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Getting Small: The Future Of Social Media

Tony Wanless

| December 2, 2010

Image by: Hiking Artist

Tony predicts that the giant mass of social media will crumble into smaller, more focused platforms.

Social media has become so big that it’s almost useless. So look for less mass and more focus in the future.

Some rather spirited discussions I’ve had at various events recently have me thinking seriously about the future of social media, specifically, the big social media platforms.

Of course, there are still some business people just getting aboard such things as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

But from what I’m hearing online and offline, others are starting to think about how they can get off the train. Or at least how they can better use it.

The problem with Facebook and Twitter – and to a lesser extent LinkedIn – is that they’re like the ocean that continually and relentlessly crashes on the shoreline rocks. After a while, you don’t hear the noise anymore.

Messages and discussions pour in – often thinly disguised broadcast advertising – forcing you to pick through them for something relevant. That just takes too much time. In other cases, particularly on Facebook, the ability to send instant messages is overtaken by the numbing waves of trivia or regurgitated content.

As one man said to me, “I like that I can connect with people, but do I really need to know most of this stuff, much less give a thumbs up to it? What do I care what someone did last Sunday?”

Many business people say we need something better – that’s where the future comes in

The big platforms strive to bring in millions of users, largely so they can command a huge stock price. But those very millions are making the platforms difficult to use and are subverting the original intent – a place where people can connect and hold discussions. Sort of a village agora, or marketplace where people can meet and talk about what’s happening in their business and personal lives.

These giant mass platforms have become victims of their own ability to transmit information. They have trained people to differentiate between types of information and taught them that not all information is good information. They have also taught them that information, to be good, has to be useful. If it isn’t, it’s just a hum that’s distracting and time wasting.

The “mass” has become an ass with whom we no longer want to spend time.

I believe you’re going to see a big drop off in use of these mass platforms soon. People may remain on them, and dip into them occasionally to see what’s happening. But they won’t spend hours on them like they used to. Skimming your mass social media will become just another task in your daily life (if it hasn’t already).

In place of these giant platforms, I think we’re going to see organizations creating their own private social media platforms, to which you’ll be invited. They’ll be tools, more like wikis or what they used to call virtual private networks.

For example, one organization that has several divisions told me it’s going to form its own customer communities related specifically to subjects that it covers. Instead of simply trying to use a LinkedIn group or a Facebook page as a community discussion situation, it’s going to create its own platforms with lots of content and discussion for its specialized interest groups.

This won’t be a newsletter or any of those old-school iterations. In fact, it’s probably where social media is headed.

Look for a decreasing use of the mass, and a splintering off of social media that’s more focused on specific subjects or interests.

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Tony Wanless: Adrian, thanks

Submitted by Tony Wanless on Fri, 2010-12-03 15:40.

Tony Wanless: Adrian, thanks for your comment. I agree that social media is as useful as you want it to be and you can "manage" your social media usage. it's difficult, but I think most people are attempting to do just that. But I think the rest of your comment reinforces the mass concept behind social media that is the heart of the discontent I'm feeling out there. For example, your point that business attempts to create social networks within their circles of influence will likely fail because of compatibility problems. I'm not so sure about that. That implies more mass thinking, i.e. an attempt to get as many people on the network as possible. But most businesses today, unless they're distributing and selling mass consumer goods, are moving toward extreme targeting of customer bases, and so are trying to create communities of interest around their products or services. Another example is your analysis of my twitter profile. You say I can find more "value" by displaying more personality, which implies I will get more followers if I am more fun. You're probably right, but you don't seem to understand that I don't want to gather masses of followers. To me, the value is having a network that's interested in the same things that I am, which means staying smaller. In fact, on the advice of some pretty hot twitter users, I regularly prune my followers list to eliminate people who are merely connecting for the sake of connecting. As for the formal, boring, and professional look, that's on purpose (although I agree the picture isn't real great): It means I will draw (I hope) the kind of people I want to connect with through my thoughts, not with cosmetics. If that was the case, I'd just run a picture of George Clooney. I always go back to the main thing that should be behind everything a person or a business does, on social media or anywhere else. That's simply to ask "what is your purpose?" and then tailor your tools to help you achieve that purpose. If the purpose is a numbers game that makes you feel good or to sell something in an advertising oriented way, okay, so be it. If it's to set up a network of people with like-minded interests, that's another purpose. But by its nature, that's going to be smaller and more intimate. I guess what I'm saying is many people are starting to prefer this smaller and intimate setting: It's the difference between drinking through a straw and from a firehose.

This article reminds me of

Submitted by AdrianEden (not verified) on Fri, 2010-12-03 13:31.

This article reminds me of talking about the weather, there is nothing that you can do about it so why worry? Social Media is as useful as you want it to be. You do not have to connect with people who are not adding value to your life or business, therefore sifting through the noise is irrelevant. I personally predict a huge influx of Social Media usage, but I must first mention that I believe all media is Social Media, because we talk about it. The largest Social Network in the world is the Internet itself, a network of computers connecting people in order to be social and engage in business. Sites like Twitter and Facebook are just lily pads in the ocean of connectivity. I think businesses will try to create Social Networks within their own circle of influence, however most will fail as they do not allow flexibility and compatibility with all websites and devices. One thing you can do to find more value in your Social Media usage is add a bit of personality to your Twitter profile, it looks way too formal and professional. You are not smiling in your avatar, your Twitter background is standard, and your bio description is boring. At the end of the day people like to have fun, in every facet of life. You should support that in every way that you can.