Social Media Perceptions

There are a lot of social media platforms out there and they all offer a lot of the same services throughout them. However there are key differences in the ways they are offered and how the platforms present these services. Due to these differences the different platforms often serve different purposes. In my opinion Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter are the sites most geared towards personal use. Personally I use Facebook the most, and although there are many tools for businesses to promote and market themselves I still see more personal use on the site than professional. With Snapchat the whole basis behind it is sending pictures and messages to your friends or whomever you choose. Twitter allows users to share there thoughts with other users as well as post links and photos. Some features that Twitter has pioneered are trending topics and hashtags. They can provide a localized "topic of discussion" in which people can weigh in and even start "movements" via the internet.

On the other spectrum of Social media theres a plethora of resources for businesses to promote, and market themselves. From what I've seen LinkedIn, and Instagram are the most effective social media platforms for business. LinkedIn is specifically designed for the business community and allows employers to connect with prospective employees and vice versa. Users can upload their resume's and put themselves out on the market. Instagram has come a long way from its humble beginnings. More and more I've seen business create pages and even flourish through the use of Instagram. One example of this is the huge surge in food trucks over the years they roam around cities prior to social media would be difficult to find unless they were in their usual location, however, they have used social media (specifically Instagram) to communicate to customers and potential customers where they will be and how long they will be there.

As I stated earlier there are many of the same services offered through the various social media platforms. Some are more effective at catering to certain needs than others, however, I do believe that some platforms are pretty good at both. My picks would be Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Facebook and Instagram have blended personal and professional use extremely well and I feel that Twitter also has a pretty good handle on this too. Out of the platforms I discussed I use Facebook and Instagram the most so I may be a bit biased however I use them often and they work really well.