The document discusses the rise of social networking sites and their impact on communication. It provides background on early social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook. People began using these sites to fulfill various social needs, like forming relationships, belonging to groups, and satisfying curiosity about others. This led to their rapid growth and popularity. The sites transformed how people communicate by allowing them to connect with friends and family across distances. Today, social media continues to revolutionize communication and play a major role in peoples' social lives.

1. SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
THE NEW AGE COMMUNICATION TOOL
PROJECT REPORT
BUSINESS RESE ARCH METHODS
PROF. MRINALINI SHAH
RESE ARCH TE AM
ADHIP VARMA NIKHIL KUMAR SINHA NITISH PRASAD
PAWAN SHARMA VIDUR PANDIT YASHI TRIVEDI
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2. Table of Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 3
Objective of Study ................................................................................................................................... 4
Scope Of Study ........................................................................................................................................ 4
Significance ............................................................................................................................................. 4
Research Questions ................................................................................................................................ 5
Research Objectives ................................................................................................................................ 5
Research Methodology ........................................................................................................................... 5
Sampling.................................................................................................................................................. 6
Research Tools ........................................................................................................................................ 6
Data Analyses .......................................................................................................................................... 7
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................... . 23
Survey Questionnaire.......................................................................................................................... . 24
References .......................................................................................................................................... . 27
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3. INTRODUCTION
Social networking - It is the way the 21st generation communicates today. Let‘s first
understand what this term means. Social networking has been there since the human
race started due to our constant need for social bonding. Social networking simply is
different or similar people coming together in a group. All though this phenomenon isn‘t
a new age concept, it is most popular online. Why is that? That is what we are trying to
explore but one possible reason could be that the online world gives you the power and
the possibility of meeting millions of people who are also looking forward to meeting
other people who share similar interests. There is no limit to how many friends you can
have and where their location needs to be.
When it comes to social networking on the internet, websites such as Facebook and
Twitter are commonly used. They function like an online community of internet users.
Depending on the website, users share pictures, videos, posts on any subject of their
choice. Meeting new people and making new contacts are just one of the benefits
offered by these sites. Another benefit could the diversity since these sites give you the
access to people from over the world. So, if you are located in America, you can make
contacts in China. Not only do people get the opportunity of meeting new people but also
the chance to learn something about different cultures around the world.
Our focus through this paper is to primarily analyze how communication has evolved
through the usage of these sites. All though telecommunication and internet boom has
provided with several communication mediums such as telephone, mobiles, fax, email,
video conferencing etc, social networking sites seems to be becoming a preferred
channel when compared to the ones listed above. That‘s probably the reason why there
are a couple of hundred social networking sites and more opening as each day goes by.
Since the early 2000‘s these websites seem to have captured the imagination of our
generation and helped change the landscape of how modern communication works. A
part of our research covers Facebook and how it has become a market leader in the
social networking arena. Mark Zuckerberg wrote Facemash, the predecessor to
Facebook, on October 28, 2003, while attending Harvard as a sophomore. According to
The Harvard Crimson, the site was comparable to Hot or Not, and "used photos compiled
from the online facebooks of nine houses, placing two next to each other at a time and
asking users to choose the 'hotter' person". Mark Zuckerberg co-created Facebook in his
Harvard dorm room.
To accomplish this, Zuckerberg hacked into the protected areas of Harvard's computer
network and copied the houses' private dormitory ID images. Harvard at that time did
not have a student "facebook" (a directory with photos and basic information). Facemash
attracted 450 visitors and 22,000 photo-views in its first four hours online.
The following semester, Zuckerberg began writing code for a new website in January
2004. He was inspired, he said, by an editorial in The Harvard Crimson about the
Facemash incident.[16] On February 4, 2004, Zuckerberg launched "Thefacebook",
originally located at thefacebook.com. Facebook, since its inception on February 4 th
2004, has captured the attention of online users and made Mark Zuckerberg the
youngest billionaire. Facebook has just reached 500 million users and is currently valued
at $50 billion. (Source: www.wikipedia.com)
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4. OBJECTIVE OF STUDY
Nowadays, everyone lives a digital life and communication in the digital world seems to
be an integral part of their lives. In the last decade or so we have seen a drastic increase
in online communication which brings us to the question of how these digital systems
have revolutionized communication. These sites have become such an integral part of
our daily routine that we sometimes don‘t realise that they are constantly changing the
way we communicate with others.
This particular paper aims to understand and analyse why social networking sites have
now become a popular medium of communication. We will understand why they were
created, how they operate and what we use them for.
Through this study we will also try to understand what factors have led to Facebook‘s
tremendous success and made it the market leader.
