Our society has changed dramatically since the times of the Mahabharata and we have accepted modification of the expression of these norms even though we are still rooted. But the changes in social behaviour we have seen on technology-enabled social media tempt me to label it as ‘anti-social behaviour’.
On social media, our self-centred, narcissist selves are at their peak, to the extent that we ignore even the most basic of social etiquettes. Is it the reflection of times we live in or we simply forgot to set up some social norms on social media in our hurry to expand that virtual society?
A brief analysis of our own Facebook page will reveal that most of the time communication is one way; sharing what we find important for us, not what is of interest to our friend circle. Research has established that people, who have greater number of friends on Facebook, tagged themselves more often and updated their newsfeeds regularly, scored highly on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory questionnaire. Social media offers these people a chance to self-promote by amassing a large number of friends, posting about their lives in detail and create an image which projects social success.
Is social media really a virtual alternate reality that gives us the freedom to behave differently from the offline real world? Say, someone walks up to your work station to say hello, and you don’t even look up from your computer and totally ignore her. I can hear almost everyone say that that’s a complete no-no. But when it comes to social media, there is a plethora of personal messages that go unanswered. We have even forgotten the basic courtesy of saying ‘thank you’ to a positive comment of our wall.
How many times do people get into a discussion with friends on a topic of common interest? Every time we meet our friends. But that doesn’t really happen on social media. How interesting would the conversation be if one person talks and others just nod. In the social media space ‘likes’ are the nods.
A comment is what will fuel a healthy discussion. Sample this: while there are 1.9 billion likes each month in India, comments come to just 892 million each month on Facebook. While personalized communication is more satisfying and in line with our natural social behaviour, users prefer the lazy one click of the ‘like’. It is time to build conversation on social media. Moira Burke, who ran a longitudinal study of 1,200 Facebook users,found out that users who receive composed communication are less lonely, while those who received one click communication continue to experience feelings of loneliness. Aren’t we shirking away from social obligations to our friends?
Brands operate as social units too. All social units develop a culture of their own. This culture is a result of relationships that exist between brands and its users. Values and culture of the brand are formed on the basis of the community in which it exists. Can brands afford to behave differently on social media? Brands are able to garner millions of likes in a short span of time but are not able to engage these customers and prospects to build long-term relationships. It is becoming almost like a one-way conversation. The result is an endless list of brand followers but hardly and loyal customers.
In the offline world, while it is easy to make friends, it takes lot of effort to nurture those relationships. With brands too, it is important to build relationships with people that will resonate with them. Social media has provided an opportunity to interact with new friends and/or with those long-lost school and college mates. But problem with digital intimacy is that it creates ties that do not bind but only create a false feeling of a large social network. And that is where brands can easily fall prey to.
Isn’t it then important for brands to stop running after number of likes, and instead build relationships, engage in authentic and compelling conversations that share common values? It is not just important to have a long list of followers but it is important to continuously engage with them. Like human beings brands too have to carefully nurture and nourish these relationships to develop a strong social community that it operates in. Social networks of brands are driven by the same human values of transparency, ethics, responsiveness and intimacy.
The solution lies in accepting the fact that online is replicated reality of the offline world. Be less focused on quantity. Curate, select and filter your friends and followers and truly engage with like-minded ones. Brands should focus on engaging people with better, richer, funnier conversations. It cannot be a pompous broadcasting mentality. Fundamentally, great friendship arises from understanding each other, so brands too must understand its followers to build lasting relationships. Let us make it one world — a world of friends and long lasting friendships whether real or online.
Anisha Motwani is the Director and Chief Marketing Officer, Max Life Insurance
