Social media refers to online platforms that allow users to create and share content with others. It started as text but now includes audio and video. Key characteristics include participation through comments, ratings, and forums; openness through public sharing and commenting; two-way conversations between many users rather than one-way broadcasts; formation of online communities around common interests; and connectivity through links between sites and people. Popular social media platforms include blogs, social networking sites like Facebook, microblogs like Twitter, forums, wikis, and podcasts. Social media is having a fundamental impact on thoughts and behaviors and is shifting power away from traditional media elites by democratizing communications.

1. WHAT IS SOCIAL MEDIA?

2. So… what is it?
• According to Wikipedia

3. So… what is it?
• According to Wikipedia
Or a fancy way of describing all the millions of
conversations going on 24/7

4. So… what is it?
• Social media allows people to create content
andto share that content with others
• It started out as text then quickly moved to
full audio visual

5. Characteristics of Social Media
• Participation
Social media encourages
contributions and
feedback from everyone
who is interested. It
blurs the line between
media and audience.

6. Characteristics of Social Media
• Participation
Social media encourages
contributions and
feedback from everyone
who is interested. It
blurs the line between
media and audience.
Think comments on blogs. Ratings & reviews. Forums.

7. Characteristics of Social Media
• Open
Most social media
encourages voting,
sharing, commenting
on information.
Password protected
content is a no-no!
Importantly, most social media platforms have an open API

8. Characteristics of Social Media
• Two-Way
Conversation
Many-to-many.
Not one-to-many.

9. Characteristics of Social Media
• Community
Facilitates quick formation
of communities. Based
around common interests,
eg. cars, surfing, gadgets,
photography, politics,
knitting, even a favourite TV
show.

10. Characteristics of Social Media
• Community
Facilitates quick formation
of communities. Based
around common interests,
eg. cars, surfing, gadgets,
photography, politics,
knitting, even a favourite TV
show.
If YOU are secretly into knitting, check out www.dailyknitter.com or for craft,
www.etsy.com

11. Characteristics of Social Media
• Connected
Most kinds of social
media thrive on their
connectedness, making
use of links to other
sites, resources and
people.

12. Characteristics of Social Media
• Connected
Most kinds of social
media thrive on their
connectedness, making
use of links to other
sites, resources and
people.
We now contact more people in our personal life through social networks than we
do through other means (telephone, email, face-to-face) – on average we stay in
touch with 52 people through these means (source: Universal McCann)

13. Types of Social Media
1. Blogs

14. Types of Social Media
2. Social Networking Sites - of which
there are quite a few…

15. Types of Social Media
• But the world’s most famous one is…

16. Types of Social Media

17. Types of Social Media
3. Microblogs

18. Types of Social Media
• But watch out for …

19. Types of Social Media
• According to their respective blogs

20. Types of Social Media
And the new wunderkinder…

21. Types of Social Media
And that other platform…

22. Types of Social Media
5. Forums – 3.2 million unique users/month

23. Types of Social Media
6. Wikis

24. Types of Social Media
7. Podcasts

25. Popular Social Media 2013

26. Social Media IS Important
1. Social media is having a fundamental effect
on our thoughts, feelings, attitudes and
behaviour.

27. Social Media IS Important
1. Social media is having a fundamental effect
on our thoughts, feelings, attitudes and
behaviour.
2. Since 2009, visiting social media sites is the
4th most popular activity – ahead of reading
personal email (Nielsen, Global Faces & Places, 2009)

28. Social Media IS Important
1. Social media is having a fundamental effect
on our thoughts, feelings, attitudes and
behaviour.
2. Since 2009, visiting social media sites is the
4th most popular activity – ahead of reading
personal email (Nielsen, Global Faces & Places, 2009)
3. Social media is democratising
communications. Ask the Iranian Govt. Or
the Egyptians. Or even Rupert Murdoch …

29. Social Media IS Important
Technology is shifting the
power away from the editors,
publishers, the establishment,
the media elite. Now it’s the
people who are in control.

30. Social Media IS Important
1. Social media is having a fundamental effect on
our thoughts, feelings, attitudes and behaviour.
2. Since 2009, visiting social media sites is the 4th
most popular activity – ahead of reading
personal email (Nielsen, Global Faces & Places, 2009)
3. Social media is democratising communications.
Ask the Iranian Govt. Or the Egyptians. Or even
Rupert Murdoch …
4. The Stats…

31. Social Media IS Important

32. So Who Is At It?
All internet users will
become active
internet users, just as
consumers made the
transition from
occasional to regular
TV watching in the
1950’s and 1960’s.

33. So Who Is At It?
“Resistance to social media is futile. Millions of
people are creating content for the social
Web. Your competitors are already there. Your
customers have been there for a long time. If
your business isn't putting itself out there, it
ought to be …”
– BusinessWeek, Feb 2009

34. Let’s Do It!
Next Session ….
• Twitter