The document defines social media as online tools that facilitate sharing content and interaction among users, highlighting various applications such as blogs, social networks, and video sharing platforms. It emphasizes the importance of social media in modern communication, with significant growth in user engagement on platforms like Facebook and Twitter. The document also outlines different types of social media tools, their functionalities, and the shift from traditional media to consumer-driven communication.

1. Sarah Diffley
Sarah.Diffley@lyit.ie

2. What is Social Media?
‘Social media describes the online tools that people use to
share content, profiles, opinions, insights, experiences,
perspectives and media itself, thus facilitating
conversations and interaction online between groups of
people. These tools include blogs, message boards,
podcasts, microblogs, lifestreams, bookmarks, networks,
communities, wikis and vlogs. A few prominent examples
of social media applications are Wikipedia (reference),
MySpace and Facebook (social networking), Twitter and
Jaikue (presence applications), You Tube (videosharing),
Second Life (virtual reality), Upcoming (events), Digg and
Reddit (news aggregation), Flickr and Zoomr (photo
sharing).’ (Solis, 2007).

3. What is Social Media?
A number of developments have occurred
resulting in the proliferation of social media
utilisation. It is often stated that the concept of
social media itself is not new. People have always
been ‘social’ and felt the need to communicate
with one another with regards to interests,
opinions, hobbies, abilities, and more.
However, technology has allowed this to occur in
a new and more evolved manner. As a result it can
be said that the concept of social media itself is
old and it is the technology that is new.

4. Why is Social Media Important?
Facebook – over 500 million active users.
Twitter – 1, 382% growth from Feb 08 – Feb 09.
LinkedIn – adding a new member every second
Adults aged 15-24 are more than two and a half
times more likely than the average to use social
networking sites regularly.

5. Why is Social Media Important?

6. Why is Social Media Important?
http://www.facebook.com/notes/biz-growth-media-digita

7. Why is Social Media Important?
The long tail of social networking
Enders et al. (2008)

8. Differences between traditional and social
media
Consumers no longer play a passive role
Consumers now have control
A shift from push to pull means of
communication
The move from telling to talking
Flexibility

9. Social Media Tools
Blogs
Podcasts
Content Aggregators
Social Networks
Wikis
Forums
Content Communities
Micro blogs
Virtual Worlds

10. Various Social Media Tools
Blogs
Blogs are also known as web logs and are online diaries or journals.
It is a website to which a “blogger/bloggers” post comments and
which others can comment upon. These posts appear in reverse
chronological order.
http://www.mulley.net/ - example of a blog
http://wordpress.org/ - blog creation
https://www.blogger.com- blog creation
Podcasts
A podcast is an audio or video file. These files are subscribed to
and subsequently are automatically distributed to the user. Once
distributed to the user, they may then play it back on computer or
mobile devices.
http://podcast.com/ - examples and free guide to podcast creation
http://podcastgen.sourceforge.net/ - podcast creating software.

11. Various Social Media Tools
Content Aggregators
Content aggregators are applications that allow people to receive a
feed, informing them that podcasts, blogs, news feeds and websites
they have subscribed to have been updated. Really Simple
Syndication (RSS) is one of the most well known content
aggregators. The RSS feed provides the user with a URL to which
they can view this new content.
 http://www.rapidfeeds.com/ - RSS publishing
 http://www.irishtimes.com/ - example
 http://www.mulley.net/ - example

12. Various Social Media Tools
Social Networks
Social networks online communities of people who
share interests and activities, or who are interested in
exploring the interests and activities of others. They
typically provide a variety of ways for users to interact,
through chat, messaging, email, video, voice chat, file-
sharing, blogging and discussion groups.
www.bebo.com
www.facebook.com
www.myspace.com
www.ning.com –creating your own social networking
site.

13. Various Social Media Tools
Wikis
Wikis are websites that allow people to add, change or even delete
the content on them.
http://www.wikipedia.org/
http://www.wikispaces.com/
Forums
A forum represents an area where users can create and discuss
particular topics and interests. It is an area where participants
gain and share knowledge regarding that topic.
http://affiliate-marketing-forums.5staraffiliateprograms.com/
http://www.forumbuild.com/ - forums especially for non-technical
people

14. Various Social Media Tools
Content Communities
Content communities are those communities that centre around a
particular type of content - as opposed to social networks which
focus on communication as its main focal point. Content
communities also differ to social networks in that members need
not always create profiles to participate, upload and share content.
http://www.flickr.com/
http://delicious.com/
http://www.youtube.com/
Micro blogs
Micro blogs combine elements of blogging, instant messaging and
social networks. Users communicate with one another via short
posts of less than 200 characters.
http://twitter.com/

15. Various Social Media Tools
Virtual Worlds
A virtual world is a computer based simulated
environment intended for its users to inhabit and
interact via avatars. These avatars are usually depicted
as textual, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional
graphical representations.
http://secondlife.com/

16. Various Social Media Tools
Of all the social media tools, Social Networking Sites
(SNSs) and blogs have experienced the most prolific
growth. SNSs accounted for nearly 17% of total
Internet time in 2009 among and as of 2010 this figure
has increased to 23%.