Social media made simple

A cheat sheet with tips for planners

By China DeSpain Freeman

Online social networking sites focus on building online communities of people who share interests and/or activities, or who are interested in exploring the interests and activities of others. One gauge of just how pervasive social media networks have become: According to media specialist Chris Brewer, it took radio 38 years to reach an audience of 50 million; it took Facebook two. Businesses and organizations are exploring new ways to market events, products and services using social media networks. Here’s a look at some of the main players in the social media network realm.

Facebook allows users to create a complex profile, complete with photos, relationship status, likes and dislikes, and current interests. Users can then make Facebook “friends” – these could be actual friends, classmates, casual acquaintances or complete strangers. Unless users remove all privacy settings, only friends can see each other’s profiles. Facebook users can also join groups and become fans of various celebrities, organizations or concepts. This is one of the most useful features for planners: You can create a page to represent your organization or conference, allowing users to become your “fans” and stay up-to-date on your organization’s events. Also, you can create virtual “events” on Facebook that users can search for and “attend,” or you can use Facebook to invite people to actual events. Events can either be open to the public or private, in which case invitations are sent via Facebook and the invitees can RSVP. Those invited can also post pictures and comments on the event page, either before or after the event. By using Facebook, planners reach out to a broad range of users, generating interest and building attendance for their events.

Twitter is essentially a super-streamlined version of Facebook. It removes most of the Facebook applications and options (photos, quizzes, etc.) and is characterized by 140-character (or fewer) status posts. Unlike Facebook, most Twitter accounts do not have privacy settings activated, so it’s easy to “follow” the updates of friends, strangers and celebrities. Twitter is less personal and great for businesses because companies can update links to their Web site, ultimately for promotional purposes. Twitter might not be an ideal platform for reaching teens, but planners can use Twitter to follow CVBs, hotels and convention centers to stay abreast of what is happening in various communities. The more people you follow, the more followers you are likely to get in return. This means more people are receiving your messages and information.

MySpace functions similarly to Facebook, allowing users to create profiles and then add photos, friends and music to customize profile appearance. MySpace offers more public access and is less uniform in appearance than Facebook; because of the wide variety of customizable themes available, profiles can easily go from unique to cluttered and difficult to read, which may account for some of the drop off in activity that MySpace has experienced. MySpace has not been widely adopted by businesses or organizations.

Life creates a virtual world in which users “live” and interact. Members create and personalize “avatars” (an alter ego in the form of a three-dimensional model or two-dimensional icon for use on Internet communities), and engage in role-playing that allows them to travel to various locations within the virtual world. One useful area within Second Life is the MeCo Mansion, created by the Meetings Community Listserv, which functions as an online meeting site. The Mansion offers video clips, a virtual game room and bar, and a tutorial to assist planners in navigating the various offerings. A basic account is free, but unlike other social media sites, Second Life offers additional levels of accounts for a fee, starting at $9.95.

YouTube is a video-driven site that allows registered users to broadcast any number of things. Music videos and movie clips are common offerings, but young people also use the site to create and reach a community by creating shows filmed in their rooms and aired on individual channels at regular intervals, just like on TV. Planners and organizations can create their own YouTube channel to share videos about their events, conferences and more. YouTube has a quick and easy search engine, which makes it convenient to find videos within particular search criteria.