Social media is how collaborative communication happens online. There are lots of tools, and new ones continue to evolve. These tools, whether video, audio, image, or text-based are all directed toward online (and sometimes offline!) sharing, talking, networking, broadcasting, giving and receiving feedback, and being a part of online social communities.
Why is Social Media important for businesses?
There is already an online conversation about your brand, and you should be a part of it. These conversations are easy to find with a simple Google search. Even if your company doesn’t have a website, there’s talk – good, bad, and otherwise – about your industry. The people who are using social media the most are the young clients, entrepreneurs, and business leaders of tomorrow. Smart companies are already making sure these online influencers and communities have a positive experience of their message, service, or brand.
What are the Most Common Tools of Social Media?
Blogs, Social Bookmarks, Social Networks, Video, Audio, Wikis
Blogs
Originally a simple record or web log (”blog” for short) of your internet wanderings, blogs have evolved into content-rich websites with text, images, videos, links and more. Typically the newest entry is posted at the top. Blogs run the gamut from online diaries to political commentaries and everything in between. Readers often are encouraged to comment or subscribe in order to join a particular blog’s conversation or community. Some of the best-known blogging platforms are Blogger, WordPress (which is what this website is created with), and MovableType. Twitter made “micro-blogging” famous with its rule of 140 characters or less for each entry. Technorati is a blog search engine that keeps track of public blogs on the internet.Social Bookmarks
You may have heard of Digg, StumbleUpon, Reddit, or del.icio.us, or you may have seen these names and others as little buttons on websites. These are the names of free social bookmarking sites. People who open accounts on these sites are enabled to store, express approval/disapproval of, share, search and manage website links online. Each social bookmarking site has its own character (some tend to have more techie links, for example), rules and strengths.Social Networks
There’s an online social network for just about every affinity group you can name. Lots of people have heard of MySpace and Facebook, which first became popular among students, but the list of social networks is a pretty long and varied one. LinkedIn is becoming a very important business networking site, Ning caters to user groups with limited technical skills, and Club Penguin is one of the top children’s sites, to name a few. Some sites, like Second Life, combine the features of a social network with gaming or shopping.Video
Video tools are becoming increasingly important in the social media universe. YouTube was one of the first to successfully combine online video with a social network. With the affordability of handheld video cams and simple editing software, just about anyone who uses a computer can now upload video to the internet. Video supports one of social media’s highest values: authenticity. People want to see other people, and sites like YouTube, Vimeo, and Metacafe are helping them do it.Audio
Ever downloaded a tune or a podcast? It’s fairly straightforward, and another fast-growing part of the social media story. Mobile music and internet devices like the iPod and iPhone are helping make audio file sharing an important part of social media.Wikis
You may have heard of Wikipedia. A wiki (which means quick) is a software platform that allows online collaboration for a specific project. Some wiki software is free, although businesses also have a growing set of professional options as well.
