealing content, and can be refreshed with a simple tap of the arrow at the top right of the screen. The middle tab is the photo tab, which is where users go to take original pictures and video or upload content from other sources. When taking a picture or video, users are given a wide variety of filters to choose from, allowing them to play around with the aesthetics of their content. There are also simple editing functions like cropping, brightness editing, and contrast alteration. The fourth tab functions as a notifications tab, letting users know of any activity related to their account, as well as activities of their following. Finally, the rightmost tab brings users to their own profile page, which features their username at the top, the number of posts, followers and following, and a grid displaying their content. Users can post a short description or profile, but that’s about it in terms of profile customization.

Snapchat is also a photo and video sharing app, but with a few caveats. On Snapchat, all content is sent directly to users; there is no timeline or profile per se.  Additionally, all photo and video on Snapchat are timed - meaning users that receive content can only view it for the number of seconds as determined by the sender. Thus, Snapchats that are sent out are intended to only live for a couple of seconds. Over time users have found ways around this, primarily by “screenshotting” pictures sent to them. Though this defeats the whole purpose of the app, Snapchat responded my notifying anyone who’s photos have been screenshotted. Though screenshotting Snapchats isn’t always a negative thing, many times it leads to risqué or inappropriate content getting leaked. Notifying users when this happens helps to discourage this behavior, although it surely still goes on.

When opening the Snapchat app, users are immediately put in front of the built in camera. The Snapchat camera is the only way to take a photo or video for use in the app. Once a photo is taken, users can then delineate how long it will appear for others, as well as edit the picture by adding text and drawing with their paint-like tool. Aside from this main camera screen are only three other screens. One of these screens, accessed by swiping right on the camera, simply lists any new Snapchats a user has received as well as past Snapchats, although the content can’t be viewed again. By swiping to the left, users can view their friends on the app and search for contacts (via Facebook) to add. The final screen, accessed by swiping left again, lists friends who have added you, contacts you know that also have Snapchat, and another search bar.

Instagram and Snapchat are similar in a lot of ways, though they differ just enough to give users a reason to have both. The biggest similarity, aside from both being photo and video-sharing apps, is the fact that both are primarily mobile. Without a smartphone, you cannot sign up for either app. Instagram allows users to browse pictures and video on the Internet, but the utility of the website is very limited and doesn’t allow for the posting of content.  Similarly, Snapchats can’t be posted via the Internet, and their site only has five tabs: blog, support, jobs, privacy, and terms. Also similar is that both apps allow for the direct messaging of content, though this is the core of Snapchat and just a recently added Instagram feature.

The differences between the apps are mainly in the structure. Instagram is more traditional, in that it allows for a profile, and posts accumulate on a timeline that can be viewed at any time. Snapchat on the other hand survives off of timed content, and completely forgoes the idea of a user profile. Snapchat is a much more “bare bones” operation than Instagram, Snapchat also, as of now, doesn’t have any advertisements in its app, while Instagram recently implemented an ad program in the form of “Sponsored” posts.

All in all, Instagram and Snapchat are both much more limited in scope when compared to Facebook and Twitter. There are many less customization options, and users are bound to a certain array of activities. But I don’t think the limit on possible uses hurts the apps; in fact, I think there is a lot of value in their simplicity.

How Do Organizations Use Social Media?

Social media has become an integral marketing tool for all kinds of companies. As the world becomes more connected, companies have begun to harness the powers of digital to connect with customers, increase brand awareness, generate buzz, and promote themselves in a positive way. Given the wide variety of channels available and the low cost of maintaining a presence, social media marketing and advertising has become easier and more effective than ever. If that weren't enough, social media doubles as the ultimate customer relationship management tool. Having a digital presence has become the norm these days, and the companies that don't have a consistent brand presence across multiple channels are behind the curve.

 In the past I've done work posting on social media accounts for a few different businesses. The driving force behind these posts has always been engaging the consumer and making sure the brand is visible. With the amount of posts the average person scrolls through on a daily basis, it is essential that something goes up every day. Even if it's a trivial, random post, posting itself ensures that the company will be seen. One of the companies I previously worked with was my brother's T-shirt line Business As Usual. Back then I would help out primarily by crafting Facebook posts and filming videos that would be shared on both Facebook and YouTube. My brother and I would create some videos purely for social media promotion, while others would be highlight reels of events and other things. The key for us was to make funny, shareable content that would entertain fans of the company as well as whoever else happened to see the video. If we weren't posting videos or photos, we would put up quotes, ideas, and other thoughts pertaining to core values of the company. While we never ran formal paid ads, we did any and every free thing we could to stay socially relevant to our followers.

