Last week one of the people I follow (someone I know in real life as well) on Twitter called it quits. She said that despite following people she knew and found interesting, their tweets didn’t add enough for her to continue. She didn’t find the value in Twitters particular kind of social media. She does find value in other social media, because she is very active on other sites. This brings up an interesting question: should you continue with a social media site if you don’t enjoy it or gives you any value?
The easy answer of course is no. But that’s only the case when it’s for personal use. You can decide what you find interesting, how you want to interact with your family, friends and people you know. If you think a social media site like Facebook or Myspace is the way to go, you can. If not, you won’t have to bother. You can decide how much and how you want to share your personal life and if the time you spend on those sites is worth it. Even if they try to get you to use a certain site in order for them to contact you, you really don’t have to; they’ll find a way to contact you if necessary. The power of choice in these matters is all yours.
When it comes to businesses it’s a bit different. As a business you have to figure out where and how your customers want to interact with you. Just having an email address and phone number listed doesn’t cut it anymore. Knowing your customers social makeup and knowing how and where they spend their time online goes a long way in determining your social media strategy and the value that can come from it. And you may not want to have a Twitter account, but if that’s the way your customers want to contact you, it’s sound business to create an account anyway and find a way to use it well. Because using it well is a must. There will be brand damage when social media is used the wrong way.
It’s all about perspective when it comes to the value of social media. If it’s for personal reasons you have all the power in choosing the type you want to use. When in business, more often than not, the consumer makes the choice for you and shows you the media where you can find that value. It’s up to you to listen.
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