What is the Real Impact of Technology on Social Media?

Featured article by Cynthia Madison, Independent Technology Author

At present, it is impossible to live happily without social media. Social websites and applications have become an integral part of our lives, so the question is not if we use them, but why. The most popular reasons for using social media include keeping in touch, filling up time, and general networking. It is true that a significant number of people are leaving it, yet there is no reason to worry when it comes down to the digitally native generation. Social media is a relatively new technology, which is the reason why it is a little bit controversial. With time, social websites and applications will continue to grow and improve.

Generally speaking, technology is changing the way that we live our lives. Owing to advances in technology, it is possible to accomplish many more tasks, therefore increasing productivity and minimizing effort. There is no denying the fact that it has contributed greatly to society. Technology pushes for change and it is interesting to note that social media has not been unaltered. Technology and the forms of social media influence one another. In this article, we will focus our attention on the way in which technology has impacted social media.

Link between mobile technology and the expansion of social media

It is hard if not impossible to imagine that there was a social media site before Facebook. Yet, there was and it bears the name of Six Degrees. It lasted from 1997 to 2000. The name of the online platform came from the six degrees of separation theory. Just like with Facebook, you could create a profile and befriend users. In the beginning, interactive computer-mediated technologies facilitating communication were considered a passing trend. More precisely, it was viewed as being ephemeral and short. Very quickly, it transformed into an international obsession. And this is thanks to mobile technology.

Not many people know that it was the introduction of mobile technology for cellular communication that prompted the expansion of social media. Cell phones are no longer tools for making calls. But what are they then? Cell phones are very well capable of performing the functions of a computer. You do not have to be a genius to understand that cell phones have had a major impact on social websites and applications. Individuals of all ages possess a mobile phone and it should not come as a surprise that there has been a considerable decline in users accessing social media platforms via desktops. They love their cell phones because these devices enable them to share and interact with just their fingertips.

Mobile devices and social media go hand in hand. What do you think happens when a person gets a missed call and they do not recognize the number? Simple. They perform a reverse phone lookup and find the social media account. There is not a single person out there that accesses their Facebook or Twitter through the computer anymore. Users spend more time on mobile devices due to the fact that it is easier. As regular users are deploying social media to share and interact with others, businesses, as well as governmental agencies, use them to determine what kind of employees they are dealing with. As you can imagine, they do not turn on their computers for this.

Introduction of the human-friendly element

It has been agreed upon that emerging technology necessitates a human element. It is crucial to automate different actions, but more and more people are starting to worry that human interaction will very soon become obsolete. The fact is that the systems that were created by humans are sometimes imperfect and make mistakes. This is the reason why it is necessary to introduce a human-friendly element. In today’s world, innovative solutions are disrupting things, being fast to implement and boosting execution speeds. Yet, it is quality communication that eliminates problems caused by limited information access and helps people work as a team.

As more and more communication-oriented software programs emerge, social media interactions have never been so important. Let us take a look at the business world. Smart organizations use social media in order to keep in touch with the members of the staff. They know that they have the best chances for success when they resort to unconventional solutions. Social media is the most effective communication tool and it can be deployed to resolve client issues too. Getting back on topic, technology is adapting, including a more human-friendly element, while online platforms are more and more popular among business professionals.

If you were to use social media for business communication, how would you proceed? Well, you would start with sending notices about meetings or deadlines on Facebook. It is simple to spread out the word and you can rest assured that everyone will get the message. You could equally use Twitter. Many companies use this social media website to disseminate information among team members and it seems that things are going well for them.

Will social media change technology in the future?

Technology and social media are closely related to each other, so it seems only normal that social media too has an impact on technology. The relationship is reciprocal after all. Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram are currently influencing technology development and open source software. Let us take the example of Github. Its ease of access can lead to staggering results because massive volumes of feedback can be shared. Basically, programmers are able to improve software and share responsibility. Innovation is expected, of course. If you were to analyze the technology stack, you would immediately see that it has contributed to the development of engineering.

Social media websites and applications have an undeniable effect on business technology and this is not a bad thing. The younger generation has been exposed to technology from an early age, so utilizing social media is only normal for them. You do not have to make great efforts to convince the members of your team to share ideas or interact on sites like Github. Owing to social media’s contribution, we will certainly have more advanced technology. Since collaboration is ensured, the results are bound to appear, sooner or later.

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