Social Media: Shut It

I'm beginning to lose my temper with all those who are harping on the unconditional, effortless benefits of social media. It's my opinion that those in the ad world who believe that social media is the advertising holy grail (of young, captive opinion leaders brimming with discretionary income) are delusional and worse, old. Those who disregard the perils of social media don't fully understand the mechanics of social media and don't understand the state of social media users. Therefore, it was encouraging to hear Facebook's Sheryl Sanderg talking about what companies can do to be less obnoxious on social media. I like the idea of a "stream" in which the ad must blend seamlessly to be effective. Companies must tailor themselves to appeal on this new frontier. Social media is a different channel than anything that has been developed before, and marketers must keep up and create ads as organic and innovative as the means of communication.