Think about the last time you went a day without checking your Facebook account. How about your Twitter or any other social media site for that matter? Odds are, you probably haven’t had many of these days—I know I haven’t. It has become ingrained in our culture. When I wake up in the morning, I go through the daily routine: first I check my emails (maybe class was canceled), then it’s off to Facebook to hopefully see that little red circle with notifications, and finally it’s time to get informed about the world’s happenings via Twitter. Suddenly twenty minutes pass and I’m going to be late to class. Dinner conversation dies or get boring? Let me check-in on Foursquare real quick. I love social media and I will never be without it. To be honest, it’s an addiction that I know I can never quit. Maybe it’s the FOMO (fear of missing out) syndrome but I won’t ever be able to go a day without social media.
Social media is the one drug that we are all addicted to and no one is present at the intervention. Good. Why should we? It lets awesome videos like this go viral #kidpresident2040. It brought “Call Me Maybe” to the USA. It can let people from all over the world take top university classes. It even chose Roger Federer’s tennis shoes for the 2013 Australian Open. It is certainly safe to say that the benefits outweigh the costs. Erik Qualman put out a social media video earlier this month that said that 92% of children under the age of 2 have a digital shadow. If your parents are big social media users, looks like you have no choice but to use it too. It’s in your blood.
This week I came across an article that argued that social media is making us more envious and less social instead of bringing us all together. Believe me, I know how it feels to see pictures of the beach in St. Thomas when you just finished shoveling snow off the driveway but those feelings aren’t strong enough for me to delete my account. Facebook is such an important means of communication that deleting it would affect others much more than it would affect me. Leaving a popular social media site is akin to receiving a phone call from a party that you can’t attend because you’re sick in bed with the flu. Torture.
Social media empowers us by putting us in chargeof our own brand image. We share what we want to share and untag unflattering photos. With one post or tweet, we have the power to enhance or destroy our reputations. The capabilities are limitless for both individuals and for companies big and small. By taking this class, I hope to discover how a business can use social media to its advantage. When should a company utilize social media? Is it necessary for a B2B to have a social media presence since they aren’t interacting with the end consumer? Throughout these next couple of months, I look forward to receiving that answers to these questions and many more. Too much social media? There’s no such thing.
Interesting point of view, Kevin. I love the tennis article you included. Not only am I a huge Federer fan, but I see so much value in asking fans what they think.
I have to say though, I don’t agree that everyone is addicted to social media today. I think it’s a very risky assumption to make, especially for businesses. I work with clients every day who think social media is the way to reach all their customers, but it’s not always the case. For example, the business travelers I talk to every day constantly tell us they feel neglected by companies who have promotions only through Facebook. They don’t know what a tweet is, and they certainly don’t have time to “check in” every place they go. I’m sure there are even people out there who feel forced to use it or else they’ll be missing out on something. I admit I check Facebook a couple times a day, but that’s about it (before this class of course). I’m really interested to learn more about social media in this class and how businesses can use it. I agree with you that it’s everywhere and can’t be ignored as a valuable resource. I just don’t think everyone is addicted. I can’t help but think about the recent Marketwatch article that said “the number of Americans using Facebook fell by nearly 1.4 million in early December”. Is this a trend? I’m not sure, but it’ll be interesting to see what happens.
http://articles.marketwatch.com/2013-01-15/finance/36346107_1_active-users-facebook-social-media
Great insight. I definitely agree with you that it is a different situation with businesses. B2C companies should definitely not just promote on Facebook or Twitter if they are trying to reach more than just the younger demographics, but it should absolutely be used as a customer service tool and as a way to enhance the brand. Unless used inappropriately, utilizing SM for a business can only help the company. I feel as if the newer, younger businesses are utilizing SM extensively (see @Boloco). Interesting article as well about losing 1.4m users—maybe FB is getting too intrusive or creepy or annoying with all these new charges. Definitely will be monitoring this throughout the semester.
Short Definition of Addiction:
Addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory and related circuitry. Dysfunction in these circuits leads to characteristic biological, psychological, social and spiritual manifestations. This is reflected in an individual pathologically pursuing reward and/or relief by substance use and other behaviors.
Addiction is characterized by inability to consistently abstain, impairment in behavioral control, craving, diminished recognition of significant problems with one’s behaviors and interpersonal relationships, and a dysfunctional emotional response. Like other chronic diseases, addiction often involves cycles of relapse and remission. Without treatment or engagement in recovery activities, addiction is progressive and can result in disability or premature death.
(From: http://www.asam.org/for-the-public/definition-of-addiction)
With a mental health counseling background, I just thought I’d throw that out there…
Now, I work in IT at BC, and I spend 7 hours a day staring at 3 computer monitors. When I get home, all I want to do is rest my brain and my eyes from all the input that is being thrown at me all day. But still, every morning, I have the impulse to check my phone for fb, twitter, whatever, even though I’ll be free to check in my office once I get there (in an hour). It kind of scares me.
I know that for businesses, social media can be great! But isn’t how great social media is with regards to business marketing and communication also at least slightly dependent on the consumers impulse/addiction to constantly use social media?
