In the industry that my company serves (Public Relations) social media is the biggest buzzword around. When I first heard that companies were interested in social media, I was amazed. Why would some company want to know what I like...what I'm doing...oh wait. I'm a consumer...duh. The platform that drove the social media into high gear (at least from my perspective) is Twitter (if you are not tweeting yet...don't worry, I'll tell you my thoughts on why you should/shouldn't later). Since social media is what is buzzing around me all the time, I got to thinking about the reasons that I use social media sites like blogs, Facebook, Twitter, etc. And, since this is my blog, I thought I'd write about those for you and my personal pros and cons for each.
Blogs
Blogs were really my first foray into social media. I started reading some blogs of friends about 6 years ago strictly as a way to keep up with them. On community-oriented sites like Xanga, I started finding random people that I didn't know whose blogs I enjoyed reading. Call it voyeuristic, but something about getting a peek into a stranger's day-to-day life entertains me. I started my own blog when I moved to Maryland in 2004 so that I wouldn't have to send mass email updates about my life to my friends back in SC. I found that I liked the cathartic aspect of blogging, and also made a few blog friends on Xanga. When you say "I have a blog", it means different things to different people. Some bloggers are anonymous, some aren't. Some people see blogs as strictly a way to update real-life friends on their life. Others use blogging as a way to write about things they can't talk about. Some blogs are "information only" and focus on a specific subject (like political blogs). Some people feel the blogging community is another level of friendship, and like to meet other people like (or not like) themselves. For me, my blog is combination of all of these things. I write about all kinds of subjects...what I like/dislike, how I live my life, what I believe, and I occasionally include photos. Blogging is such a versatile platform and is so accessible that a blog can truly be about anything. However, know that when you blog, you are basically putting yourself out there for anyone to read about you and what you write.
I read blogs for many different reasons. Mostly because I love information. See this old Xanga post for my thoughts on that. But I digress (about 2.5 years if you read that old post). I read blogs of my friends to keep up with their lives. I read blogs of random people because their lives seem interesting and I like the way they write. I read Music blogs to get insight into music itself, and I love reading about up and coming opera singers. I read blogs about topics I find interesting. While occasionally I will make a friend who is another blogger, it's not the main reason I blog. I have a limited capacity for having what I think of as "close" friends, and I think I have to keep them in the real world. While I often fail at blogging regularly, I do enjoy reading the updates of those who do.
Facebook
Ah, Facebook. The great time-suck and bane of some folks' existence. For me, Facebook is less a social networking site to meet people and more of a way to keep in touch with friends. I think that out of my 350 friends on FB, only one or two are people I don't know in real life. Granted, I may have met them only once IRL (in real life), but I have at least laid eyes on them. I love that I've gotten back in touch with high school friends on Facebook. I even was able to correspond with my old gymnastics coach, who I haven't seen in 12 years!
My favorite thing about Facebook are the status updates and photos. I love reading and seeing what people are up to. It helps me connect to them. That's part of the reason I don't like the new FB layout...I want to be able to see what my friends are up to without all the other junk that clutters up the News Feed. Thus, my least favorite aspect of Facebook are the quizes and links that people post. Though they are occasionally interesting, they are not what makes Facebook enjoyable or worthwhile for me. While many companies would like to monitor Facebook for people's status updates and to see what their comments about particular companies may be, FB is a closed system. And thus the popularity of Twitter...
Twitter
I must admit, the popularity of Twitter baffled me at first. Why go to Twitter to read status updates when you can go to FB for them? And who cares about what other people think on certain topics? But then, I started hearing more about Twitter, and considering that status updates are my favorite part of FB, I thought I'd give it a try. I was turned off at first because I thought you had to have device updates (where others' "tweets" are sent as texts to your phone) turned on and I didn't want to get someone's random status on my phone. But, as more of my blogging friends (or stalkees, if you will) began tweeting, I started to enjoy it. Tweeting is sort of in between FB and blogging...you have to say what you will in 140 characters or less. While I don't really want tweeting to replace blogging (like it has for my most favorite music blog, the concert...please come back to blogging ACB...I desperately miss your witty and insigtful writing!), I've recently started following people/organizations I'm interested in on Twitter, and I'm enjoying it (incidentally...click here to follow me on twitter if you'd like). However, one of the popular uses of Twitter is to get other's opinions on products and such. I don't know that I'd ever completely trust a Twitter opinion...can I really believe JoeShmo in Texas' opinion that the Silver Oak Napa Cab from 1999 tastes awful? (It doesn't, by the way). I don't know JoeShmo, what his tastes are, etc. However, if Joe has a blog, and I've read it for awhile and agree with most of his other opinions, I'd be more likely to trust his assessment of the Silver Oak Napa Cab. So, I think I'll stick to reading blogs for recommendations on most subjects.
The downside to Twitter for someone like me is that it's completely public (unless you make your updates protected..and where is the fun in that?). So, for example, if I mention my company name in a Tweet, that is going to go to my boss and the execs at my company. Also, some people mix personal and private lives on Twitter...one update says something like..."at work for PR firm XYZ and building media lists" and the next says something like "got so drunk last night that I peed in my closet". Personally, I don't think that's the way to build a professional reputation for interacting with people outside of your organization!
The Public vs. Private nature of social media is one aspect that is a bit daunting. It's easy to read about someone's life when you don't know them. I had an interesting encounter the other day that made me think about whether or not reading someone's blog is violating their privacy. There is a blog of an opera singer in Baltimore that I read on a regular basis. She is not anonymous on her blog, and when I first started reading, I had no idea who she was. But, in the past year or so, I discovered that we have some mutual friends. I finally officially met her IRL at a bachelorette party a few weeks ago. Even though we were meeting for the first time, from reading her blog I felt like I already knew her pretty well. It felt awkward. As the night went on and we were drinking wine, I wanted to tell her that I read her blog. I really did...but it felt weird. So I didn't. And then I felt kind of sneaky. Like I had been gossiping about her. I know it should be fine...she puts herself out there as a blogger, and it's not like I am stalking her...but it still felt strange to know so much about her and have her not know. So Jessica, if you happen to stumble across this blog...please don't be weirded out...and know that I love reading your blog!
And now that I've rambled here for awhile...it's time to check Facebook!
No comments:
Post a Comment