Social Media has seen its sunrise, mid-day glory and is now sun-setting. Or is it? Find out what these experts think in a four part series.
As I wandered the HubSpot Inbound 2012 Sponsorship Pavilion I started talking with Peter Kim and Ann Handley at the Wiley Publisher table.
We reminisced about the early days of Social Media in Boston (a whopping 5 years ago) and marveled at how many of our friends had become well-known authors and speakers.
The conversation soon focused on how Social Media is being absorbed by Marketing, PR, SEO, Content Strategy, Customer Support and other established disciplines. Peter was pretty certain about this and I agreed.
Later I wondered whether there was any consensus across these disciplines so I asked a few folks that were at the conference, or maybe wish they were and some that weren’t to offer their thoughts. Here is what they were asked, minus the gracious introduction. 😉
The proposition is that Social Media is sun-setting. It is less and less of an individual entity each day as it gets absorbed into traditional Marketing, PR, SEO, Content Strategy, Customer Support and other established disciplines.
There are two questions.
1) Could you explain why you agree or disagree?
2) How would you describe what might be next? What’s the next big thing?
Below are responses from experienced professionals involved with Content Writing and Strategy, SEO, PR, Video, Marketing and others. I love how each has their own relevant experience and perspective that really helps to redefine the question and offer a range of answers. Social Media is not going away in totality. It is becoming another tool in the toolbox of marketing and other disciplines. That’s my view.
Peter Kim
Business Strategist
http://www.beingpeterkim.com/
https://twitter.com/@peterkim
“Social” is sunsetting. That doesn’t mean it’s a meaningless construct; in fact, it’s just the opposite. Social is fundamental to business strategy and needs to be integrated across the enterprise.R/GA believes this, incorporating social and beyond. This video explains more: http://www.rga.com/about/featured/the-next-nine-years
Steve Garfield
SteveGarfield.com
Steve Garfield, author of Get Seen: Online Video Secrets to Building Your Business, on Twitter @stevegarfield, is a vidoeblogging pioneer, and knows more ways to get video online – more easily – than anyone. He is a stickler for ease of use and loves to experiment. Steve’s an online video host and an advisor and investor in internet startups. He’s also Jimmy Fallon’s BFF.
http://twitter.com/SteveGarfield
Social Media is not sunsetting, it’s sunrising.
As big companies embrace social media, we are getting more and more of a chance to talk with individuals. Whenever I have a problem, and I want to talk to someone likely, the 1st place I look is social media.
There are plenty of people on social media, ready and willing to help. The best, and most personal responses I get for help with issues with Comcast, is on twitter.
The same can be said about pre-sales activity. We’re just starting to see new and exciting uses for social media, and I like to experiment all the time. I’ve used social media to shop for new car, and given that advice to many people via social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook, when they’re looking to buy electronics like TVs, video cameras, and microphones.
As more and more people embrace social media, the channels will get noisy, but that’s what filters are for.
The next big thing we are going to see is something like Kickstarter for investors, where backers of projects participate in profits.
Christine Perkett
PerkettPR
CEO, Founder
I help companies and individuals connect and engage with their most important audiences – at the right time, in the right place
www.perkettpr.com
http://www.twitter.com/missusP
1) I disagree. I don’t think it’s sunsetting so much as evolving. Thank goodness! It’s becoming a more integrated tool in our daily communication – just as the phone, fax and Internet did.
2) How would you describe what might be next? What’s the next big thing? The next big thing in social media is ease of use and integration. Like I said, it’s just becoming an expected way to communicate – so it’s moving from “hot trend” to “daily activity,” but…. We need it to be easier and cleaner and less clunky. So any tools that help us to monitor the truly important conversations and brand mentions (as a marketer, this is where I focus/think), and alerts us to them so they are easy to identify among all the noise, is going to be key.
There are monitoring tools out there but some of them were ahead of their time – they were just focused on capturing mentions, making lists. And they were often clunky, not easy to use and not intuitive. Now, tools that help us to see clearly and instantaneously what’s most important to us in social conversations is what’s needed. The value of social media in business is no longer a question – most companies, both B2B and B2C, now recognize the value in Tweeting, Facebooking, Linking in or even Tumbling their way to their customer’s hearts. It’s also quite useful in connecting with media, influencers, partners and prospects. But one challenge remains for many businesses – how much time should be invested, and how do you determine the value? Anything that helps us gain those two aspects is the next big thing.
What do you think social media is doing? What’s next? Share in the comments below.
This is the first in a series. Subscribe by email or RSS so you are sure to get the next post in the series.
Read Part 2 of Social Media is Sun-setting. Or is it? part 2
Read Part 3 of Social Media is Sunsetting. Or Is It? part 3
Read Part 4 of Social Media is Sunsetting. Or Is It? part 4
All photos by Jim Spencer, except as noted.