Drivers of Social Media

Last week, we discussed what barriers to social media adoption are, and what some drivers could be. The "driver" group discussion focused on two key elements of social media drivers.

1. Social media makes an organization able to easily interact with and be available to its supporters.
2. Social media allows an organization to quickly and cheaply provide current information to a wide audience.

Essentially, social media drivers maintain that using social media effectively helps an organization to be able to share ideas and hear feedback.

Here are some more details from our discussion...

• Social media makes an organization responsive to citizenship.
• Fewer resources are required in terms of people working full-time on this issue.
• Organizations will have more agency - they will be involved with the online conversation, which is a good thing, since the conversation will occur with or without them.
• Communication can be created and sent out in a short time frame, to a wide reach of people.
• Social media triggers and facilitates collaboration.
• This type of media makes it easy to provide visual information and updates.
• It is an informal setting that allows organizations to see what people think. They can see feedback, idea-sharing, and concerns - and respond easily.
• Social media allows organizations to build strong relationships & trust.
• Social media means that an organization will have a constant presence in the lives of its supporters.
• Emergency communication and organizing is made very simple and effective with social media.
• Social media allows for organizations to make authoritative information available to all.
• It breaks down inhibitions and barriers, allowing an organization's message to be spread in multiple languages and across multiple platforms.

While it is important to also consider the barriers to social media usage, we "drivers" feel that the ideas listed above provide a clear argument to develop an effective social media strategy.