Social media: the losing side?

Posted by: Jas on Feb 03, 2010
For me, the social networking aspect of my life started with Hi5 all those years ago - I'm thinking most probably around 2004 or so. I never really participated all that much on the platform back then, and I guess I removed the profile not too long after.While in London, I started using MySpace for a short while – mostly because of the access to band info – not to make friends or keep in touch. I was still very much a proponent of the use of Email to deliver my message. I had a blog too - but it fell into disuse after a while. Such is the fad of the social revolution! I completed my "Digital Detox" - and boy was I happy for it!

With the advent of Facebook, I originally didn’t see much use to the social networking site. It didn’t have much of a draw card for me initially. I actually attempted to close my account at one point, and with much disappointment, discovered just how futile the attempt could be.

Years later, and Facebook is still something somewhat alive in my life, but it doesn’t play the role it once did. Gone is the hype that surrounded it – where it was virally advertised on radio by dj’s constantly talking about it. Today, Facebook still has its uses, although I find I’m using it far less than before. Keeping in touch with people overseas is still its major draw card for me: its far easier to see what your mates are doing from a quick look at their status rather than trying to send a quick email.

Twitter, I’ve only recently joined that. I don’t get the same feedback from Facebook though, being a far more open community rather than the close-knit environment Facebook has provided. Whereas people have more options with Twitter in terms of who they follow and who you see, it still doesn’t provide me with a clear community.

Then again, Facebook seems to be loosing some of it’s market share – not to other competitors – but rather through the lack of innovation and change. The site has become stagnant, with only a few people keeping together my live feed. And while I don’t complain about being able to gain a glimpse into the lives of the people I know and whose company I enjoy – I ultimately feel it’s losing something.