The Power of Social Media in Business - Essay Example

The Power of Social Media Student’s Name Instructor’s Name: Course: Date of Submission The Power of Social Media In the modern internet age, social media has become one of the most powerful communication and business tools in the world. With over a billion people in several social media sites, which represents over a sixth of the world’s population, social media has emerged to be one of the most important communication tools in all sectors of life. Some of the most prominent social media sites are Facebook, Twitter, Linked and Google+. With the increased communication around the globe, social media is contributing to the creation of a global village in addition to leading to a shift of power to the people. According to Carlos Slim, one of the wealthiest businesspersons in Latin America, the key to doing business in the modern world is the internet (Slim 2000, p.1). For this reason, the social media, which is a major component of internet communication, is indispensable. The following essay will give a deep insight into the power of social media. The essay will focus on the power of social media with respect to economics but will also give an insight into its influence on social and political spheres of life. As pointed out in the introduction, this essay will start by looking at the power of the social media in economy. On this point, it should be acknowledged that social media is an important business toll in the modern age. Ideally, almost every organization has some degree of presence in the social media. It is common for companies to request people to follow or add them in the social media sites. This is owing to the importance of social media in business. The following section will give the power of social media with respect to the economy. To start with, it should be appreciated that the power of social media is bestowed in its ability to reach large masses of people within a short duration of time (Jackson 2010, p.55). A simple communication on the social media sites reaches millions within minutes of its release. This is the major strength of social media which gives it its inherent communication power. The marketing power of the social media is amicably one of its most exploited abilities. As pointed out earlier, the social media has the ability to reach out to a large number of people within a short duration of time. This is the one of the major objectives of marketing; being able to make a product known to a large number of people within a short duration of time. In order to do this, organizations use the social media as a communication tool to reach out to targeted multitude. As an example, an organization may use its Facebook page to market its brands by interacting with the target population. The organization may then use to the page to communicate with the customers and clear out any queries which may arise. Secondly, it can be noted that social media has a great e commerce power. On this point, it is important to appreciate that e commerce activities have been on the rise in the recent years. The increase in online shopping trends is a manifestation of this claim. Owing to the fact that social media has the ability to reach out to large numbers of people, it automatically becomes convenient for use in e commerce. It is common for organizations to source online shoppers from social media sites and direct them using links to their e commerce websites or even transact with them on social media forums (Holmes, McLean & Green 2012, p.143). In addition to this, it is common for organizations to give an option for their target customers to log in to their sites using social media accounts. This is a proof of the power of social media in e commerce. Lastly, the communication power associated with social media gives organizations an added economic advantage if they have a strategic use of social sites. Ideally, many organizations use social media sites to communicate important information to their customers. Ideally communication has an important influence on the economic well-being of an organization. Taking an example of Tesco and the horse meat scandal, it can be noted that the social media was an important communication tool which the organization used to contain the issue. From this, it can be acknowledged that social media has a great communication power. Looking at social media with respect to a political perspective, its vast use gives an indication of its power. First, it can be acknowledged that social media is a very important campaign tool. On this point, it is important to note that almost every politician who seeks to manage in the modern times has a social media account in at least one famous social site (Bronstein 2013, p.174). This is because of the campaigning efficiency associated with the use social media sites. The efficiency narrows down to the large number of people which is accessible top politicians within a short duration of time. Secondly, it is also important to note that the social media in governance has increased over time. This can also be attributed to the power of social media. On this point, it is important to give reference to cabinet meetings with the public which have become common in Australia and America (Dyett 2011, p.1). In several instances, the presidents have also communicated with the public on a one on one basis; which gives an indication of the power of social media. This is also an indicator of the shift of power from bureaucracy to social networking. Lastly, it can be acknowledged that social media sites give an indication of the prevailing political atmospheres in a country. Of late, people have turned to the social media to vent their