Is Social Media Necessary?

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Today I received the question, "It's (Social Media) necessary, isn't it? It's a must?"


My short response was, "The key is the word 'Media'.  It should be viewed as something for the public.  It is a must.  It's how the world is going to get reached for either Jesus or porn.  It can be used for the greater good or the greater destruction.  It's a medium for great connectivity or great isolation.  I choose to use it to be a better marketer.  Better friend.  Better family member.  I use it to reach people I would not, did not, and could not connect with before both professionally and personally.  It can be a time suck or a time releaser.  It's all about the mindset, intention, and purpose."


I have seen postings from multiple friends on tools like Facebook that he/she needs to take a break from the application because it is taking up too much time, distracts him/her, causes isolation, etc. In that case, I would certainly encourage the user to walk away and prioritize appropriately.  Anything that takes away from your true purpose or your true enjoyment is a negative.  In my opinion relationships and purpose are the main priorities for most in life.  If something is taking away from positive relationships and a sense of purpose, cut it off and move on.  


Could the use of social media be restructured in the lives of these individuals to play a better role?  In my opinion, yes.  But possibly he/she would need to step away from social media to rethink it and determine how to use it more effectively.  Social media can be used to share, educate, motivate, encourage, join, and develop.  If I have a skill or a talent, if I have knowledge, I can use social media to connect with others and share with them.  I can learn from them.  I can develop and enhance relationships with family, friends, coworkers, customers, and the community.  My company can learn about its clientele, tell them about new products, get feedback, promote new opportunities, etc.


Case in point.  I have discussed, in previous blogs, because it's been a current topic in the news, about NFL players and social media. Santonio Holmes, an NFL player, posts on Twitter.  He posts that fans don't sign his paychecks so they shouldn't have an opinion about his behavior.  He posts that a fan should kill himself because of a posted opinion.  He posts that he's going to go smoke weed.  Then this player, who was a Superbowl MVP only 14 months ago, gets traded to another team for a fifth round draft pick (for those of you not into football - that's an insult), and it's all over sports news that a four game suspension is going to be handed down shortly regarding drug use (how'd they get word of that, I wonder).  Why is this happening to him?  Why is he under scrutiny?  Because he failed to think about the fact that what he was doing on Twitter was marketing, and he did it badly.  

On the other hand is a player named Chad Ochocinco.  He tweets daily.  He tweets about the products he's endorsing.  Tweets about his career.  Tweets about the weather.  Tweets about movies.  Tweets about his training, his team, and how much he likes his fans and his coworkers.  Tweets about businesses he likes and frequents.  And what happens?  He makes more money through sponsor deals and sales.  He creates fan loyalty.  He creates team loyalty.  Difference?  Someone taught him about marketing.  Someone told him that you never know who's paying attention.  Someone taught him that he could use Facebook, Twitter, Skype... social media to benefit him if he used it correctly.

Do you and I have that kind of access to as many people?  Probably not, but the fact remains we never know who's paying attention, where it could lead, or what it might lead to.  How will we use it?  For good?  For bad?  For noteworthy or for wasting time?  It all depends on perspective.  

How will you use social media?  It has a direct result on not only how you feel about it, but how others feel about you.

Social Media and the Pea by Alice Ann Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at www.socialmediaandthepea.blogspot.com.
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