Social Media: what's the big idea

“When we change the way we communicate, we change society”

Clay Shirky

What’s the Big Idea?What’s the Big Idea?

Nicole de BeaufortPresidentFourth Sector Consulting, Inc.

•Generation X•Early Adopter•Mac “and” PC•Social Networker•Communicator•Planner•Ideaologist

ndeb@fourthsectorconsulting.com

Source: Obamafoodorama.com

Where conversations take place 1800-2020 *and beyond

Source: Baekdal.com

Source: Baekdal.com

April 2009: Facebook hit its 200 millionth user, up 100 million since August 2008.

Even before Oprah got a Twitter account, nearly 2 million people were using it.

As of April 2009, Facebook was the world’s 5th largest “country,” and growing.

Moldova, 2009: Facebook, Twitter served as organizing tools for flash mobs and planned protests.

Obama.collecta.com

Swine Flu: from “OMG!” to global pandemic on a Sunday afternoon. Viral media to track a virus.

Source: spectrumscience.com

Cuteoverload.com

Source: Forrester Research

Technology is the means to enable relevant social experiences.

The Internet is confusing – networks make it easy to connect to things you love.

For social media to truly be effective, the technology has to become boring and invisible.

Although, the iPhone changed everything.

Meaning

Order

"What, after all, has maintained the human race on this old globe, despite all the calamities of nature and all the tragic failings of mankind, if not faith in new possibilities and courage to advocate them?" - Jane Addams

We are awash in conversations: online and off. People are now “curating” their lives online

Social devices providing a platform for communication.

 It’s about the communication and not the device.

Applications, computers, etc. are ephemeral and discarded when no longer useful.

We still have a knowledge gap though.

As recently as 200 years ago we got our information (news, gossip) from the marketplace.

Now it’s a “both/and.” Quality trumps all.

Jump in. Spend time listening. Follow what interests you. Find people you know. Start a conversation. See what happens.

Send me your questions! NicoledeB.extendr.com @NicoledeB