I see a lot of the same from companies I follow on Twitter, although the effort and strategy behind social media marketing has undoubtedly increased in recent years. One company I follow that makes great use of social is the National Basketball Association. The NBA maintains extremely active channels on every platform I follow, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, and Vine. The types of post aren't exactly the same for all platforms, but the strategies they employ seem to take advantage of each platform's strengths. For example, Facebook posts tend to contain always contain video or pictures, with a large chunk of posts promoting sponsors and other league initiatives. The highlights and game to game stories are still there, but Facebook takes on a purer advertising tone than other platforms. Twitter on the other hand is used for quicker, real-time updates; generally game scores, instant highlights, and brief promotions for other NBA stuff. The rest are pretty self explanatory: YouTube handles highlights, promotion video, and original productions, Instagram handles pictures and short videos, while Vine is ideal for short, replay-able highlight clips. All in all, the NBA maintains an active, consistent presence across all platforms, which drives maximum engagement with fans like myself.

All in all, social media is has become a marketing staple for most modern companies. They know that consumers are engaged when using social media, and having an active and consistent presence is good for business. Whether posting original content, promoting, or connecting with consumers, social has become a mainstay for in marketing, advertising, and PR departments around the world. 

Is Social Media Good or Bad for Society?

Just like with relationships, I believe social media has a complex effect on society. Depending on how it is used, it can have positive or negative effects on society as a whole. However, weighing the pros versus the cons, I believe that as a whole social media is ultimately beneficial for society, and we're better with it than we would be without it.

The connectivity that social media provides allows us to communicate across the globe more quickly and easily than ever. That alone is enough to make it a beneficial tool for society. News spreads infinitely faster, whether it's trivial or important. This has huge implications for society in a number of respects. In terms of safety, social media makes crisis communication is more thorough and effective, while also giving us better tools to track down criminals. Nowadays, it's much harder for criminals to act without leaving any traces of their behavior on social media (Rupert). Whether they post something incriminating, or someone else posts a witness account, social media makes it much more difficult for the average person to eliminate all evidence pertaining to a crime. That combined with the rapid spread of news makes it easier for law enforcement to keep society safe and secure.

Outside of safety, social media can serve as a strong political tool. Platforms like Twitter can unite people across the country with similar interests and allow them to be heard. The "voice of the people" is often a cliche when it comes to politics, but social media allows each person to truly make a difference and have their opinion heard. The result is a society that is more in sync with the views of the people, which in democratic countries is exactly what politics are supposed to be about.

Social media also affects consumer engagement, which I think is good for society. It gives people the platform to communicate with the people, companies and brands that matter most to them. Similar to the political example, it allows their voice to be heard. This could in turn lead to the people, companies and brands being more in tune with what their fans and/or consumers want. This means not only better communication, but better products as well.

With all those good things happening, how could social media be bad for society? Well for one, the connectivity aspect could lead to the spread of misinformation. Whether it's an inaccurate news story or a straight up lie, the pace at which social media allows news to spread is almost too fast for its own good. Before we can evaluate the validity of some stories, they've already spread to millions of people, which can have huge implications. If you need an example, look no further than the time the stock market declined after the Associated Press Twitter account was hacked and tweeted that President Obama had been injured in an explosion. In an instant, the S&P declined by 0.9%, wiping out $130 billion in stock value (Matthews).

Additionally, social media can be a detriment to society based on privacy issues (Jung). The same force that helps us capture criminals can prevent honest, hardworking people from getting jobs. Any post you put out on the Internet can be found later on, and often times this ends up hurting employees. Whether its a raunchy photo album or an insensitive post, the content we put up on social media is low-hanging fruit that can undermine our merits in the real world. While some might say its better to weed these people out, I believe that most people with this type of content are more or less average people that would otherwise be contributing members of society.