SM addiction is definitely not as severe as that definition. The same thing was happening with me this summer: I’d be on my computer from 9-6 and then find myself checking SM sites on the way to the subway. In a way I’m happy there is no service in the subway so I can actually put my phone in my pocket and give my brain a rest. Businesses definitely depend on our addiction. To be honest, with some businesses, a SM presence isn’t too prevalent but it will only increase as more jump on the SM bandwagon.
As a generation older than most undergraduates, I feel “removed” from the addiction to social media, and to be honest, somewhat relieved about it. This class is forcing me to “get with it” but I purposely took this class when I knew that I would have the time to experiment (like all the time). I do not have facebook and am worried about what a Gravitar is. For undergraduate students, social media can be quite addicting because you are in class 12-15 hours and thus have 153 hours in the week “free”. For working people with families, I worry about the addiction taking over people’s genuine interest and attention to the people in front of them (their job, their kids, their spouse, etc.). I worry that people are not paying attention to others around them when they ride the T or walk from the garage to work. People are constantly connected and yet more isolated than ever. They are learning what Chad Ochocinco thinks but not their spouse. I see a lot of value in social media to get information quickly or as a great way to see what your customers are saying, but as much as I am enjoying the class, I am already looking forward to the quiet in my head and being more present with those around me in May!
Very interesting Kevin- similar to my initial reaction towards social media and post for this week. The Forbes article was a great read and really got me thinking about whether social media harms or helps relationships. The image of everyone sitting around a dinner table, checking their phones is far too familiar. To Amy’s point- whether or not you want to call it an “addiction” is up to you, but it is certainly a phenomenon that cannot be ignored. It is especially important for businesses to recognize social media as a valuable resource.
A lot of points in this post definitively ring true to my own life. This past winter break, I spent a week out of the country, meaning no internet connection for a full 7 days. It was not until then did I realize just how seriously I was addicted to my iPhone/social media. All week I was stuck thinking about if someone had tweeted at me or left me a new snapchat. I felt completely naked walking around without my phone. It was as if a part of me was missing. The second I landed back in the States, the first thing I did was go through all of my social networking apps and catch up on everything that I had missed. I was more concerned with week old tweets and Facebook posts than sending a quick text to my parents to let them know I got home safely. Whether it is an actual “addiction” or not, I have no immediate plans to change things. Social media has become as ingrained in my day to day life as brushing my teeth or taking a shower. For me, social media is here to stay.
First off, I love this line: “Social media is the one drug that we are all addicted to and no one is present at the intervention.” So true. I, myself, am a Facebook fanatic. I check it all the time, always out of habit if I’m bored. I also found the following line to be spot on: ” With one post or tweet, we have the power to enhance or destroy our reputations.” As social media becomes more like second nature to users, I think some forget the great consequences that come with publishing your thoughts online for all to see. I think it is fine for people to be opinionated online. However, people must be cautions of the impressions they are making, and must be willing to accept the consequences of those now public opinons.
Glad you enjoyed the blog! I definitely agree with you. All it takes one tweet to completely ruin a reputation or a brand image. The great thing about SM is that it does put us in control.
I know exactly what your saying with your “daily routine” of waking up checking your different media outlets and only once a thorough check has been made can you go on with your day. With all the different social media venues these days its almost impossible to feel out of the loop. But sometimes i think about how nice it would be to just leave my phone/computer behind and just live a day where i didnt feel like i constantly had to check up on twitter or a news application. i think a sense of freedom would come with it once you were able to get over the fact that your pockets were empty and you were on your own for the day.
I agree with Paige above, somewhat, in that I’m always a bit wary of applying the term “addiction” to social media. Addiction is such a loaded word, and I wonder if its fair to attribute it to social media. Are we addicted to social media in the same way alcoholics are addicted to alcohol? I’m not sure.
Regardless, your point is taken. Social media is increasingly becoming an integral part of our daily lives and it does change how we socialize. We’ll deal with some of the negative aspects of social media later in the semester as well. Nice post!
Reblogged this on scannewi.
Great post! Professor Kane asks whether “addiction” is too much of a loaded word to attribute it to social media. I think it is, like you said in your post, spot on. However my question is whether individuals are addicted to the social media itself, to the tweeting, the pictures, what have you, or wether we are all just addicted to the way it connects us. To the FOMO, if you will. I think it may be a little of both, because like you exemplified with the tennis article, social media can be really, really cool. However, I do think that we are all just addicts to the way social media intricately and irreversibly connects us. We’re all sucked in now, and it will be impossible to get out. Which is why like Coleman and many others have mentioned, social media is definitely here to stay.
Nonetheless, I think your blog does a great job of showing how it does change the way we socialize and interact with one another. Whether this is a good or bad thing, that is a personal opinion. I think most of us concede to the fact that we often use Facebook and Twitter of a means to escape awkward situations, or a lull in a conversation. But, at the same time, social media has the ability to connect us with people across the country, and across the world. In your post you said the benefits definitely outweigh the costs. I think I’m going to have wait this semester out and see if I fully agree with you or not.
Good first post Kevin! Later in the semester, you’ll read about the downsides of social media. There’s been links of the increase of social media and the fact that we as a generation are more distracted for example. We also watch a great TED video by Sherry Turkle that talks about the social implications of social media (http://www.ted.com/talks/sherry_turkle_alone_together.html) It might be fun for you to explore those in a blog topic if you are someone who focuses on how awesome social media is.