Imagine if a major magazine wrote something like that. Further, imagine if they said, “The truth is no online social media will ever replace traditional marketing.” Finally, imagine if they said these things about the Internet in general? Guess what? Someone actually did!
On March 4th, 2010 I came across an article from February 1995, by Clifford Stoll, a writer for Newsweek. He wrote “The truth is, no online database will replace your daily newspaper, no CD-ROM can take the place of a competent teacher and no computer network will change the way government works.” How wrong he was.
During my career in technology there are a few things I have come to respect… People and their insatiable appetite for the internet, and the ever-changing ways it can be used to expand how we navigate daily life personally and professionally.
Though I have not come across any articles that correlate Stoll’s comments into the social media space with such confidence, we have all heard the naysayer rants. Though recently they are all but drifting into the wastelands of Tandy, Sony’s Beta and the brick phone.
Social media has morphed into a power all its own. A sub-set of the internet itself. Its own animal that is evolving into a stand-alone platform in its own right. Imagine if talented dreamers had read Stoll’s story and listened? I myself, can’t.
My perspective on technology is that anything is possible. Anything you can dream up can be accomplished, as long as there is a value proposition that makes sense to the consumer and business.
There is no doubt that social networking has delivered on both sides of the spectrum thus far. It is reaching into every aspect of Politics, Business and our families. The next challenge for social media will be to continue to expand the value on these fronts and innovate its uses within business beyond marketing.
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