If you asked the average person five years ago what social media sites they were using, you might have received the response “social…what?” Over the past five years, social media platforms have evolved into a worldwide phenomenon. Have you met anyone recently who hasn’t heard of Facebook?
In 2005, Facebook was barely in competition with MySpace, the most popular social networking website in the United States at that time. Social Media, an agent of change in the way we communicate, is a window in how people everywhere see others.
Facebook’s Newsfeed was an innovative technique that pushed it ahead of its most direct competitor, MySpace. It gives users unparalleled access, and sometimes unnecessary insight, into their friends’ lives.
YouTube, the world’s most popular video site, attracts more than 2 billion views daily. Its shared videos serve as informative pieces, musical entertainment, and yes, even those trying for their 15 minutes of fame. And Twitter’s popularity has grown exponentially, with close to 65 million, 140-character tweets posted each day. How did we function before this plethora of information was at our fingertips?
Speaking of fingertips, how many people do you know that use mobile versions of their favorite social media sites? Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and many other networks have transcended the boundaries of the computer as cell phone “apps” and mobile browsers make it that much easier to stay connected with our social media communities. Now, from just about anywhere, we can tweet our location, update our status and even watch mobile videos.
Is social media something that is here to stay? As a foundation for networking and connecting on both a personal and professional level, one can only guess. Or will the buzz around social media die down like most fads with the world looking back saying “well, that was fun, but what’s next?”
