Confessions of an online social media junkie

I find no embarrassment in admitting that I’m quite the whore when it comes to online social media. Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, Tumblr, Foursquare, Blogger, WordPress, LiveJournal, Xanga, MySpace, Friendster, and now my latest addi(c)tion Google+… you name it, chances are I am or have been on it.

It all started out during the dotcom bubble circa 1996, when the concept of finding your own little space in the rapidly growing cyberspace resulted in the popularity of free web hosting services. From this we witnessed the rise and eventual fall of Angelfire and Geocities – both of which I was an active user, despite having limited knowledge of HTML at the ripe age of 11. These were the closest we had to Facebook or even a personal blog, which I discovered via Diaryland in 1999. It was also during this pre-Google era when I found everything that I wanted to know through AltaVista, Lycos and Yahoo! The information that I uncovered was no more legit than Wikipedia but back in the day, it was definitely more feasible than camping out in the library or asking my parents… especially where the birds and the bees were concerned!

It’s mindblowing, looking at how far the Internet phenomenon has come in just 20 years. And here’s a crazy fact: Internet World Stats reports that as of March 2011, the estimated total number of Internet users makes up 30.2% of the world population.

When it comes to marketing, there’s a wealth of unexplored opportunities in the digital space waiting – begging, even – to be tapped into by those who are savvy enough to utilise its full potential. From e-tailers like Amazon and Asos to eBay (“The World’s Online Marketplace”), there’s no saying where the Internet will lead us to next. We’re already swapping our laptops for tablets – although I haven’t quite hopped onboard the iPad wagon as I’m too attached to my MacBook Pro to even consider replacing it! – and the mobility and accessibility of the Internet on smartphones means that we can search and retrieve information while we’re on the go.

My e-Marketing lecturer/convener predicts that the English language will eventually cease to exist as the cyberspace continues to grow, due to lack of knowledge in spelling which is all too common in most young people these days. According to her, the growing habit of replacing proper English words with images or emoticons will bring about a whole new language in which humans communicate through symbols or hieroglyphics. But I suppose that debate is for another day…

It will be interesting to see how retailers integrate online social media to create the ultimate user experience, in which a business reaches out to interact with its customers on a more personal, or personalised, level. We’re seeing a lot of it through official Facebook fan pages and Twitter accounts, but there remains a lot of undiscovered territory especially in regards to how a business continuously creates an interactive platform on which it can build, establish and maintain a relationship with its consumers. It’s important for businesses to understand the power of online social media, and to implement the best suited strategies. The Internet provides so much variety that it isn’t difficult for us to look elsewhere… so what exactly keeps us engaged?

Even with my established online presence across different social platforms, I’d still jump at the opportunity to experiment with a new or revamped concept… just to see what else is out there, what’s new that hasn’t been done before or what’s been done before but is being done right this time (holla, Google+!). It’s all about extending your digital footprint as much as possible – after all, once you’ve had a taste of playing the field it’s hard to stay committed 😉