This issue with privacy plays off of another detriment of social media: the made-up personas and false connections that it often fosters. By allowing people to hide behind a screen, social media often brings out negative traits of people, which can in turn influence the behavior of others. It can also lead to inauthentic relationships, which can undermine the relationships we've established in the real world and create conflict.

There's a lot going on with social media right now, but I believe most of it benefits society. Though the pitfalls and absurdities of social media are still alive and well, I think most of what social media has been able to accomplish is good for society as a whole. The global connectivity, speed of communication, and potential for engagement make social media an asset for society going forward.

References:

Jung, Brian. "The Negative Effect of Social Media on Society and Individuals." Small Business. Chron, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2014. <http://smallbusiness.chron.com/negative-effect-social-media-society-individuals-27617.html>.

Matthews, Christopher. "How Does One Fake Tweet Cause a Stock Market Crash?"Time Business & Money. Time, 24 Apr. 2013. Web. 10 Mar. 2014. <http://business.time.com/2013/04/24/how-does-one-fake-tweet-cause-a-stock-market-crash/>.

Rupert, Samantha. "Social Media's Top 5 Contributions to Society." Social Media Today. N.p., 18 Apr. 2013. Web. 10 Mar. 2014. <http://socialmediatoday.com/slrupert/1393636/social-media-top-5-contributions-society>.

How Are Relationships Affected by Social Media?

In my experience, social media has had a very complex effect on real-life relationships. There are positives and there are negatives, but the overall impact is difficult to quantify and can vary by user. The creation of an online avatar is a double-edged sword. Though it can do some amazing things for relationships, it also serves to undermine a lot of our real-world interactions.

The best thing social media has done for me personally is make it much easier to stay in contact with old friends and acquaintances. Prior to the creation of the Facebook and Twitters of the world, maintaining any sort of relationship with people from the past required a great deal of effort. If you wanted to talk to them and catch up, you'd have to either know their phone number, address or email, and then go out of your way to initiate a conversation. If you didn't know the person well enough to have this information, finding and contacting them would be near impossible. As a result, one's relationship with them would fade, even disappear, as soon as they stopped seeing them. Social media provides a way around that, allowing us to easily maintain contact with these otherwise forgotten people at the click of a button.

Evidently this benefit of social media isn't merely anecdotal. An infographic by Schools.com posted on Mashable purports that 84% of people use social media to stay in touch with faraway friends. Other ways people use social media to maintain relationships are to share good news (62%) and schedule plans (16%) (Laird). Another benefit the Laird article points out is that social media makes it easier to foster new relationships. In their survey, 83% of respondents said social networking helps shy and lonely people make new friends, while 26% said social media is good for facilitating new friendships in general. Though I'm not the type to try and meet new people on the Internet, I think it still serves as an overall benefit of social media.

But aside from all the positive effects social media can have on a relationship, it can definitely inhibit certain aspects of life. Nowadays almost anywhere you go you're bound to see at least a few people with their eyes glued to their phone. Whether it's people at a party that don't want to converse with others, or concert goers that are eager to share their experience, the use of social media has become so ubiquitous that we often miss out on other things happening around us. The same article I referenced earlier notes that 24% of people surveyed have missed important moments in person because they were busy using social media. Even though I myself am very wary of "overusing" social media, every once in a while I catch myself getting sucked in for too long. It's an annoying habit that I think takes away from some of the simple pleasures in life.

There are a couple other areas where I think social media hurts relationships as well. One thing I see all the time is people creating alternate or embellished personas via Twitter or Facebook. Some of the quietest, sweetest people I know have profiles that give off a completely different vibes. An article in Psychology Today supports my observation, noting that social distance and false intimacy are two of the factors leading to these "fake" personas (Formica).

Social distance refers to the idea that happenings on social media carry less weight to us than something in the real world might. We're observing peoples' lives from a faraway, public vantage point; a place where our feelings are less involved. It's almost like seeing someone get shot in a movie versus real life. In both cases you know what's happening, but the person in the movie seems less real to us, and therefore doesn't affect our feelings in the same way. When that's the case, it becomes much easier for users of social media to freely post thoughts without really thinking about what they're saying. It gives them the comfort to step out of their normal lives and into a new online identity. False intimacy on the other hand refers to the connection we might feel by reading a social media feed despite not being involved. Seeing vacation photos from a middle school friend might make me feel like I have a deeper insight into his life, but in reality it's an inauthentic connection with no real intimacy. This could affect how I interact with this person even if our relationship hasn't changed at all in the real world. The two terms sort of run against each other, but both play a role in our creation of false personas.