SCOPE OF STUDY/ LIMITATIONS
 The sample size that we have taken is 75 which we are assuming that it is
homogeneous and enough to carry out the research
 Most of the sample population consists of students and hence our research mainly
focuses on students using social networking sites
 The analysis done is mainly judgmental in nature
 The concept of social networking sites is not very old in India thus not much of
research has been done in regards to its effects
 The expertise of the questionnaire design is limited
 The underlying assumption is that the survey conducted in limited area
represents the general psyche of the users of the social networking site
SIGNIFICANCE
The reason why we wanted to work on this paper is for us to understand a technological
and cultural phenomenon that social networking is. Communication is a basic human
need and a vital part of social and organizational development. We need to understand
how to take things from our physical world and put them into the digital world. This
paper intends to answer some of these questions with respect to social networking sites.
Also from an organization‘s perspective, a presence in social networking sites gives them
a perfect interface between their products and the customers. An understanding of how
social networking sites make them reach billions of people across boundaries can help
them advertise/sell their products even more.
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5. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
 How did social networking sites emerge?
 How have social networking sites revolutionized the communication landscape?
 What is the content of this communication?
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
 To identify the need for social networking sites
 To understand the application of these sites
 To analyse how these sites remove barriers of communication
 To analyse the societal impact of such sites in terms of communication
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
A considerable amount of work has been done in this field and several articles are
available on the internet and magazines about the social networking sites. So first we
carried out a literature survey of the available data for collection of secondary
information. We followed it by a descriptive research design in order to understand the
problem and carry out the research in a lucid manner.
Data Collection method: After secondary data collection through data collection over
the internet, a primary research was carried out through a questionnaire. The
questionnaire was well structured and the responses were sought from the respondents.
The nature of the questions was such that it avoided ambiguous responses from the
respondents and it also helped in quick analysis of the data collected.
Two methods of questioning were used for the data collection:
1) Person Assisted: The responses were collected by personal questioning. The
responses were taken from the students in IMT Dubai. This form of questioning helped
the respondent understand the questions better and answer accordingly.
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6. 2) Wed enabled: The questionnaire was e-mailed to respondents who filled it and then
mailed it back to us. We also used social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and
LinkedIn to spread the survey across to other users. A flaw that we realized here was
that some of the respondents did not understand the questions and hence could not
answer them to the best of their capability, unlike the other method employed.
SAMPLING
Sampling Design: The target population for our research was defined as the students
who form the major chunk of users of these social networking sites. This was done to
have a better insight into the research as the target population was one which is the
most avid user of these sites and could provide good responses. Even the understanding
of the questionnaire was easy to them as they were familiar with the sites and quite
clear about the reasons they use it for and the various problems that they face.
The extent of the survey was limited to the campus of IMT Dubai. However, through
online survey some in India were also reached to validate the information collected from
IMT Dubai.
Sampling frame can be defined as all the users of social networking sites in the
vicinity.
Once the sampling frame was decided, simple random sampling method was used to
select the respondents. In the person assisted survey, almost everyone in the sampling
frame had an equal chance of being selected and we got the responses filled through
those people who were readily and willingly accepting to fill it. To some extent judgment
sampling was also used, especially in the online survey, where the questionnaires were
sent only to our acquaintances in the other B-schools outside Dubai. In whole we got 75
responses out of the targeted 200 people we sent our survey to. The respondents were
in the age group of 15-35 years and were primarily located in India.
RESEARCH TOOLS
Primary Secondary
 Questionnaire  Articles
 Research papers
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7. BEGINNING OF SNS – THE NEED FOR IT
Why did Social Networking Sites start? Why was Social Networking needed to be
transferred on the Internet?
Human Beings are social animals. They always need to interact with society, build and
maintain relationships over a long period of time.
Talking about the Social Networking Sites, the concept of building strong relationships
and bonds with the society was transferred on the Internet with the introduction
websites like MySpace and Facebook. Through these websites individuals could develop
their own profiles and have their own identity on the internet to interact with other
people. They could feed in their favourite music, photos, television shows etc. They were
mostly popular among the young adults.
Social Networking Sites proved to be a medium of easy and convenient communication
with family, friends and even acquaintances. For instance: In Facebook, if you have to
tell your friends what is happening in your life, you need not to tell each every one and
can update it on you wall so that it‘s visible to everyone.
Maslow Needs Hierarchy Theory comes into play when it comes to the significance of the
Social Networking Sites. Individuals want to satisfy their social needs and want as soon
as possible and constantly over a period of time. The SNS have several functions to
make the profiles of the users very attractive such as the walls, blogs, bulletins, profiles
and photo albums. The users on these websites share such stuff gain psychological
satisfaction and popularity in their networks. They fulfil their personal and entertainment
needs by making their profiles on these websites. Having a personal identity and self
presentation satisfies the psychological needs of the user.
