Revolutionizing Everyday Communication: Social Media Sites

Social Media websites have grown phenomenally in recent years. Millions of people use social media sites like Facebook, Twitter etc. to connect with their virtual friends and share important tit-bits of their life. Wikipedia estimates that 1. 5 billion people use social Media websites. This speaks of the enormous power of social sites in terms of its reach.

While websites like Facebook, Twitter etc, have become a global phenomenon regional social media sites are not far behind. It would be difficult to believe but Japan occupies second place in terms of Twitter community. QQ, the largest social networking site of China has more than 300 million active members who form a vibrant community.

It is no wonder that large corporations have begun taking notice of social networking sites. They are actively utilizing the power of social sites to communicate with their customers. It is easy to spot a dedicated group for a particular product or a brand. The raw power of social sites can be gauged from the fact a simple application on Facebook can become viral and reach millions of users in no time. Which other medium can boast of such power in terms of reach and effectiveness?

Social networking sites have become integral part of social life. It does not matter if a person is a customer, producer or a marketer. If he is not using social site he is risking losing his business to his competitor.

Marketers have begun using the social sites to broadcast their message. There have been cases where the company whose product failed initially was able to re-launch the product successfully with the help of social sites.

Large corporations are not behind either. Dell Corporation successfully utilized Twitter to promote its promotional campaigns. The company created a special offer exclusively for Twitter users. It is believed that Dell Corporation was able to generate revenues to the tune of $ 10 million from Twitter alone. This example demonstrates the viral power of social sites which can catapult a brand into top league in no time.

There is much more scope for innovation in the technological interface of social networking sites. As the technology progresses we may witness the complete integration of various applications within social networking sites.