Marketing With Social Media: Social Media Categories
When most people think of social media, sites like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are usually the first that come to mind. That's partially correct, but doesn't address the full scope of the topic. In my earlier post, I cited this definition of social media from Brian Solis:
"Social Media is the democratization of content and the understanding of the role people play in the process of not only reading and disseminating information, but also how they share and create content for others to participate."
It is also "...the online tools that people use to share content, profiles, opinions, insights, experiences, perspectives and media itself."
There are four main categories of "online tools" that make up social media: Blogging, Social Networks, Social Bookmarking sites, and Podcasting/Video sites.
BLOGGING
Blog is the shortened version of weblog, which is simply a listing of entries or posts in reverse chronological order (the most recent entry displays first). Most blogs allow comments that let readers offer feedback and converse with the author, and sometimes each other. A report from eMarketer estimates the number of U.S. blogs at 27.9 million, and the number of U.S. readers at 96.6 million.
Because of the very low barrier to entry, anyone with an idea and access to the web can start a blog. WordPress, TypePad, Blogger and LiveJournal all offer free blogging platforms. Examples that are specific to the real estate industry are ActiveRain, RealTown, and WannaNetwork.
SOCIAL NETWORKS
Social networks have been a part of our culture since the 1950's and began to move online in the 1990's when message boards and forums on America Online and Compuserve gained popularity. One of the first 'pure' online social networking sites was Friendster, launched in 2002. That was followed by MySpace and LinkedIn in 2003; Facebook in 2004; Twitter in 2006; and Ning in 2007.
The essence of social networking is a sharing of information and ideas across a common interest. User-generated content such as profiles, status updates, notes, blogs, photos and videos lets members connect with each other and build relationships.
SOCIAL BOOKMARKING
Have you ever saved a web page to your favorites folder or bookmarked a blog post? Have you ever visited a site on a friend's recommendation or because it seemed like a hot topic that everyone was talking about? Social bookmarking sites let you share your favorites with the world.
Sites like Delicious, Digg, and StumbleUpon let you organize and tag your favorite content by categories and keywords. Viewing the favorites of others leverages the viral aspect of the web, and is a great way to expand your depth of information on a particular topic.
PODCASTING/VIDEO
If you're more comfortable with speaking rather than writing, the podcasting and video sites provide great social media opportunities. With more and more computers coming with built in webcams, video lets you add the additional dimensions of tonality and body language to your message. Some of the popular sites include YouTube, Vimeo, Qik, Blip, and BlogTalkRadio.
SO MANY SITES ... SO LITTLE TIME
Blogs, comments, friend requests, status updates, links, notes, connection requests, tweets, DMs ... social media can quickly overwhelm you if you let it. On Wikipedia, there is a list of 150+ social networking sites. Add in all of the bookmarking sites, podcasting sites, and video sharing sites and the number of social media options is staggering.
So what is the optimal mix of social media sites, the social media sweet spot? For a solid online foundation I recommend between four and seven: 1-2 blogs; 2-3 social networks; and 1-2 social bookmarking sites. Those with a true online passion and/or a dedicated staff may use 8-12 including podcasts and videos. Anything more than that starts to reach a point of diminishing returns.
Which social media categories and sites deliver the best results for your business? What challenges do you face in managing your social media presence? By leaving your thoughts and answers to these questions in the comments, we can leverage one of the best aspects of social media -- the spirit of community where knowledge and experiences are generously shared.
In the next post we'll look at the elements of social media profiles, including issues to consider when selecting a username. From there we'll begin looking at individual sites in depth.
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