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8. The Functional part drives the first move and addresses the topic of ―I need to know‖.
Once these functional needs have been met, safety needs come to the forefront. In real
life face to face interaction, there are chances of bias, perceptions and prejudices that
come into the picture when dealing with different kinds of people. The fear of this
sometimes is the reason why some of us are introverts. Networking sites help overcome
this barrier.
From safety needs we move on to the need to belong. This is the main reason why
people join social networking sites. It is the ability to connect and fit in with the rest of
the world, or at least a part of it. This sense of inclusion is a key motivator behind people
joining such sites.
The numbers of users of SNS increases so does the popularity of the site to satisfy the
cognitive and affective needs of the users. They provide for social compensation such as
gaining recognition and relationship maintenance. Since these websites provide for
blogging and short notes, people feel satisfied and content on generating their own
content. They also feel delighted when other users appreciate the work they have done.
SNS also satisfies the information needs and that from a central location and in no time.
The users don‘t have to ask from large number sources about a particular discussion
because they get information from a single central location. For instance- Facebook, if
an individual wants information about a BMW car. He/she can join the BMW page and
obtain all the information on that page.
SNS become popular majorly because:
1) Effective Communication
2) Convenient Communication
3) Curiosity about others
4) Popularity
5) Relationship formation and reinforcement
People opened their facebook accounts because they were encouraged by their friends.
This shows peer pressure to plays a role in making the user base of such websites. Using
these websites proves to be cost effective in terms of time and money. People do get
time to communicate with other users as well and they can really think before
commenting in others comments which is not really possible on a phone call
conversation.
In the curiosity to know others, people have romantic interests, old friends, new
roommates, classmates and the people in their community. The users get updated with
what‘s going on in others life. There is always a kind of competition between the users
i.e. whose profile is better and who is getting the maximum number of comments. This
increases the popularity of the user as well as the website for sure.
Young adults use SNS to satisfy their needs and wants. The users fulfil their desires to
build and develop relationships. They enjoy the convenience, efficiency and popularity of
+using the powerful medium to convey messages and find answers. Immediacy driven
tendency motivates young people to use SNS. All these factors lead to start and
popularity of the social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace.
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9. 90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
To keep in touch For business / Everyone was Make new Overcoming
with friends / self promotion there so I had to friends / meet introvertness in
family be there new people real life
In a survey that we conducted to understand why people join social networking sites, we
got the results shown above. Two important points we noticed here are the third and last
points. Social networking sites at some point in time have become a fad and seem to be
the thing that everybody was doing. So some people actually joined these sites to fit in
with the others. Some, interestingly, did mention that due to being introverts they could
not communicate as much as they wanted to. Face to face meetings often proved to be
nerve wracking and highly uncomfortable but they were able to overcome this with social
networking sites.
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10. APPLICATIONS OF SNS
“If you’re not on MySpace, you don’t exist” – Skyler, 18, to her mom.
(http://headrush.typepad.com)
The rapid adoption of social network sites by teenagers in the United States and in many
other countries around the world raises some important questions. Why do people flock
to these sites? What are they expressing on them? How do these sites fit into their lives?
What are they learning from their participation? Are these online activities like face-to-
face interactions – or are they different, or complementary? While particular systems
may come and go, how youth engage through social network sites today provides long-
lasting insights into identity formation, status negotiation, and peer-to-peer sociality.
It is evident that the main use of social networking sites is interaction and
communicating with others. We use them to keep up to date and in touch with existing
friends and relations, or to create new relationships. The amount (and type) of additional
features and services offered by different social networking sites often relates to their
popularity. Globalisation, interaction, participation and usability are encouraged through
these sites; therefore they relate to the (growing) fundamental concepts of modern,
‗digital‘ society.
Combating Loneliness
Social networking sites can combat loneliness; that by overcoming ‗real life‘ boundaries,
such as time or distance, and establishing a continuous link to communicating with
others, a feeling of participation and belonging is created. It‘s a great way to connect
with past schoolmates, college buddies and people at work. With the busy schedules
everybody has nowadays, face to face communication seems to have taken a backseat.
It requires time and effort and nobody seems to want to invest any of these a lot
nowadays. So, it‘s easy to login to a webpage and chat with a couple of friends and
share your stories with them. No strings attached. These virtual societies provide for a
much more open and flexible communication process than what exists in the real life.
The virtual anonymity of online experience helps to reduce social discomfort and
discrimination, or stereotyping otherwise associated with real-life perceptions of age,
disabilities, race, gender, or culture. By communicating online, it allows people to see
past physical differences and focus on a deeper connection, discovering similarities that
may have been previously disregarded.
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Everyday Once a week Once a month Once a year Never
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11. Enhancing Social Life
Most of the people that we surveyed told us that use these sites to share pictures with
the circle of friends. Photo‘s can share a lot about one‘s life and reveal identities. It gives
users a lot of satisfaction when people appreciate and comment on their photograph.
