Those of you who see social media as a marketing- or customer service tool, are missing the point. Yes it can be used for these purposes and can be very powerful. But that’s not its primary function. And that is precisely why it is so powerful.
Social media is a way to reach out to a community of people. It is a way to communicate, one that is based on existing and newly created interhuman relations. These links between people are the structure of a community. Not just any community, it is based on individual preferences, it is ever-changing and it isn’t always very transparent. It is very hard to “game” this system, because it is based on a spontaneous order.
And that is why I love it. I don’t like massive top down media and carpet bomb-advertising. It has turned advertising and marketing into something distasteful. People dislike advertising, yet companies keep pumping billions in advertising to woo the people. If a girl tells you she doesn’t like roses, you shouldn’t respond simply by giving her even more roses.
The new way is about being genuine, honest and to communicate via conversation, not a top down message.