Social networking is the buzzword of the current century, thanks to the wide availability of mobile devices around the world. While you are away from your loved ones, this medium keeps you connected with everyone. In the old days, you had to rely on landlines or trunk calls to communicate with other people in a different location. Capitalizing on the times gone by, these online platforms have made it just a matter of seconds to get in touch with others nowadays. In addition, its use in the business world has also witnessed a sea drift, due to its wide reach. In the midst of such religious use of this instant mode of communication, it is important to keep checking to see if we are not becoming too dependent on it.
The growing popularity
Since about a decade, social networks have been an inseparable need of people all over the world. Although the explosion of the Internet created a global revolution in the business world, this mode of communication was equally effective in attracting commoners. Also, with the growing popularity of smartphones and mobile devices, the trend of being proactive across multiple platforms has gained unprecedented momentum. Users prefer to connect via Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp, LinkedIn, Twitter and many other websites/apps for personal or professional use.
Here are some statistics from smart insights, an online magazine (up to January 2016) to give you an idea of the growing dominance of this digital communication platform in our daily lives.
- Total World Population: 7.395 Billion
- Total Internet Users: 3.419 Billion; 46% of the world’s population
- Active users of social networks: 2,307 Billions; 31% of the world’s population
- Unique mobile users: 3.790 billion; 51% of the total world population
- Active Mobile Social Users: 1.968 Billion; 27% of the world population
These data are good enough to describe the penetration of the Internet and, more specifically, social networks in our lives. Hence, here it is worth thinking about whether such dependence is normal or if we are slowly heading towards its addiction.
good for entrepreneurs
Interestingly, this mode of communication has also proven to be a boon for business and marketing people, which is obvious from the fact that social media has raked in a whopping $8.3 billion through advertising, in 2015 alone. Additionally, nearly 80% of Fortune 500 companies use Twitter to connect with their customers and prospects. However, the question remains: is this platform undergoing global abuse, especially by commoners?
extensive use
According to another survey report, 1 million new users become active on mobile social networks, which means 12 new users every second. Also, speaking of Facebook Messenger and Whatsapp, both platforms handle approximately 60 billion messages per day. Its use is over 50% in almost all age groups, be it 18-29 (83%), 30-49 (77%) or 50-64 (52%), leaving 65+, which is 32%. . Likewise, while 62% of men are proactive about this mode of online interaction, the percentage of women is even higher, that is, 71%.
Dangers of Social Media Addiction
But naturally, it is easier to lean towards destructive work rather than constructive activities in the midst of such great penetration. Consequently, we discuss every little thing about these platforms, whether it’s Trump vs. Hillary, the coin ban issue, or any other hot topic. Healthy discussion is fine, but the problem occurs when people get out of line and start posting hateful messages, which is a major setback for this otherwise beneficial mode of communication. These are some of the other drawbacks of excessive use of social networks.
- Social insecurity: Wander if you also possess the same level of luxury and wealth as everyone else, which creates anxiety and often mental health issues.
- Cyber bullying: You may be a victim of online crime.
- Social Anxiety: You develop a fear of real human interaction and prefer to hide behind your screen.
- Distraction: It noticeably decreases your work productivity.
- Stress: Constantly switching from work to Facebook, Twitter, etc. and vice versa could cause fatigue
- emotional hiccups: Relying on social media to avoid real-life problems could only lead to negativity and pressure.
In short, indeed, the use of social networks is increasing at an uncontrolled rate, which is a serious topic of discussion. It is profitable for business and marketing people who have a fixed goal to achieve through these platforms. However, for people who are looking for emotional support on these platforms or just killing their time, just making their life miserable and they really need to get out of this addiction, before it’s too late.