These sites also provide a great platform and the anonymity to a person to play with
their identities. These identities are sometimes what the user aspires to be or what they
think is perceived as a cool personality. A recent poll that we conducted with Facebook
users reveals that around 35% users feel that online personalities are way cooler than
the real ones. It is also your own space where you can build a personality to sell yourself
and your thoughts in a better way. People, who face challenges in real life with
expressing themselves or connecting with others, often create fake profiles which
exaggerate what they are in real life. This way they are able to portray a much more
acceptable personality online and fit in with the rest of the population.
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
No Yes
Do you think online personalities are cooler than the real ones?
Dating and Making new friends
Social networking websites are also great places to find a date. Just search for single
people in your area and, before you know it, you'll have many messages from potential
dates that might just turn into spouses later on down the line. You can certainly meet
anyone you want for various purposes.
Mostly people join the normal social networking sites to make friends. But now many
dating sites are also developed. These sites are for those who are searching for love.
This avoids a lot of confusion and does not disturb those members who are there for
making just friends.
The most important benefit of finding love online is that you find unlimited choices. The
choices are from all over the world! This thing you will not find anywhere! Some dating
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12. sites have billions of members. Just think of the choices you have. This means a good
chance of finding love.
Education
According to data available online, 60% of students who use social networking sites talk
about education topics online and surprisingly half of them discuss what they learn at
school. Now why would these students do that? Firstly, these websites give students
access to an unlimited talent pool across the world. If these need help with their
assignments or need information about something, all they have to do is post it in one of
these sites. It works the other round too. Salman Khan (Khan Academy), while tutoring
his nephews, realised that if he could post math tutorial videos on YouTube, they could
access it anytime. But as of December 2009, his videos received more than 35,000
views per day. This is the power of these sites. The interactive nature of these sites has
proved to be popular with academicians from all over. The digital world gives them a
more personalized learning environment. They can review the material again and again
and watch videos numerous times to understand the content; something they probably
wouldn‘t do in real life by questioning their teachers repeatedly in class for deeper
understanding of a topic.
Social networking tools can be a great way for students to get in touch with other
students in the same school, or when they're considering a college or new school. Such
sites are used by all age people across the world to connect with others and for
educational purpose like online sharing of education-related topics - learning outside of
school, college or college planning, about schoolwork and more.
50
40
30
20
10
0
2 to 4 hours 30 mins to 2 hours 4 to 8 hours Less than 30 minutes
More than 8 hours
Daily time spent on SNS
Sharing Content
78% of the people we surveyed said that they use social networking sites to share
videos and pictures. 79% frequently updated status messages to tell others what they
were doing. 68% of all surveyed said that they use such websites to post informational
content and to spread knowledge and awareness on current issues. A whopping 82%
disclosed that they used these sites to gather more information about other people.
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13. As reflected by our survey, these sites have not just become our regular chat tool and
media sharing site, but have opened a vortex to unlimited information. Sites such as
LinkedIn have special sections where people can post questions which are open to public
view. This way they don‘t have to search for the information themselves and can connect
to a huge population to find the answers.
A lot of us engage in sharing pictures and videos. This is also information sharing as we
are sharing a part of our lives with the others around us. A look into a person‘s Facebook
or MySpace would definitely help you gain a deeper insight into personality types.
Blogging
Blogging is fast becoming a trend in the world of internet. Today, blogs are not just used
to post personal experiences. It can also be used to promote a cause, to create an
announcement, to be part of a community, to teach and share knowledge, to promote a
business, to gain recognition, to attract customers and to earn money.
Regular mail and phone are typically used for one-on-one communication. Newspapers
and radio are older forms of one-to-many communication. These methods are examples
of broadcast or push technologies. Over the past decade, blogs arrived on the scene and
they've had tremendous success as a form of one-to-many communication. The reason
for this is that blogs leveraged something that was done very poorly in newspapers and
somewhat better in radio - our need for feedback. Blogs made feedback frictionless.
Anyone can comment on a post.
The ability for people to get involved and to express their opinions, created a completely
different dynamic. In a way, blog posts are like mass mailings with massive CC lists - but
executed in a much more organized way.
Entertainment
Gone are the days when surfers would search for sites customised to gaming, puzzles
and other forms of entertainment. Almost all social networking sites now have gaming
content which seem to be rather popular. Likewise, social games -- essentially games
created to be playable within existing major social networking websites -- seem poised
to set a revolution in the game industry akin to the one first kindled by downloadable
casual games. These games that use social connections have multiplied like wildfire on
social networking sites.
