Social Media: Revolution or Fad?

In case you missed it, Erik Qualman recently posted the following video on his Socialnomics site. If you’re able to tolerate the music, he presents some mind-blowing facts about the growth of social media sites and makes a convincing case for why people should take these channels seriously.

Did you know that if Facebook was a country it would be the fourth largest in the world behind the U.S.?

Qualman also broaches the subject: Is social media a revolution or a fad? I’ll let you check out the video before I weigh in.

There’s no doubt social media is revolutionizing the way we communicate and interact with one another and this is having a huge impact on everything from how we get our news in the morning to how politicians run for office. If you recall, Barack Obama’s team launched an impressive social media campaign in the lead-up to the elections.

But, I find it hard to believe we’ll all be so enthusiastic about Twitter, Facebook and YouTube in the years to come as many of us are now. More likely than not, these sites will be eclipsed by others and businesses’ use of social media to interact with their customers will become standard practice.

Case in point: How many people do you come across today who are ecstatic about how corporate websites are revolutionizing the way businesses share information with the public? Yet, any business with good sense has a website.

Like phones, fax machines and traditional websites, social media will become another set of tools businesses use to share information and engage online communities.

Jason Falls discusses the “hype cycle” social media is likely to experience as businesses begin experience disillusionment with these tools; yet, he is hopeful:

The essential logic is that new technologies have an explosion of hype that soon turns to a massive free fall as early-adopting businesses fail to see the promised profits or productivity improvement. Then a period of recuperation occurs where businesses begin to see realistic and long-term benefits from the technology. At that point it begins to find its way to the mainstream and blends to become part of the accepted business approach.

There’s also a good video on the topic from the folks at Tippingpoint Labs. I may be biased, as a friend of mine works for the agency, but I think they make a good case.

Social media is a fad of sorts, but it’s also here to stay. A huge number of businesses will continue to engage in these sites because consumers have adopted them in droves.

On the other hand, what is bound to change is our level of excitement about social media and that’s ok. It’s a natural progression experienced by every new, exciting technology.

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Tagged as: fad, revolution, social media, Socialnomics, Tipping Point Labs