Social media ain't what you think

Social media ain't what you think

Social media is the hot topic on the web. Twitter is getting more airtime than most celebrities. Your grandma has a Facebook account.

But social media ain't what you think it is. I'll explain...

Most people using social media don't even know how social media works. That includes you. No negativity. Don't get mad. In fact, there are two huge benefits for you to gaining an understanding of social media. First, you can put it to better use and second, you can steer clear of those fakers who call themselves 'experts' and 'gurus' who claim to know what they're doing. Would Britney Spears need to call herself a pop star?

It's not about technology
Social media seems to change daily. There's a new feature, a new platform or daily trend to stay on top of. I would recommend spending less time worrying about the small waves of social media and more time on the timeless qualities that go into making it tick.

Those who get caught up in the 'technology' side of it are playing a losing g**e. Sit back, relax and let the crowd do some of the work for you. If a feature or platform is legitimate, the masses will verify and adopt it. They will tell you where you need to go. In social media, the number one rule is to think crowd first. The better you get at this, the more ability you'll have to intuitively know where the crowd is going next and position yourself.

Timeless communication
Now the important facets to understand are the timeless ones. Humans have the same basic communication needs and tendencies that they've always had. Spend your time mastering these and you'll master social media no matter how it twists and turns.

Are you a master communicator?
Can you wrap your head around group psychology? Behavioral tendencies? Trends?
Do you understand marketing?

These are important questions to ask yourself. The answer lies in how we as humans think, why we communicate, what factors into our decision to buy, etc.

The social media cake
The best way to describe social media is to compare it to a cake. Each ingredient is important to the appearance, texture and taste of the cake.

The recipe for social media includes the following ingredients:
-your ability to communicate (as you would in any conversation)
-your behavior (including communication) in a crowd
-the application of marketing

As a kid, I used to take apart something so I could understand it. I would always dismantle my watches, a remote control or electronic gadget. This gave me great insight about how things work. If you know what the ingredients are and look at their relationship to each other, you're well on your way to knowing how to bake a great cake.