Colloquially, games on social networking sites and/or on iPhone are called social games,
but even this definition is up for debate. Some differing definitions or conditions include:
 Multiplayer games that utilize the social graph, i.e. a player's social connections,
as part of the game. Examples: Parking Wars, PackRat
 Games in which the main gameplay involves socializing or social activities like
chatting, trading, or flirting. Examples: YoVille, Pet Society
 Turn-based games that are played within a social context or with friends.
Examples: TexasHold'em Poker, Scrabble
 Competitive casual games that include friends-only leader boards.
Examples: Who Has the Biggest Brain?, Word Challenge
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14. This is just one aspect of communication. YouTube is the best example of social
networking for entertainment. YouTube, which is localized in 22 countries across 24
different languages gets around 2 billion hits on a daily basis. (Source:
www.mashable.com)
Crisis Communication
The 8.9 magnitude earthquakes and subsequent tsunami that shook Japan early Friday
morning left more than a thousand killed and many more missing. Waves demolished
buildings and transportation systems, caused electrical blackouts, and left telephone
networks congested, cutting off communication between loved ones and family
members.
However, with the countless updates posted on Facebook and Twitter one message was
clear: Japan, you are not alone. Through the use of social networking sites such as
Twitter, Facebook, and Mixi, people all around the world were able to get instant updates
on the statuses of friends and family, as well as send thoughts and prayers to those in
need.
"While there are so many technologies at this time that isolate us from our fellow beings,
social networking tools have shown their ability once again to unify us as human beings,
and to bring out what is most altruistic and empathetic in our natures, ―said Brad
Shimmin, an analyst at Current Analysis.
Those involved in relief efforts also took to twitter, posting information about everything
from emergency phone lines for non-Japanese speakers to tsunami alerts, altered train
schedules and lists of shelters for those left homeless, reports computerworld.com. This
isn't the only time social networking sites have been used during times of disaster.
Twitter and Facebook were also lifelines during massive earthquakes
in Chile and Haiti last year.
Advertising and Promotions
Social networking has become very popular in today's society. Since these websites
bring in millions of viewers each day, a company can use this to your advantage to help
promote their products/services. Almost everyone that is online now has a Facebook
profile or a Twitter account, and each of these people can be considered a potential
customer. By trying to find ways to promote your products on those sites, you are going
to be reaching many more customers than you would if you just stuck to other methods
of online marketing, like SEO. This isn't a recommendation that those methods be
abandoned, but rather a suggestion that you can create an even more successful
business by augmenting your existing internet marketing campaign so that it includes
these more social advertising opportunities.
There are two ways to boost sales through social networking sites. The first is to use the
sites as a marketing tool and create profiles for business on these sites. This is a great
way to interact with customers, grow trust in a brand, and to start and open an engaging
dialogue about services and niche with the public.
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15. Mobile phone ads
Online banner ads
Online video ads
Search engine Ads
Ads before movies
Emails
Radio
Outdoor Ads
Magazines
Newspaper
TV
Brand Sponsorships
Editorial Content
Brand Websites
Consumer opinions posted online
Suggestions from known people
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Source: http://www.nielsen.com
A study conducted in 2009 by The Nielsen Company shows that 90% of people trusted
their friends and acquaintances for product recommendations and 70% people trusted
consumer opinions posted online. This shows that there is huge potential for social
media advertising. Social networks make viral marketing and word of mouth marketing
much easier than before. Online social networks provide an efficient platform for
spreading marketing knowledge.
Recruitment
India is one of LinkedIn‘s largest and fastest growing countries and recruitment plays a
major role in that. Social networking sites are fast catching up on the hiring trend as
well. LinkedIn, though not a job portal, has a section dedicated to job search. Recruiters
often look at a candidates profile and the quality of recommendation they receive from
peers and bosses. This helps them make a hiring decision. Checking out a candidate‘s
profile on such social networking sites also helps a company gauge the personality of a
prospective employee and see whether they would fit in with the culture of the
organization and the role offered.
On the flip side, potential job seekers are also engaging the use of sites such as LinkedIn
to promote themselves. LinkedIn is a perfect site to build more professional contacts and
land job offers. We have come across several professionals who quote their
recommendations on LinkedIn as references.
India is catching up on this latest hiring buzz and to illustrate we have a snapshot from
Dell India‘s career site.
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16. Source: https://dell.taleo.net/careersection/2/jobdetail.ftl
Research
Social networking is one of the hottest new internet trends with millions of people joining
such sites every day. The increased penetration on internet around the world and the
boom in social networking results in a huge stock pile on data. People posting comments
on their likes and dislikes, product reviews and word of mouth recommendations are a
huge opportunity for organizations looking to find the pulse of its consumer‘s needs.
