“Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media” - Andreas M. Kaplan & Michael Haenlein
Central issue: “The concept of Social Media is top of the agenda for many business executives today. Decision makers, as well as consultants, try to identify ways in which firms can make profitable use[1] of applications such as Wikipedia, YouTube, Facebook, Second Life, and Twitter. Yet despite this interest, there seems to be very limited understanding of what the term ‘Social Media’ exactly means; this article intends to provide some clarification.” (AKMH, p.59)
> Problem: loss of control over brand image/identity
“(…) businesses have increasingly less control over the information available about them in cyberspace. Today, if an Internet user types the name of any leading brand into the Google search, what comes up among the top five results typically includes not only the corporate webpage, but also the corresponding entry in the online encyclopedia Wikipedia. (…) Today, however, firms have been increasingly relegated to the sidelines as mere observers, having neither the knowledge nor the chance–—or, sometimes, even the right–—to alter publicly posted comments provided by their customers.” (AKMH, p.60)
» Remark: The idea of centralized control over brand image/identity is, I believe, a misconception of the process of identity formation. A brand image is established not only by the ideas spread by the company, but also by the individual interpretation of these ideas by consumers and the ideas they add or spread themselves about the brand. While the increased amount of UGC has made users opinions more visible to companies, it has probably made the influence of users comments only slightly more pertinent. (Although, of course, I cannot say this with absolute certainty…)
Definitions:
- WEB 2.0
”Although Web 2.0 does not refer to any specific technical update of the World Wide Web, there is a set of basic functionalities that are necessary for its functioning. (…) we consider Web 2.0 as the platform for the evolution of Social Media. (…) Web 2.0 represents the ideological and technological foundation (…)” (AKMH, p.61) - User Generated Content (UGC)
”UGC can be seen as the sum of all ways in which people make use of Social Media. (…) According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 2007), UGC needs to fulfill three basic requirements in order to be considered as such: first, it needs to be published either on a publicly accessible website or on a social networking site accessible to a selected group of people; second, it needs to show a certain amount of creative effort; and finally, it needs to have been created outside of professional routines and practices. The first condition excludes content exchanged in e-mails or instant messages; the second, mere replications of already existing content (e.g., posting a copy of an existing newspaper article on a personal blog without any modifications or commenting); and the third, all content that has been created with a commercial market context in mind.” (Ibid.) - Social Media
”(…) Social Media is a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of User Generated Content.” (Ibid.)
> Remark: In a previous post, I contested this definition for several reasons.
Observation:
”(…) there is no systematic way in which different Social Media applications can be categorized. (…) To create such a classification scheme, and to do so in a systematic manner, we rely on a set of theories in the field of media research (social presence, media richness) and social processes (self-presentation, self-disclosure), the two key elements of Social Media.” (Ibid.)
> Classification:
- Media richness // social presence allowed
“Applied to the context of Social Media, we assume that a first classification can be made based on the richness of the medium and the degree of social presence it allows. With respect to the social dimension of Social Media, the concept of self-presentation states that in any type of social interaction people have the desire to control the impressions other people form of them (Goffman, 1959). On the one hand, this is done with the objective of influencing others to gain rewards (e.g., make a positive impression on your future in-laws); on the other hand, it is driven by a wish to create an image that is consistent with one’s personal identity (e.g., wearing a fashionable outfit in order to be perceived as young and trendy). The key reason why people decide to create a personal webpage is, for example, the wish to present themselves in cyberspace (Schau & Gilly, 2003). Usually, such a presentation is done through self-disclosure; that is, the conscious or unconscious revelation of personal information (e.g., thoughts, feelings, likes, dislikes) that is consistent with the image one would like to give.” (AKMH, p.61-62)
- Self-disclosure required // self-presentation allowed
“Self-disclosure is a critical step in the development of close relationships (e.g., during dating) but can also occur between complete strangers; for example, when speaking about personal problems with the person seated next to you on an airplane. Applied to the context of Social Media, we assume that a second classification can be made based on the degree of self-disclosure it requires and the type of self-presentation it allows.” (AKMH, p.62)
[1] Remark: let us not forget that much of the research on Social Media is aimed at marketing policies and generating profit.
Source: michaelhaenlein.eu
