The greatest post ever on the benefits of social media

Introduction
I am sure that everyone has heard of a social network by now. If you haven’t, where have you been?! Also I am sure you are aware that social media can have a massive impact on your business. What you may not know is how much it can have an impact and how you can benefit.

Everyday social media is becoming a more and more powerful tool that people use to share and connect with one another anywhere in the world at any given time. Companies and bloggers alike have that unique opportunity to join in the conversations by connecting with your customers and readers through their own media accounts.

In this post I will decipher all the main aspects of social media and see how exactly we can all understand the plus and negative sides to using social medias.

Statistics of using social media

With social media giant Facebook with nearly 1 billion users that is 1/7 of the population on the website. This is a very strong argument for being on this craze.

1 Billion people can’t be wrong about how powerful it is for getting the word out about your business or hobbies. 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given day. This is incredible! Just think that if you portray your niche or business correctly then you can easily get your word spread out there.

Twitter is a micro blogging platform that allows users to post short messages about their day, clever blurbs, or photos and videos. The beauty of Twitter is that each “tweet” is limited to 140 characters, everything you say must be short, sweet, and to the point. Twitter is a great tool for engaging your customers. Customers may tweet about your product using “#Hashtags” or even tweet you directly using your companies specific Twitter handle.

This allows for quick feedback from your customer base and an easy place to build relationships with your customers. According to Twitters “about” page, the micro blogging service has 175 million registered users. If one is able to just conquer one percent of the users, you are on to promoting yourselves a lot more. This is another reason why Twitter and social media are a great way to tackle new business.

Pro’s and cons of social media

Everything has a downside right? Well I have been brainstorming myself and researching the good old web and found these things. I’ll let you decide on what you think.

Pros

• They allow those who are shy or have trouble making friends to socialize more easily. That’s also true for those with disabilities.
• They allow those with similar interests to connect and converse.
• They provide another option for those looking to date but are unable to find the right person.
• They allow professionals to network more easily.
•  They allow businesses and public entities to share information with customers and clients, and to market themselves inexpensively.
• They allow for grass-roots causes to organize, recruit new members and spread their messages.
• They allow people to acquaint with old friends or those who live far away.

Social networking sites have paved the way for easier communication to your friends, family, or colleagues. One example is that instead of meeting in a certain place, you and your classmates could discuss a school activity by having a conference in a certain site that you are all members of, thus saving you time and effort.

Virtual communities are also formed, which are composed of people connected together by common interests, purpose, and goal. People of different races also get to mingle with each other in just a few clicks.

The idea of socializing with millions of people of different backgrounds excite the Web surfers. This is one thing that you can hardly do outside the virtual world.

Cons

• Online interaction can become a substitute for actual meetings, which can hurt social development and isolate users.
• They give hackers an opportunity to steal and misuse personal information, especially if users don’t correctly install privacy filters. And even with those safeguards, posted information is never fully secure.
• They waste time, especially for those who compulsively check or update them. For employers that means lost productivity.
• They destroy marriages by providing covert connections with others that lead to infidelity.
• They allow unscrupulous people to misrepresent themselves, take advantage of others or spread false news.
• They let bullies spread destructive information, photos or lies about others.
• They can be costly to those who post regrettable information or photos that are discovered by colleagues or prospective employers. Once information goes online, it never goes away.
• They bring out the nastiest conversation, because participants feel anonymous, or at least have some distance from those they are insulting.
• They cause users to spend less time outdoors and to be less active.

While social networking sites have become places for establishing connections and meeting friends, they have also become likely places for identity theft and fraud. As you have to provide certain information such as your e-mail address, name, and location, others use these information and pretend to be you, especially when they are into illegal activities.

Furthermore, someone pretending to be somebody else can make you believe that he or she is up to some business offer, ask to meet up with you, and take your money. It has also become easier for someone to stalk you and harass you online.



Want to learn more than what this post can teach you? This is the guide for you. It has hundreds of great tips:

How to attract more of a following

Now that you have read about the pros and cons. What did you think? They are all very good points both negative and positive. So we can all make our minds up on what we think. Have your own opinions let us know by commenting below.
Now to look at how to attract more of a following for your blogs, website and social networks. After all they are all types of social media.

1. Complete your profile: You’d be surprised how many people never do this. Yet it’s the first thing people want to know about you. Most people check all the boxes (I’m a Virgo, in a relationship… done!) but don’t do much with the real “meat” of their profile, the About Me section. Put some thought into what you want people to know about you and why people should care.
2. Don’t follow the leader: It can be tempting to sit back and wait for people to contact you, for people to leave comments, for people to suggest installing some new application — rousing yourself only to respond to whatever prompts come your way. Take the initiative and add people, select a handful of apps you like and stick with them, and update on a semi-regular basis (or a regular basis; schedule 30 minutes a week to update your profile, if it’s an important part of your public image).
3. Accept everyone: There are two schools of thought on this: create an inner circle of close colleagues, comrades, or companions; or create a huge body of followers, fans, or ex-girl and boyfriends. I fall into the second camp — anyone who has taken the effort to “friend” me gets added. Those are the people who are willing to invest their attention in what you’re doing, who have given you permission to “broadcast” your life to them. Welcome them.
4. Pick one or two networks and work them: It can be tempting to sign up for dozens of social networking sites, especially when different contacts turn up on different sites. But it’s nearly impossible to make use of a dozen different sites, unless you figure out how to make a career of it. Instead, pick one or two sites and focus all your energies on creating useful, meaningful connections there.
5. Add everyone you know, no matter how little: Most services these days will scan your address book and tell you if there’s anyone you might already know on board. Some will also recommend people an on people you already know, places you’ve worked, or interests you’ve highlighted. (LinkedIn is scarily good at this!) If you come across someone you actually know in “real life”, no matter how distantly, add them. That is, after all, the point of social networking — to leverage the often-invisible connections that exist between us and other people. The worst that can happen is that they say “no” — this has never happened to me.
6. Send messages: Find a reason to connect with the people in your network, and send them a message once in a while. Since the main point of this is to keep a channel of communication open, it doesn’t have to be profound — a “happy birthday” is good, if the site reveals birthdays. Don’t, though, make it all about you — that is, don’t post a message to everyone in your list every time you update a picture, go to work, or leave your house. (You laugh — I’ve had friends that did this!)

Conclusion

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I hope you have learned as much as I have from this. Now you have the information to make up your own minds on what you think about social media. Let me know what you think. Did this article help you?

 Many Thanks for stopping by.