Mouthshut.com, an Indian portal, helps consumers make informed shopping decisions. It
is a website where people wanting to buy products look for existing reviews or existing
customers post reviews about the products they use. The list of products they have is
exhaustive and one can rest assure that the product they are looking to purchase will
have a review on this website. So what does this mean for companies? Organizations
can access this data and find out what their customers are saying about them. This way
they can collect feedback which otherwise wouldn‘t have probably reached them at all.
By following reviews on their company and by interacting with these consumers,
businesses can gain a priceless insight into the likes and dislikes of their customers.
Such interaction also makes a strong statement of their respect for the concerns of their
customers, boosting customer loyalty.
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17. BENEFITS OF SNS
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
In the survey that we conducted, the above mentioned graph highlights some of the
benefits of social networking sites. Most users felt that such sites are very convenient for
exchanging information and provided them access to more people than otherwise
possible. 47% users like the fact that such sites encouraged feedback and provided
users with social recognition online. An example of this is the ―Like‖ button in Facebook
or the thumbs up button in YouTube.
53% respondents said that they could ‗meet‘ people more frequently on such platforms.
Face to face communication is a great way of interacting but can be done repeatedly
over duration of time without interfering with the personal space of the other person.
However, they said they could ping a friend several times a day or post multiple
comments on their profiles without any problems.
Mobile Society
Social networking sites and can also enhance freedom and mobility. They offer the ability
to access information and communicate with others at any time and in any place and
regardless of the physical location of other people. People can maintain a constant
connection with existing friends and family who might live in different regions/countries,
or they can form new relationships with other nationalities, regardless of ‗real time‘ or
separate locations. By forming groups of people with similar interests, social networking
sites can create a sense of unity and belonging in people who might have previously felt
alienated in society because of an inability to relate to people. Particularly in areas with
smaller populations, the chance of discovering others with similar interests is infrequent
but by removing these location barriers through online communication, the chance of
meeting people with the same interests is greatly increased. Social networking sites give
the impression that it is a much smaller world.
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18. Social networking sites also offer the chance of communication in cases where mobility is
often a hindrance to social interaction. Elderly people and those with physical disabilities
who have an inability to leave their house are able to stay in touch with existing relations
and friends, as well as get in touch with people who have similar issues. For some
people, interaction with crowds is made easier if they do not actually feel the physical
immersion. Such sites also provide those isolated by disability or environment with a rich
and fulfilling social life. Many people form support groups through social networking sites
to discover and communicate with others who have similar problems or health issues.
People find it easier to reach out online because it can be anonymous and it allows
people more control over what information they disclose. With online social networking
reducing difficulties with limited mobility, time and distance barriers and unacceptance
due to stereotyping, people therefore have more access to support and the ability to
improve communication with others despite illness or disability.
Feedback System and Recognition
On sites such as YouTube, people may even give a video response. By allowing such
feedback, there is the prospect of conversation, of debate, of sharing information or
perceiving new ideas. It is this capability of interaction that makes social networking
sites multi-dimensional in communicating, unlike the one-dimensionality of earlier
websites and blogs. As such, it also points to the fact that social networking sites are
often an extension of ‗real life.‘ By coexisting with life offline, communicating in the
digital world is therefore no more of a threat than if a person were to join communities
and interact with others in the offline world.
One can use social networking sites to feedback on ideas immediately. You can ask
questions and get respond with a low turn around time. For example, LinkedIn has a
dedicated section for users to post questions to all users. This way the question is not
confined to a closed group of people but the entire population of the site.
Global Culture – Removing regional barriers
One of the advantages that we see is the move towards a global culture. Social
networking sites seldom have the bias that exists in the real life. We all have our own
set of beliefs, religion, culture and values and these sometimes affect the way we deal
with others around us. They sometimes lead to bias, perceptions and stereotypes. The
digital world however, knows no such boundaries. The best thing about these sites is
that everybody is equal with as good a chance to be someone as others. Your profile is
as good as someone else‘s. Since these sites encourage free speech, people generally
won‘t castigate you for expressing feelings that generally are not welcome in the real
world.
How often would you talk to or meet people from other regions/countries? How often
would one use expensive ISC calls to talk to your friends and relatives based abroad?
And how often does this happen now? The beauty of the internet is that it has no
nationality, has no religion, and no set culture. Its culture is purely defined by the people
who use it. In a world broken up by religion, politics and cultures, there exists one
platform which can treat everybody as a global citizen and not as a Muslim or Christian
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19. or a Hindu. That‘s another reason why an online identity sometimes works better than
the real ones. From parents talking to their children or companies conducting online
meetings on Skype, we have seen it all. The world is truly becoming a smaller and much
more connected place. This is the start of a new global culture it is based on openness,
inclusion, acceptance of diversity, and the desire to make the world a better place to
live. This movement is driven both by the failure of traditional organizations — media,
government, and religious — to cope with the modern world, and the stresses we, as
individuals, are confronted with.