So although social media can be an excellent tool to connect with old friends, make new ones, share news and make plans, it comes with extra baggage that weighs down the benefits. The distance it provides can drive people to act differently, and sometimes it can take away from precious real life moments. I don't think there's a definitive answer to whether or not social media is good or bad for relationships- but it certainly depends on the motivations of the user.

References:

Formica, Michael. "The False Face of Our Social Media Persona." Psychology Today. N.p., 18 Oct. 2010. Web. 4 Mar. 2014. <http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/enlightened-living/201010/the-false-face-our-social-media-persona>.

Laird, Sam. "Is Social Media Destroying Real-World Relationships?" Mashable. N.p., 14 June 2012. Web. 04 Mar. 2014. <http://mashable.com/2012/06/14/social-media-real-world-infographic/>

The Economy of Social Media

Social media platforms -- Facebook, Twitter, you name it -- are businesses just like any other. Although we sometimes we don't think of these sites like businesses -- perhaps because they're free to use -- the fact of the matter is they require significant resources to create, launch and operate, and they're ultimately out to make money. Thus, the emergence of social media has had a significant impact on our economy.

Creating a social media site requires a significant investment of time and money. First and foremost, programmers and developers need to develop the apps/sites. This isn't an overnight process, and can be expensive to fund. Launching and operating the sites also requires monetary investment, like other businesses. After all, employees need to be paid, there are web hosting fees, and marketing/advertising isn't free either. As a result, many web entrepreneurs turn to venture capitalists for the extra cash, or find other avenues to the money like crowdfunding. 

Making that money back can be a challenge for some sites, as the bulk of revenue for most social media companies comes strictly from advertising (Miller). But since social media is engaging, personalized and shareable in nature, many advertisers see more value in these mediums than they might in television or print. The result is stiffer competition for ad space, which drives up prices and makes social media profitable. This is a win-win for consumers, advertisers, and the sites themselves. After all, consumers use the sites for free and get ads targeted to them based on their interests, advertisers get directly in front of their target audience, and social media sites make the money they need to stay up and running.

So how do social media sites as a whole impact our economy? It depends on who you ask. McKinsey Global Institute published a study that estimated social media adds from $900 billion to $1.3 trillion in value to our economy (Hardy). This value comes mainly from "added productivity" that social media sites provide, like increased communication and improved consumer focus. However, an infographic from LearnStuff.com disputes this, claiming that social media sites actually cost the economy $650 billion due to "decreased productivity," namely workers slacking off on the job (Shore). It's a pretty shocking contrast. Though there's probably truth to both of the productivity claims, it's extremely difficult to pinpoint a number for how social media affects our economy. 

There's no doubt that having a social media page is beneficial for business. It's free, easy to use, and allows companies to connect with their loyal consumers while exposing themselves to new markets. The real question is this: is the benefit of a social media business page enough to offset the loss in productivity causes by employees using personal pages on the job? It's undoubtedly a difficult question to answer, but if it could be figured out it'd likely shed a clearer light on the real impact of social media on the economy as a whole. 

The relationship between social media and the economy is a tricky one, but it's important we get better at understanding it. When sites like WhatsApp sell for multi-billion dollar price tags, we have to pay attention. We may not know what, but something important is happening to our economy.

References:

Hardy, Quentin. "McKinsey Says Social Media Could Add $1.3 Trillion to the Economy." Bits. New York Times, 25 July 2012. Web. 26 Feb. 2014. 

Miller, Miranda. "Social Media Revenue Forecast to Hit $16.9 Billion in 2012.” Search Engine Watch. N.p., 26 July 2012. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.

Shore, Jennifer. "Social Media Distractions Cost U.S. Economy $650 Billion.” Mashable. N.p., 2 Nov. 2012. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.

What Are "Social Graphs"?

As social media has risen to prominence, the term "social graph" has received more and more attention from web developers, advertisers, and the general public. In short, a social graph is a data structure that serves as a representation of online relationships. It is essentially a huge web that connects users with "the people, places and things they interact with online" (Dickinson). 

