Social Media and Its Effect on Communication

Multidimensional interactions have altered the basic rules of communication

Social media haS draStically changed
how we communicate. Not too long ago,
we communicated through the mail, on
a land-line telephone, and in person. To-
day, we send text messages lea!e !oice
messages use instant messenger send
emails tal" through headphones, cell
phones, and online !ideo phones and,
of course, interact through the Internet
where a plethora of social media tools
has redefined communication.
Communication to #e genuine and
rele!ant.
To conduct #usiness with ethical com-
panies who wor" transparently.
To #e in partnership.
meeting each other in person, they are
no less ro#ust than the physical com-
munities in which we li!e, and in many
ways more ro#ust from the simple fact
that #arriers are remo!ed.


$nderstanding social media. %hile the &enerational perception of social media.
tools and "inds of social media are many
and their implementations seemingly
#oundless, they all share a common set
of characteristics that meet the rules of
social media 'stated a#o!e(. )erewith,
then, are the fi!e C*s of social media+
Three generations occupy today*s wor"-
place. The three generations can es-
sentially #e #ro"en out into those o!er
the age of ,-, the so-called .a#y .oom-
ers those in their /-s and 0-s, "nown as
&eneration 1 and those in their 2-s and
younger, "nown as &eneration 3. .a#y
.oomers ha!e the most difficulty com-
prehending the phenomena of social me-
dia, so the perception of social media #e-
tween the outliers4.a#y .oomers and
&en 34#ears consideration.
Such a redefinition has had an enor-
mous effect. The entire paradigm of so- Con!ersation. No longer is the commu-
cial media
has altered
the #asic
rules of
communica-
tion, espe-
cially
#etween
#usiness
and their
audienc-
es. The one-
way com-
munication
methods of
the recent
past4#usi-
ness-to-cus-
nication one-way, #roadcast or somehow
sent to a passi!e audience. Social media
is at least a two-way con!ersation, and of-
ten a multidimensional con!ersation.
Social media engages e!eryone in!ol!ed.
Contri#ution. Social media encourages .a#y .oomers essentially grew up in
contri#utions and reactions from anyone
who is interested. 5Encourage* is the "ey
here social media solicits an interaction,
positi!e and negati!e, #y ma"ing it easy
to contri#ute.
two-parent households 'almost 6- per-
cent of families(. 7or the !ast ma8ority,
dad wor"ed a 8o#, mom wor"ed at home.
This family unit, with its incum#ent net-
wor" of extended relati!es and neigh-
#ors, was the foundation of their li!es.
.oomers grew up with #lac" and white
tele!isions, party-line telephones, news-
papers, mail, dou#le-feature mo!ies, and
mom-and-pop corner stores.
Colla#oration. Social media promotes
an exchange of information #etween you
and your audience, and among audience
mem#ers, #y in!iting participation. Cre-
ating a 9uic" and simple colla#orati!e
platform re9uires that information #e
organi:ed and easily distri#uted.
;nly a#out 0, percent of &en 3 grew
up in two-parent households. 7or the !ast
ma8ority, dad and mom #oth wor"ed a 8o#,
essentially disintegrating the #asic fami-
ly unit of relati!es and neigh#ors. &en 3
grew up with color computers constantly
connected to the Internet, cell phones, dig-
ital media, email and text messaging, mo!-
ies at home, and #ig #ox chains. &en 3 is
inherently more comforta#le using the
tools of social media to communicate with
their networ" of peers and friends #ecause
they ha!e li!ed it their entire li!es.
tomer and #usiness-to-#usiness4ha!e
#een replaced #y a more ro#ust multidi-
mensional communication model. That
model is collecti!ely called social media
'also referred to as %e# 2.-(.
Connection. <ccessing information
on the Internet only ta"es a clic". Social
media thri!es on connections, within its
own %e# !ehicles and through lin"s to
other sites, resources, people, and auto-
matic feeds. =eople can e!en create their
own personali:ed site of connections.
The rules of social media. To communi-
cate effecti!ely in the social media world
means understanding the new rules of
the road. =eople want+
Community. The fundamental charac-
teristic of social media is the creation of
community+ a fellowship and relation-
ship with others who share common at-
titudes, interests, and goals 'such as
friendship, professionalism, politics, and
photography(. Communities form 9uic"-
ly and communicate effecti!ely. Com-
munities #uild goodwill from mem#ers
to the hosting organi:ation and among
mem#ers. %hile these communities
are only !irtual, with mem#ers seldom



To ha!e a say.
Meaningful dialogue.
To #e engaged and in!ol!ed in the
process.
=ersonal interactions with others.
To #e listened to.
To help shape what they find useful.
To connect with others engaged in
similar acti!ities.
=lain tal".
4rich maggiani




Solari enables simple, clear communication
focused on attaining a profitable return on in-
vestment through writing, editing, training, and
coaching. We ma e the complicated simple.
e ma e the complicated simple.
> 2-?2 Solari Communication. <ll @ights @eser!ed.
www.solari.net =hone+ A-2.AB6.6//-