If you think about social networking, you‘ll find that it tears down the old paradigms of
geography, territories and even government. Social networking, along with the Internet,
tears down boundaries everywhere. Even Ideologies, governments and politics are
challenged or redefined. When we can instantly communicate around the world and
things get done or exposed to us at the speed of thought, everything changes. At our
fingertips we have all available knowledge, data and information. Common interest
groups naturally connect and grow. Today we can connect to people who have a
common interest or cause all around the world, whereas before we would not know
them. The only way we might come across them in a lifetime is by accident, or if they
did something major like wrote a book or were in the news.
Cost Effectiveness
Mobile phones and email transformed our communication process more than a decade
ago. They were fast, convenient and later turned out to be cost effectiveness as well.
Forward a couple of years to the advent of social networking sites. Teenagers and young
adults are increasing using these sites to pass on messages to the ones they know. SMS
and calls cost money so a certain number of users prefer using these sites to
communicate with each other. It costs nothing. From an organizational aspect, emails
take up a lot of server space and results in high cost. Using such sites could help save
cost and free up lots on space on their servers. Advertising and promotions are also
popular on such sites as they turn out to be more cost effective that TV or print ads. And
they reach more people than all other mediums combined. Social networking sites are
also full of data of all sorts. And for companies looking to collect data for research
purpose these are excellent free resources to start with.
One Platform
TV, radio, newspapers, websites is everywhere. Every country has their own and they
deliver customized content to the users. Social networking sites, however, are not
operated in the same lines. Rest assured there is only one YouTube or Facebook, no
matter where you access it from. A global giant wanting to spread awareness about its
products throughout the world would usually have to use TV and print advertising in the
countries it wants to target. Think about the cost factor. Social networking sites could be
a better way to do this. They are a global platform, the same site accessed from
anywhere in the world. So if a company is looking to reach a huge population and save
costs, we bet that sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Orkut could do a great job.
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20. COMPARISON
We also tried to draw a comparison of social networking sites with other mediums of
communication and see how they fare. For this purpose, let‘s understand what other
mediums we considered.
Television is one of the greatest inventions of all time but it has its limitations. Television
is a one way medium with no feedback possible. The range of software available is also
limited as it is very expensive to produce. It is the best medium for advertisements but
the sheer number of ads has blunted their effectiveness. There is no interpersonal
communication possible hence no networking is possible. TV can give you sound and
vision but it can‘t touch a person‘s life.
Radio is one of the earliest electronic communication medium. Again it is a one way
channel with no feedback possible. The radio has a limited source of programming
available which is further limited in reach by its focus on music. It is not very expensive
to produce but licensing and regulatory requirements are very strict.
The pen is mightier than the sword – this saying is now a relic of the past. Print media is out of sync
with the new generation which demands dynamic content. It is again a one way media with no
feedback. The ads – communication from business are most likely over looked. The main
disadvantage with print media is that they are time consuming to produce and can put their point
only once in a day.
Talking about e-mail, continuous real time conversation not being possible is the major disadvantage
for this medium. Not only the number of receivers is limited, also emails are too slow for current
generation. To add to this, spam is reducing its effectiveness and undoubtedly, more and better real
time solutions are available today as compared to e-mail.
With the case of instant messaging, the likes of Yahoo Messenger and Gtalk though immensely
popular, are disadvantageous in terms of individual specific information. However, most
importantly, its usage is based upon the availability of the opposite party.
In case of video conferencing, the major issue lies with the infrastructure requirement for bandwidth
being too high. Apart from receiver’s online availability issues, another barrier is the cost factor.
Cisco, the leading player in this field best explains the cost issue. Besides, there is a limit on the
number of receivers and also, no future referencing of conversation is possible.
Mobile phones, which have become a pre-requisite in everyday life, are undoubtedly convenient and
quick but the absence of mass communication system makes it restricted to one-to-one
communication. SMS also comes with a cost.
Dashboards, an outdated concept has its own limitations in terms of too narrow scope through
subject focussed discussions. This is why the number of users got limited and crippled its further
growth.
Recently, blogs have gained sudden popularity. But one cannot neglect the barriers it
poses in terms of a single way communication mode. To add to this, it has issues of
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21. excessive time spending, both for posting and reading. Talking of readership, the blogger
can limit the number of readers, thereby putting in jeopardy the very knowledge of the
blog‘s existence itself.
Comparison of different mediums
Social networking sites do manage to overcome all of the barriers faced by the above
mentioned mediums and that is one of the reasons why they seem to be constantly
growing in popularity. They are easy to use, fast and able to deliver the personal touch
we crave in our real lives.