Social media and social graphs are intimately connected to one another. The widespread use of social media makes it an ideal tool to track online connections between users. People use social media to connect with others and share content, which are precisely the things social graphs are concerned with. It has been reported in 2010 that Facebook owns the largest social graph dataset in the world (Wilson). Sites like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Myspace all have social graphs of their own, but the size and quality of these graphs are dependent on what the users do on their sites. Facebook is the largest social network in the world and they're slowly increasing the scope of the website, which has led to their domination in the social graph category. But still, their data overlaps with what a lot of other sites have. A TechCrunch article sums it up succinctly:

"Facebook knows who you are, what you’re interested in, where you go on the web, what apps you use, and more. However, other companies have bits and pieces of these data sets. LinkedIn knows your resume, Google knows your web searches, Twitter knows who you follow, Apple and Amazon have your credit card number, and your phone’s OS maker knows what apps you’ve downloaded. Who your real-life friends are, though, is Facebook’s domain" (Constine)"

The existence of these social graphs has implications on many different things. For one, it affects our online experience. Sites with detailed social graphs can tailor content toward users more efficiently. That can mean faster searches and improved "suggestions." But it can also mean targeted advertisements. For example, if Facebook can see that you like the New York Knicks, and you recently attended a pick-up basketball event, it's much more likely you'll be fed basketball-related advertisements. If you have 30 friends that like the Knicks, the likelihood of this is further increased. Advertisers will pay more to reach their exact target audience, so social graphs actually have a tangible effect on our economy.

The "open graph", an idea introduced by Facebook, furthers the social graph concept by allowing other sites to access and share their publicly available data (Axon). It essentially opens up the social graph from being site exclusive, allowing public data to be freely shared. This means that a site like Yelp! could use someone's Facebook data to optimize listings, without that user explicitly giving Yelp! that information. Though the open graph has raised serious concerns about online privacy, it's supporters believe it will lead to a more personalized, efficient, and enjoyable web experience. 

Social graphs will continue to become more and more important as the world becomes increasingly internet and social media savvy. In the future, social graphs will likely become some of the most valuable marketing data in the world (if they aren't already). Although privacy is a huge concern for many, and rightfully so, social graphs have the potential to completely change the way individuals experience the internet. 

References:

Axon, Samuel. "Facebook's Open Graph Personalizes the Web." Mashable. N.p., 21 Apr. 2010. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://mashable.com/2010/04/21/facebook-open-graph/>.

Constine, Josh. "Facebook Is Done Giving Its Precious Social Graph To Competitors."TechCrunch. N.p., 24 Jan. 2013. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://techcrunch.com/2013/01/24/my-precious-social-graph/>.

Dickinson, Boonsri. "So What The Heck Is The 'Social Graph' Facebook Keeps Talking About?" Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 02 Mar. 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://www.businessinsider.com/explainer-what-exactly-is-the-social-graph-2012-3>.

Wilson, Fred. "One Graph To Rule Them All?" A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC. N.p., 11 July 2010. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://www.avc.com/a_vc/2010/04/one-graph-to-rule-them-all.html>.

Who Uses Social Media? And How Many?

Nowadays, social media users come from all walks of life.

According to a study from Pew Research published in September 2013, 73% of online adults use some form of social media. (An eMarketer report puts the number at around two billion.) When broken down by factors like gender, race, age, education, income and urbanity, a few trends begin to emerge.

1. Women are more likely to use social media.

The Pew study estimates 78% of women use social networking sites, opposed to 69% of men. When broken down by site, we see that women use every prominent social media site more than men, with the exception of LinkedIn.

Social Media Site Usage by Gender

Gender	Facebook	Twitter	Instagram	Pinterest	LinkedIn
Male	66%	17%	15%	8%	24%
Female	76%	18%	20%	33%	19%

Additionally, a social media study published on First Monday found that men and women tend to use social media at the same frequency, but women spend more total time on the sites.

2. The younger you are, the more likely you are to use social media.

Ninety percent of people age 18-29 use social media. But as you climb up the age bracket, use gets more and more sparse. In the 30-49 range, 78% use social media. Those 50-64 are at 65%, and of those 65 and up, 46% use social networking sites.