political opinions; giving an indication of the political influence which social media has on people. Lastly, the power of social media can be evaluated with respect to the social sphere. Firstly, it can be noted that social media has contributed to the creation of a global village; one which communication from one part of the world can be done with a click of a button. The increased networking has contributed to globalizations, giving rise to virtual communities owing to the lack of physical contact. However, it can be acknowledged that globalizations have been largely influenced by social media. On this point, it is important to give reference to the recent revolution in the Arabic countries (Abdelhay 2012, p.531). From the revolution, it came out clearly that there is so much power in the social media. The communication and mobilizing of people during the about the revolts was made through social networks. In addition to this, the communication between the Al Qaeda linked Alshabab Militia in Somalia was propagated through Twitter during the recent invasion by Kenya Defense Forces. This is an indicator of the networking power of the social media. Social media also has a large influence in the creation of relationships/ marriages among other social aspects. In conclusions, this essay has given an insight of the power of social media from the perspectives of the economic, social and political spheres. From the essay, it has come out clearly that the power of social media is bestowed in its ability to reach out to a large number of people within a short duration of time. This gives social media its inherent power of communication. This is explains its diversified use in the various spheres of life which have been discussed. From the essay, it is clear that the social media is an important communication tool in the modern world. Owing to the ever growing number of social media network and internet users, it is important for organizations and other authorities to embrace the use of social media in addition to increasing their internet presence. References Abdelhay, N.,2012. The Arab uprising 2011: new media in the hands of a new generation in North Africa, Aslib Proceedings: New Information Perspectives Vol. 64 No. 5, pp. 529-539 Bronstein, J., 2013. Like Me! Analyzing the 2012 Presidential Candidates’ Face Book Pages, Online Information Review, Vol. 37 No. 2, pp. 173-192 Dyett, K., 2011. News, ABC News Retrieved on 3rd August 2013 from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-07-26/act-twitter-community-cabinet/2810294 Holmes, K., McLean R., & Green, G., 2012. Crafting a Future Online, A Study of How Independent Craftspeople Adopt Social, Media and Web Technologies, Journal of Systems and Information Technology, Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 142-154 Jackson, S., 2010. New Media: Debunking the Myths, Journal of Business Strategy, Vol. 31, No. 1; pp. 56-58 Slim, C., 2000.The Key is the Internet; Bloomsburg Business Week Feb 21st Annotated Bibliography Abdelhay, N.,2012. The Arab uprising 2011: new media in the hands of a new generation in North Africa, Aslib Proceedings: New Information Perspectives Vol. 64 No. 5, pp. 529-539 The journal article is written by Nawaf Abbdelhay and has been sourced from Aslib Proceedings: New Information Perspectives which is a credible journal. The article gives an insight into the political revolutions which occurred in the Arabic countries. The relevance of the article to the topic ‘The power of social media’ is that it talks about the use of social media in communication during the revolutions. Bronstein, J., 2013. Like Me! Analyzing the 2012 Presidential Candidates’ Face Book Pages, Online Information Review, Vol. 37 No. 2, pp. 173-192 The article is written by Jenny Bronstein and has been sourced from Online Information Review, which is a credible journal. The article talks about the use of social networks in political issues such as campaigning, hence its relevance to the essay topic. Dyett, K., 2011. News, ABC News Retrieved on 3rd August 2013 from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-07-26/act-twitter-community-cabinet/2810294 The news article is written by ABC News, a reputable Global media house. The article talks about the use of social media by the Australian government to interact with the general public. The relevance of the article to the essay topic is that its gives an insight into the use of social media in politics. Holmes, K., McLean R., & Green, G., 2012. Crafting a Future Online, A Study of How Independent Craftspeople Adopt Social, Media and Web Technologies, Journal of Systems and Information Technology, Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 142-154 The article is written by Kate Holmes, Rachel McLean and Gill Green and sourced from Journal of Systems and Information Technology. The article talks about the use of social media in business. The relevance of the article top the essay topic is that it gives an insight into the use social media in business. Jackson, S., 2010. New Media: Debunking the Myths, Journal of Business Strategy, Vol. 31, No. 1; pp. 56-58 The article is written by Jackson S. It talks about the use of social media in the modern business world as compared to the previous times. The article is relevant to the essay topic since it gives an insight into the common myths which are associated with social media. Slim, C., 2000.The Key is the Internet; Bloomsburg Business Week Feb 21st The article on Bloomsburg Business is an interview on Slim C. one of the wealthiest business men in Latin America. The interview gives an insight on the relevance of social media in business, thus its relevance to the essay topic. Read More