These sites help us connect to the world using just one platform and increase our
chances of fitting in with everybody else. In this increasingly dynamic world, social
networking sites have managed to bridge gaps and connect us all in a way that no other
medium has done so far.
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22. IMPACT OF SOCIAL NET WORKING SITES
In a study conducted by the Australian Psychological Society, they researched the social
and psychological impact of SNS. Their study produced the following results.
Key Findings of Survey:
 While much of the media attention on online social networking has focused on
young people‘s use of sites such as Facebook and MSN, the current survey found
that online social networking was being used by people across the age range with
81 per cent of adults aged 31 to 50 years and 56 per cent of adults over 50
reporting that they use these sites
 Concerns about excessive use of online social networking were investigated. A
large proportion of participants reported accessing these sites several times a day
(51%) and filling a need to log on at times throughout the day. Participants also
believed that they wasted time on these sites
 Reports about cyber bullying and risks to children have led to increased fears
about the impact of online social networking, particularly on children and young
adults. The survey asked people about any ―bad experiences‟ they have had as a
result of using social networking sites. A considerable number of survey
respondents (28%) indicated that they have had a negative experience. An
analysis of open-ended statements to describe this experience found that
bullying, unwanted contact and the posting of inappropriate or distressing
information to be the most cited events
 Social networking sites have led to a different way of communicating with others,
both with those previously known to the person as well as newly formed
friendships. Concerns about reduced face-to-face interactions and the loss of
social skills have emerged. The current survey found that for a large number of
people social networking sites increased their contact with friends and family
(53%) and increased their participation in social activities (26%). Increased social
participation provides benefits to people‘s self-esteem and mental health
suggesting that taking part in online social networking is likely to lead to positive
outcomes for some people
 Past studies have suggested that online social networking may be particularly
helpful for those who are shy and less sociable as it provides an easier way for
them to form connections with others. Survey participants completed a shyness
and sociability scale and largely fell in the normal range of shyness and sociability
with few people falling at the extreme ends. Further, as sociability increased so
did time spent using social networking sites, indicating that patterns of social
behaviour that occur in real life are replicated online
 Respondents were asked about romantic relationships formed online. The findings
show that those in the 31 to 50 year age group (25%) were most likely to have
had a date with someone they met online and 21 per cent of this group reported
having formed an intimate relationship with someone they met on a social
networking site. In contrast, younger people and those in the over 50 age group
were less likely to develop romantic relationships with people they met online
Source: APS National Psychology Week Survey 2010
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23. Before the Internet existed, the only way people could make socialise was through
collective gatherings and face to face exchanges. Things have changed though. With the
emergence of social network sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Bebo and so
forth, people can now keep in touch with friends and family all around the world.
We think there are a few reasons for this. One could be that fact that it is easy to talk
online. People only see the words you write, so you‘re free to express yourself more
clearly without the worry of tone and facial expressions present in real life interactions.
Most of the social networking web design revolves around this idea. Another reason
could be that people are not as open to meeting new people in the flesh any more.
Walking up to a complete stranger is still very challenging even for the most confident
individual.
However, cynics claim that people should stop logging into Facebook, Twitter etc and
start going out and meeting real people more. Their argument is that, social network
junkies are ruining their communications skills by staying indoors and neglecting face to
face interactions. On the other hand, with everyone so busy with work, family and
relationships, it much easier to communicate online than wait weeks for people to have
an opening in their schedules.
A more practical concern is the dependency factor that social networks seem to have.
Once you start, it can be very difficult to stop. In fact, sites like Facebook do not even
allow you delete your profile. The only option you have is to deactivate your account, but
at anytime, you can always reactivate it. This means serious social network users can
easily fall back into the habit of staying online for hours on end.
In our opinion, social networking sites are a good medium of keeping in touch with
friends and family. However, these sites can sometimes be an obstruction. Individuals,
who stay on social network sites, may fail to build important interpersonal skills, as well
as, seriously affect their concentration span in some cases. If you are a social network
user, please use them with a degree of restraint and self-control.
CONCLUSION
Since their start in 1995 with Classmates.com, social networking web sites have grown
enormously to include such huge sites today as hi5.com, Facebook.com, and orkut.com.
Through these sites businesses‘ can use social networking web sites to connect to
potential employees, market new products, and get feedback on their current products
as well as new ideas for future products. Although there are many valuable assets to
social networking web sites, there are also major issues that the sites must address such
as the protection of private information, the protection of children, and the protection of
copyrighted material. Although they have issues, social networking web sites are still one
of the best inventions of the modern era because they connect so many people.
The work that we have presented through this report is just one dimension on the
ongoing debate about the usefulness of social networking sites. There are a lot of
unchartered waters that need to be explored. We hope that our findings and the work
described here will help build a foundation for future investigations of these and other
important issues surrounding social network sites.
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