Social Media Site Usage by Age

Age	Facebook	Twitter	Instagram	Pinterest	Linkedin
18-29	84%	31%	37%	27%	15%
30-49	79%	19%	18%	24%	27%
50-64	60%	9%	6%	14%	24%
65+	45%	5%	1%	9%	13%

The trend holds true across every site, save for LinkedIn again. It's clear that Facebook is still dominant in the usage category, but Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest are also prominent amongst younger people. For the older crowd, not so much.

3. Population density is a mild predicator of social media usage.

The Pew study also notes that 76% of people living urban settings use social media, compared to 72% in suburbia and 70% in rural areas. The difference, while not significant, is noticeable. 

Facebook use is pretty even across the board, but Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn use is substantially lower amongst people living in rural areas. Suburban users lead slightly in Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest usage, while urban users are most adept with Instagram.

4. Blacks lead in usage of most sites.

Among the five major social media sites discussed, all but Pinterest are led in usage by blacks. Whites lead in Pinterest usage, but are last in Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. While Hispanics lead the overall numbers, they don't stand out particularly when looking at specific sites.

Social Media Site Usage by Race

Race	Facebook	Twitter	Instagram	Pinterest	LinkedIn
White, Non-Hispanic	71%	16%	12%	21%	22%
Black, Non-Hispanic	76%	29%	34%	20%	30%
Hispanic	73%	16%	23%	18%	13%

5. Income positively correlates with LinkedIn and Pinterest use, 

The overall usage numbers for the four different income brackets are relatively equal. The biggest difference in usage between income groups? Four percent. 

However, when looking at the site breakdown, usage becomes a little less even. Facebook has slightly more users in the two lower income brackets than in the upper two, but the numbers in each subset are about equal. Twitter and Instagram use is spread out a bit more evenly, with no groups dominating. However when we get to Pinterest, and especially LinkedIn, we start to see some differences. 

Pinterest and LinkedIn Usage by Income

Income	Pinterest	LinkedIn
Less than $30,000/yr	15%	12%
$30,000-49,999/yr	21%	13%
$50,000-74,999/yr	21%	22%
$75,000+/yr	27%	38%

Those in the $75,000+ bracket are almost twice as likely to use Pinterest and three times as likely to use Linkedin as those making less than $30,000 a year. Even those in the bracket below are significantly more likely to use these sites than those earning less.

 References:

 Duggan, Maeve, and Aaron Smith. "Social Media Update 2013." Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project. Pew Research Center, Sept. 2013. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. <http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Social-Media-Update.aspx>.

 "Social Networking Reaches Nearly One in Four Around the World." EMarketer. EMarketer, 2013. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. <http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Social-Networking-Reaches-Nearly-One-Four-Around-World/1009976>.

What Is Social Media?

• What makes something "social media?"
• How is "social media" different from other forms of media?
• What are some online examples of "clearly social" media?
• What are some online examples of "clearly not" social media?
• Why?

In order to fully answer these questions, it's helpful to first look at what the dictionary has to say. Merriam-Webster defines social media as:

"forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content"

In contrast, the definition of media is simply:

"a medium of cultivation, conveyance, or expression"

From looking at these two definitions, we get a better idea of how fuzzy the lines are between social and non-social media. What the two have in common is that they both deal with the sharing or presenting of ideas. But while traditional media is a one-way communication form, social media is a two-way communication form that gets its power from the communities it envelops. Sites like Facebook and Twitter are generally regarded as the epitome of social media, but there are a number of platforms, like YouTube and Pinterest, that contain social traits without serving the exact same functions. Regardless of the subtle differences in form and function, these sites are social because they tap into communities and give each user the ability to express themselves freely. Traditional media forms fail to do these things, allowing information to flow from only one source. Though they may be speaking to a community of people, traditional non-social media doesn't accept or consider the responses to it's content.

"Clearly social" sites, in my opinion, are those that are free to join, allow the creation of a profile, and let users share their own content while consuming the content of others. All of the sites in the above paragraph do this, albeit in different ways. "Clearly not social" sites, on the other hand, do not have all of these features. Something that isn't social is not free to join by anyone and does not allow for any two-way communication. Rather, it is only to be consumed. It is in that way that television, radio, and print would be considered predominantly non-social.