Do you feel like you “get” social media, or do you just use it because that’s where all your friends and family are?
I do “get” social. But feel at times that it is a double, or even triple, edged sword.
On a personal level, I think social media has been absolutely life changing and enabled the world to connect. The ability to send a message, it travel half way around the world, and you get a read receipt a couple of seconds later. Just, wow.
We have the tools to have communicate, collaborate, and connect with anyone anywhere. In another street, another town, across an ocean, even in space. We are living in an age that just couldn’t be dreamed of even 50 years ago.
With my “day job” hat on, looking at the possibilities from a marketing point of view, social media has allowed companies to thrive. The chance for business to reach new customers, that may never have found them previously, has helped growth at an unparalleled rate. Beyond that, the growth of the social networks themselves has shown that from a small inception of an idea, there can be massive global growth, well into the 12, 13 or even 14 figure revenue.

Where did it all go wrong?
On the flip side, and taking in the thoughts of movies like The Social Dilemma ( https://www.thesocialdilemma.com/ ), there are unfortunately downside to these great advances as the social networks strive for bigger and better growth, that has come at the detriment of users as they try to get more of our attention.
There is also the very real possibility of these network being abused, as shown in the movie The Great Hack ( https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/80117542 ) where the data that these networks have about us as individuals get scraped for unfair or improper use. Twisting and turning these tools back on us.
Additionally, at a time when we have more tools than ever to connect us, it also gives us more opportunity to compare ourselves to others and seem to feel that we are missing something. The fear of missing out (FOMO) becomes real and we become ever more glued to a screen that fit in the palm of your hand.
How can we keep everything on an even keel?
This is a question that rattles back and forth for my conscience. On the one hand, as a marketeer, the possibility of growth, tracking website and social media usage, enable better data decisions. Wow. The world is out oyster.
On the flip side, why should we have tools that aren’t properly legislated, don’t have our best interest at heart, and are just in it for a buck?
I think the only way forward to ensure that as individuals, we have governments that will have our interest in mind when constructing and passing laws that will keep us safe together. As if we are left alone, we will all be worse for it.
What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments below 👇👇