The new age giant Image by reviews xp (https://www.reviewsxp.com/blog/best-social-media-sites/) Before we delve into the intricacies and the nitty-gritty of social media marketing, let’s go over what social media is and what it encompasses. Winding the clock Humans are inherently social animals. We crave attention and thrive in solidarity. One of the primary reasons people use social media is born out of the desire to be seen. To be noticed. To be appreciated or validated. Visibility is then, the keyword here. The mere act of writing a letter and having an owl fly it over to the intended recipient was one of the first few acts born out of the need for communication. Long before social networking came into being, picture sharing, blogging, music sharing, email, instant messaging, crowdsourcing, and voice-over IP were also considered “social media” considering the true meaning of social media is a “shift in how people discover, read, and share information, news, and content”. The present-day With the rise of social networking, social media has carved a niche for itself by being defined as virtual platforms where people and businesses interact with one another by creating, sharing, exchanging, and promoting information and ideas within communities and networks. This information is typically user-generated content and can be in the form of the written word, photos, videos, and documents making social media a hub for information or content creation, sharing, and exchange. (https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/social-media.asp) The spark within Based on computer technology does not imply that it can be accessed by home computers alone. Nowadays, smartphones like the iphone and tablets like the ipad are capable of downloading social media applications, allowing ease of access from anywhere in the world at lightning speeds. As long as you have an internet connection of course. The advent of tablets and smartphones have paved the way for information access and sharing by giving people the opportunity to never miss out on any interesting or not so interesting news while on the go. Have a look at this video that captures the benefits of using social media. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLBzAEAdsZY- Positive Effects of Social Media on Youth Trouble in paradise Besides the pros of social media like broadening your knowledge, connecting with people you know or even people you don’t know, online shopping, and even the mere joy, enjoyment, and excitement you get when viewing interesting content, there are some clear cut cons to spending oodles of time scrolling through social media with no obvious intent. According to Lifewire, social media does come packed with disadvantages like privacy issues, cyber bullying, isolation from friends and family, seeking validation, distraction that inhibits an active lifestyle, and finally sleep disturbance leading to an overall more stressful experience of life. (https://www.lifewire.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-social-networking-3486020) Here’s a video highlighting some of the detrimental effects of social media. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fouSmgZBXsU- How Social Media is Destroying our Brains It’s not all bad news however as the pros certainly outweigh the cons of using social media platforms. It all boils down to not whether you are using social media or not but rather how you use it. Same same but different Social media is segregated into many types based on the type of content going around. (https://blog.digimind.com/en/insight-driven-marketing/what-are-the-types-of-social-media) Let’s have a peek at the various types of social media. Social Networking Sites: From knowledge sharing to person-to-person conversations, platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter fall under this category. Creating content like texts, photos, videos, and even sharing thoughts and creating groups based on related interests, the sky’s the limit when it comes down to using these social networking platforms as they are purely user centred. Image-Based Sites: Content like infographics, illustrations, and images are what do the rounds on sites like Instagram, Snapchat, and Pinterest. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. Video Sharing/Streaming Platforms: Some of us rather watch a movie than read a book. Similarly, video content can be said to be more engaging than other forms of content. Youtube is king under this category. I myself am a fan of videos when it boils down to assimilating massive amounts of information in a short span of time. Discussion Forums: Quora and Reddit are well-known discussion forums that allow people to get answers and or conversate with each other over their curiosities or shared interests. Blogs and Community Platforms: Platforms like Tumblr and Medium allow users to create and be a part of a community that they can follow and read all about what they have to say about similar interests. There are a plethora of platforms that fall under these categories and based on one’s needs or interests, can be accessed at any time over the internet. Staggering facts and stats According to Pew Research Centre, young adults are the highest users of social media although the older generation are quickly catching up. Almost 90% of young adults use at least one form of social media. (https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/) The graph below gives you a fair idea as to just how much young people love social media. It also shows that senior citizens have not missed the bus when it comes to hopping on the social media wave. Image by Broadband Search (https://www.broadbandsearch.net/blog/social-media-facts-statistics) The amount of people using social media platforms has gone up tremendously over the past decade and continues to rise as we speak. Or read. Image by Oberlo (https://www.oberlo.com/statistics/how-many-people-use-social-media) The graph shows a steady increase in the number of people accessing, using, and who will be using social media in the times to come. This is no small number. Look closely. Yes, by 2027, the number of social media users is at 5.85 billion humans. And guess what. These users are educated, relatively wealthy, and possess a spending power that cannot be overlooked by anyone. That’s where social media marketing comes into the picture and everyone wants a piece of the pie. The marketing outlook As we’ve read above, people use these platforms for many reasons and it all boils down to one thing. Marketing. People marketing themselves. People trying to