How We Live is Changing
In his Social Media Revolution video, Erik Qualman, author of Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way We Live and Do Business, convincingly supports the notion that Americans are using technology to communicate in two fundamentally new ways, on-line and on-the-go. He asks two key questions “Is Social Media a Fad? Or, Is it the biggest shift since the Industrial Revolution?” Qualman’s statistics convince many that social media is here to stay. To call a new method of communication a revolution may be a tad extreme, but one thing is for sure – social media are reshaping how we live and work.
As they expand and evolve, social media are both replacing and complementing many human behaviors, and for businesses this means adjusting how they function across the organization not just in marketing and sales. Social media is not just about socializing, it is the information source for entertainment, products, services, news, and just about all things.
In many cultures, social media are replacing newspapers, magazines, publications and catalogs, direct mail, phone time, TV time, radio time, face to face time, visits to the mall, snail mail, and much more. Overall, social media represents a shift in where we spend time and communicate. Smart leaders must ask themselves “What does this mean for my business?”
How We Work is Changing
As social media replace many traditional information and communication channels, they are also expanding and complementing traditional information. For example, the technological foundation of social media itself provides access to increased real time information on consumers, consumer feedback, news, advertising, and other information. This data complements market research, advertising efforts, and provides a “multiplier” effect for word of mouth referral.
The shift toward social media communication, thus, provides businesses with many upsides and downsides. Businesses have access to more information, but it is increasingly fragmented and located in highly segmented populations online. Social media allows direct communication and feedback with consumers, but this demands increased time and effort to create meaningful real-time relationships across rapidly changing, highly fickle technology platforms.
Businesses must begin to examine how social media will impact its internal and external functioning
The movement toward social media communication is growing and moving at market speed. According to Qualman, it took radio 38 years to reach 50 million users, 13 years for TV to reach 50 million users, 4 years for the Internet to reach 50 millions users, and just nine months for Facebook to reach 100 million users. In 2009, Boston College stopped issuing e-mail address to freshmen because Generation Y and Z consider e-mail passé. Clearly for Generation Y and Generation Z, as well as early technology adapters, social media is here to stay.
The social media platforms may evolve and change, but the manner of communicating in shared, virtual spaces will continue to spread. Some may consider the social media movement a generational movement, yet the fastest growing demographic on Facebook are Baby Boomers ages 55-65 increased 922% in 2009. Furthermore, as the number of Generation Y – almost 100% on social networks – is set to surpass the number of Baby Boomers in 2010, this trend will only strengthen.
What does this have to do with women leaders?
When the default image of a CEO, leader, or technologist is male, women are not provided the benefit of the doubt when it comes to technological expertise and savvy. Thus, women must to be expert in the business implications of the social media (r)evolution. Furthermore, women need to understand the basics of the platforms. Women risk confirming stereotypes when they say “I don’t tweet”.
How We Lead & Build Influence is Changing
Sherry Perlmutter Bowen, a gender and communication professor at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, says she sees men using social media to build expertise and influence. She doesn’t, however, see women doing this. “I see males espousing their wisdom on social media sites and using social media to sell, to compete, to ‘climb the ladder,’” she says. Clearly, many women are using social media to build a following and connect for impact.
This is a long way of saying that women who aren’t using social media to build expertise and influence are missing the opportunity of a lifetime. Please don’t be one of them.
