Brief Description of Social Media
In essence, social media are technology-based methods and tools for communication where social interaction can also take place. This mixing together of technology and peer-to-peer communication is fast becoming a major player in the way many people gain knowledge and advice about various topics and ideas. Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, internet forums and even comment threads on news websites are all examples of social media. Social media may be referred to as consumer generated media (or CGR) in business circles.
Unlike traditional media, such as newspapers, television shows and many business websites, social media allow anyone to publish and share information. This, along with the natural drive of individuals to communicate and share knowledge, is a primary factor in the popularity of various social media. Social media allows collaborative community-based discussion. The user-generated content of social media encourages an interactive dialogue to develop amongst the community. As such, a particular ethos or idea can be difficult to push, no matter the intention of the original article, wall-post or blog-post.
Social media have evoked interest in advertisers and marketers, with the idea that individuals will more readily trust advice and product recommendations from “people like them” who they feel that they have a connection to, even if they have never physically met. The importance of social media is evidenced by the fact that in 2010, Nielsen found that one in every 4 ½ minutes spent online is spent on a social networking site.
In a 2010 Business Horizons article Andreas Kaplan, Professor of Marketing, and Michael Haenlein, Associate Professor of Marketing, both at the ESCP Europe Business School, put forward a classification system for social media types. The six types of social media outlined in their article were blogs and microblogs, collaborative projects, content communities, virtual game worlds, social networking sites and virtual communities.
