In the modern world, everything has become social media. You employ it to communicate with your friends, watch movies, read the news, and even shop. However, it had not always been so. Social media has made good progress in the last few decades. It began as a recreational way to connect with people online. Today, it is one of the most potent means on the Internet, accepted by companies, authorities, musicians, and opinion leaders.
Throughout this article, you will learn how social media, which began as mere websites, evolved into a global network. You will also understand how it turned out to be a valuable source of marketing and business.
The Early Days: That is How It Began
Not everything that happens on social media comes out of nowhere. It began very early in the internet’s history with websites like Six Degrees in 1997. On this site, you can create a profile and make friends. It was simple, but it led the way into something far greater.
The early 2000s produced a great number of social media sites. Friendster and MySpace caught on, especially among the youth. These are sites where you get to update your statuses, get music into your profile and connect with other people. Musicians have gone a notch higher and have posted their music on MySpace. Hence, it can be considered as one of the initial websites to integrate socializing and advertising.
Rise of Facebook
In 2004, Facebook was launched and nothing would be the same. It focused on college students at first, but it soon became a global site. Through Facebook, people have been able to interact with their friends easily as they transfer pictures, share status updates among others. Its bare look and functionality made it the most popular social media site on the global scene.
Other platforms followed after the success of Facebook. Twitter in 2006, which enabled short messages to be shared faster and Instagram in 2010, which made it easier to share photographs. Snapchat allowed sending vanishing messages and using nice filters. Then came TikTok for sharing short videos.
Social Media In Our Daily Lives
As time progressed, social media lost its fascination. This has become the norm. You just find yourself waking up and start reading messages. During lunch, you check Instagram. You get updated on current happenings on Twitter. Hence, social media allows us to know what is happening around the globe in real time.
The innovation of smartphones further made people spend more time online and anywhere. Applications were also quite easy to use and internet access was made faster. This implies that it is easy to post pictures, comment on new entries and share your life at any given instance. There are millions of people all over the world who spend several hours every day on social media.
Social Media: An Effective Way of Marketing
Companies became aware of the higher usage of social media by more people. What they observed was that it was not such a place where they could just take selfies, but was a destination of decisions. People read what is said online when making purchases of a product, checking into a hotel or eating at a restaurant.
This explains why organizations have started marketing and advertising themselves via social media, so that they can connect with their users. They do not require spending huge amounts of money to publish posters or advertisements on TV. They use their finances to make the content and post it on Facebook, Instagram, Reddit or TikTok.
For example, Reddit provides a unique opportunity for marketing, due to its special feature called subreddits. Subreddits are dedicated to a given topic, such as music, gaming, fitness, or business. Hence, as a marketer, you will be able to reach people who already have an interest in what you are selling. Therefore, marketing through Reddit is a good way to promote your brand, especially when in need of truthful feedback and sincere communication.
To achieve the best visibility, many companies include services like from GETUpvotes agency services that offer real Reddit upvotes as part of their marketing strategy. The more upvotes a post receives, the higher it ranks in a subreddit’s Hot or Top section. This means your content reaches a wider audience, attracts more clicks, and gives people the chance to discover more about your brand.
Future of Social Media
What will happen next with social media, then? It constantly evolves, and new trends always emerge. Platforms are also introducing their latest features, such as live streaming, augmented reality filters, and even shopping, so that you can buy the products right after a post.
It is also more authentic-centered, which means being authentic means being real and telling the truth. The current consumers are intelligent. They do not listen to dull ads or bogus accounts. They desire to follow trustworthy people and brands.
As an entrepreneur, you need to keep yourself updated on current trends on social media. New sites will be created while the current ones you may be using become obsolete. However, one thing is for sure and that is, social media is not going anywhere.