Social Media. You’re Probably Already a Part of It and Don’t Even Know It.

A Guest Post By Erin Ryan

First off, this is not for those mainstream New Media folks that already know that Digg is a news site or why Twitter has nothing to do with a bird. This is meant for those who are new to the Social Mediaverse and are unsure, skeptical and maybe even too old fashioned to be persuaded.

As a twenty-eight year old growing up in the so-called “Tech Age”, as computers revolutionized and “the internet” was the coolest thing on the face of the earth, even if dial-up took 3 hours, my generation didn’t care, we would sit there and watch the little earth icon spin, for we knew that soon enough, our page that we requested would magically appear.

As seasons changed, so did the way we used the computer, we got to say bye bye to dial up and witness a birth given to higher speeds and faster bandwidths. This encouraged us to make webpages and blogs that people could subscribe to and leave comments, forums  were built on subjects that we cared about, e-mails changed the way we worked and the “IM” (Instant Messaging) began to change the way we socialized.

Gone are the days that “The Internet” is a scary place, for we have taken over the world with our choice to communicate via the web, and since we spent so much time here, the next logical step was a thing called Social Media.

What Is Social Media?

Social Media is an umbrella that covers your various activities and integrates technology, social interactions, videos, pictures and words. Not all of the above mentioned needs to be shared in one spot, but a few examples of such places that utilize these functions are most likely places you are either using or have heard of, such as; Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, LinkedIn, Mixx, YouTube and countless others. Social Media is the new-aged Media. It has traveled past radio and television, to allow us to connect globally in an interactive way. The difference between Media and Social Media is that we can receive information (what ever form it is in) in real-time and be able to share it with others in a fast fashion. The most significant difference is the social aspect, we are able to be heard, to share our voice, opinions and in some ways become the reporter.

With Media, there is a disconnect, we are the audience and we tune in to what ever news or entertainment news organizations that we’d prefer, with Social Media, whatever Social Network we belong to we can not only be fed all types of news, but we are connected with one another as a community, with “like” buttons, comment sections and tagging to what or whom we want. We are limitless and in this fast pace society we are enjoying the less time consuming approach to being in touch with our world.

Social Media without Labels

As I am sure you have come across many who claim to be Social mavericks, mavens or experts. In my opinion, there is no such thing. We are all capable of learning and understanding Social Media without labels. The industry is too fast pace and in a constant state of change that it is impossible, and in some ways irresponsible to have those believe that you have insider knowledge. Here’s the thing, Social Media is not a place to conquer but a place to be involved, to help shape the way we share and to be a member of a non-exclusive growing population.

Let’s Be Friends

So here’s to those that are New to Social Media, or to those who were unaware that the time they spent on Social Networking Sites was them taking part in this new form of Media. As you continue on your journey, let’s try and remember that the so-called “no0bs” or newbie’s are in fact people too and that we can all contribute to each others knowledge on how to better ourselves as we continue to grow within Social Media.

This is dedicated to all those who are a part of Social Media and didn’t even know it.

Erin Ryan is a Social Media Devotee, who is very active on various Social Networking sites. By day, Erin is a freelance image designer for various online stores and is currently a Social Media intern. You can contact her via Twitter http://twitter.com/4u2wear2

* * *

Read more (or contribute!) to this Social Media Blog.
Image courtesy of BioJobBlog.

Tagged as: Social Media