Evolution of Social media

Social media has become an integral part of modern society.

Early Social Networks

Dating Sites

Dating sites are sometimes considered the first social networks. The first dating sites started
cropping up almost as soon as people started going online. They allowed users to create
profiles (usually with photos) and to contact other users.

Forums

Online forums also played a large part in the evolution of the social web. These were really
descendents of the BBSs popular in the 70s and 80s, but usually came with a more user-
friendly interface, making them easier for non-technical visitors to use. Various forum
platforms, including vBulletin and phpBB, were developed, many of which are still used for
forums. Forums remain a popular part of online culture, and many have made strides to add
more social networking-type features (like profiles).

While many people consider dating sites or sites like Classmates.com to be the first social
networks, they don’t really fit the definition.

Dating sites rarely allowed you to keep a friends list, neither did Classmates in its early years
(and profiles were severely limited). The following sites were the first true social networks.

Six Degrees

Six Degrees was launched in 1997 and was the first modern social network. It allowed users
to create a profile and to become friends with other users.

While the site is no longer functional, at one time it was actually quite popular and had
around a million members at its peak.

In 2000 it was purchased for $125 million and in 2001 it was shut down.

AsianAvenue, MiGente, BlackPlanet

These sites cropped up in the years following SixDegrees’ launch, between 1997 and 2001.
They allowed users to create profiles and add friends (generally without needing approval to
add people). Users could create professional, personal and dating profiles on these sites.

While they were some of the earliest social networks, there were few innovations among
them.

LiveJournal

LiveJournal started in 1999 and took a different approach to social networking.

While Six Degrees allowed users to create a basically-static profile, LiveJournal was a social
network built around constantly-updated blogs.

LiveJournal encouraged its users to follow one another and to create groups and otherwise
interact. It was really the precursor to the live updates we see in social networks currently

World of Warcraft / MMORPGS

MMORPGS (Massively multiplayer online role-playing games) have become social networks
in their own right. The most famous of these is World of Warcraft, where players interact
both in the game world and on related forums and community sites.

Social interaction within the games ranges from teams set up specifically for tactical reasons
within the game to friendships to romances. MMORPGS became popular in the early 2000s,
though there were other online role-playing and other games prior to that.

Importance of Social Media to

Business
 Social media is easily accessible and it’s also the meeting point
of today’s internet savvy audience.
 Major portion of younger generation, teenagers and middle aged
people, are major percentage of the total social media user
population.
 Social media opens possibilities of direct access to clients
without any third party intervention.
 Advertising through social media is pretty cost friendly as
compared to costs incurred by print, TV or other traditional
media.
  Social media also helps in search engine optimization and
increase in rankings of any company websites.

https://www.contentfac.com/9-reasons-social-media-marketing-
should-top-your-to-do-list/#The-Importance-of-Social-Media-
Marketing-and-Advertising-for-Web-Traffic

Viral marketing
Viral marketing or viral advertising is a business strategy that uses existing social networks
to promote a product. Its name refers to how consumers spread information about a product
with other people in their social networks, much in the same way that a virus spreads from
one person to another.It can be delivered by word of mouth or enhanced by the network
effects of the Internet and mobile networks.

The concept is often misused or misunderstood,as people apply it to any successful enough
story without taking into account the word "viral".

Viral advertising is personal and, while coming from an identified sponsor, it does not mean
businesses pay for its distribution.[5] Most of the well-known viral ads circulating online are
ads paid by a sponsor company, launched either on their own platform (company web page or
social media profile) or on social media websites such as YouTube.Consumers receive the
page link from a social media network or copy the entire ad from a website and pass it along
through e-mail or posting it on a blog, web page or social media profile. Viral marketing may
take the form of video clips, interactive Flash games, advergames, ebooks, brandable
software, images, text messages, email messages, or web pages. The most commonly utilized
transmission vehicles for viral messages include pass-along based, incentive based, trendy
based, and undercover based. However, the creative nature of viral marketing enables an
"endless amount of potential forms and vehicles the messages can utilize for transmission",
including mobile devices.

The ultimate goal of marketers interested in creating successful viral marketing programs is
to create viral messages that appeal to individuals with high social networking potential
(SNP) and that have a high probability of being presented and spread by these individuals and
their competitors in their communications with others in a short period.[8]

The term "viral marketing" has also been used pejoratively to refer to stealth marketing
campaigns—marketing strategies that advertise a product to people without them knowing
they are being marketed to.
Word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM,
WOM marketing), also called word of mouth advertising, differs from
naturally occurring word of mouth, in that it is actively influenced or encouraged by
organizations (e.g. 'seeding' a message in a networks rewarding regular consumers to engage
in WOM, employing WOM 'agents'). While it is difficult to truly control WOM, research[1]
has shown that there are three generic avenues to 'manage' WOM for the purpose of WOMM:
1.) Build a strong WOM foundation (e.g. sufficient levels of satisfaction, trust and
commitment), 2.) Indirect WOMM management which implies that managers only have a
moderate amount of control (e.g. controversial advertising, teaser campaigns, customer
membership clubs), 3.) Direct WOMM management, which has higher levels of control (e.g.
paid WOM 'agents', "friend get friend" schemes). Proconsumer WOM has been suggested as
a counterweight to commercially motivated word of mouth.

One customer, well taken care of, could be more valuable than $10,000 worth of
advertising.” – Jim Rohn, Motivational Speake

Word of mouth marketing is the reason businesses are shifting more of their
marketing spend to the Internet; the online place your prospects are chatting. Before
making a decision, consumers look to other buyers for advice. Just think about the
last time you shopped online – did you click on the link for customer reviews? If so,
how persuasive were those comments?

Consumers now seek out personal referrals for all purchases from hair cuts to
automobile choice via:

 Facebook
 Twitter
 Pinterest
 Instagram
 Angie’s List
 Yelp
 Google Reviews

Consumers have the ability to express their pleasure or dissatisfaction “real time”
thanks to their handheld devices and what they say is being used by others to make
buying decisions.

What does word of mouth marketing mean for your company?

A lot.

Rather than fear the negative, embrace the opportunity to actively hear from your
customers about their experience. Interact with them. Share their comments. It
through this open, honesty and authentic dialog that prospects new to your company
will begin to see into the culture of your company.

A company that interacts with consumers; both the negative review and the positive,
are seen as accessible. Believe it or not; the unhappy who is acknowledged and
then satisfied becomes a bigger champion on your behalf than someone who just
had a good experience.

Companies today that acknowledge and harness the power of the word of mouth
discussions by consumers have the opportunity to brand and market their business
without spending additional dollars!