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The line between what is and isn't a social media or social networking site isn't always a clear one. Internet message boards, for instance, facilitate the creation of online communities, but they typically don't have the robust "friends list" features of a true social networking site. Some sites don't have social networking as their primary goal, but accomplish that function. Last.fm, for instance, is a way for users to track their music listening habits, rate songs and create their own custom stations of streaming music to listen to. Because users can also compare their tastes to those of other users, and create profiles and friends lists, it also acts as a social networking site.
There are two things that a website must have, to be defined as a social networking site:
Many social networking sites offer capabilities far beyond the basics, often based on the specific type of networking the site caters to. For example, a business networking site might allow users to post resumes or references. A photo sharing site would most likely have advanced image galleries built in, plus ways to rate or discuss other people's photos. A music-focused site could allow users to automatically upload lists of songs they listen to on their media players. New applications are expanding the capabilities of social networking sites every day, giving us more opportunities to interact with them (and, some might argue, fewer opportunities to get away from them). Why are some sites more popular than others, and why do some sites fade in popularity after a while? Anyone who can give you a definite answer to that question is well on the way to becoming a millionaire. Actually, site popularity is defined by many complex factors. It also varies among different populations -- some sites are more popular with younger users, while some that are not well-known in the United States are popular in other countries. Sometimes a fade in popularity can be attributed to a new site with more or more useful features. Sometimes it revolves around social networks themselves. For instance, a single user or group of users with a lot of connections can make a switch to a new site and bring all their contacts with them. Since every "friend" has his or her own friends, the ripple effect can eventually become enormous. For example, while Friendster has experienced a decline in American users, it has become enormously popular in the Philippines. Friendster traced the shift to one west coast American user who had many contacts in the Philippines [source: Woodard Maderazo].
Social Media is a form of internet marketing which seeks to achieve branding and marketing communication goals through the participation in various social media including writing content that is remarkable, unique, and newsworthy. It utilises social networking and user-generated content platforms to promote a product, service or content. Social media can take many different forms, including Internet forums, business blogs, social blogs, wiki content, podcasts, pictures, video, rating and social bookmarking.
How can Social Media help your business?Social Media can help to;
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Social Media or Social Networking for Business
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