Is Social Media Making Us Anti-Social?
Jul 29th, 2010 by akstout
Go ahead and take a look around you. Tell me, what do you see? Chances are you’ll find people with their heads down. On the street. In the elevator. At a stoplight. Texting. Updating their Facebook status. Tweeting about what they just had for lunch. Recommending a friend on LinkedIn.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not here to bash social media or modern technology as we know it. In fact, my agency recently launched a comprehensive branding effort for a client that featured a spot running not just on television, but across multiple social media channels as well. And the results were huge.
So yeah, I’m well aware of the game-changing capabilities of social media. I’ve seen how powerfully and immediately it can connect brands and consumers. I was blown away by what Modernista! and BooneOakley did with their sites. That was truly cutting edge and cool stuff, which is something you don’t see every day in our business. Especially, when it comes to agency self-promotion.
Hell, I even met my lovely wife on a social networking site. That right there is enough to make me a lifelong advocate of the medium.
So like I said, I “get it” when it comes to social media and mobile networking. I just don’t think it’s the same as good old-fashioned, face-to-face communication and real-life hands-on interaction. Moreover, I don’t think it ever will be.
There’s just certain things you can never replace. And the value of an intimate, face-to-face sit down is one of those things. The human connection can be replicated over social networks like Facebook or, better yet, video conferencing services like Skype. But a facsimile is never the same as the real thing.
And that’s where this incredible explosion in social media and mobile devices has me worried. While I marvel at the power, speed and creativity inherent in these new technologies, I’m concerned we might all be losing a bit of our ability – and even more troubling, our desire – to connect with one another in person. And that, by extension, us advertisers and marketers will lose a bit of that talent and skill as well.
So here’s an idea. A humble solution, if you will. Let’s put our mobile devices down for a minute. Let’s pull our hands off our keyboards for a moment. And let’s use more than just our thumbs and fingers. Let’s use our entire hand. Preferably the dominant one (though they say experimenting with your “off” hand boosts creativity).
Let’s use it to pick up the phone and schedule a lunch meeting. To shake another hand prior to that meeting. To raise a glass in a toast during that meeting. To hand-write a Thank You card after that meeting.
Before you know it, you might even be using it to sign an agency of record agreement. Or high-five one of your partners.
Sorry, but there’s just no app for that.
Author: Ian Mavorah, President + Creative Director | KAOS Advertising
From Madison Avenue to Michigan Avenue to Brickell Avenue, Ian Mavorah has been around the block. After 15 years crafting campaigns and growing global brands, Ian launched KAOS in 2004, adding the words President and Creative Director to his business card. Headquartered in Miami, KAOS is a branding + advertising boutique that helps companies define their culture and build their brands with a decidedly non-traditional approach.
ian@kaosadvertising.com
