Social Media is a way for people to share information from numerous sources. One of the real advantages to using social media to disseminate information, is it is shared in real time, meaning that when you share it, people can read it immediately. Social media sites facilitate this by giving users the platform to share information and connect with many people. Users can share this information through posts, articles, news stories, videos and more.

FaceBook is another such site. Here, users can create online profiles, upload photos, and share information with friends all around the world. Users can even make friends with people located all the way around the world and share information with them through their friend pages.

Twitter is also considered a social media site. On this site, users are asked the question, “What are you doing right now?” They may answer in any fashion they wish, though responses are limited to only 140 characters, including spaces. Other individuals may choose follow a person on Twitter and be able to view any of that person’s posts, called “Tweets.”

Flickr is a social site that allows individuals to upload photos and share them with other users.

In addition to the examples mentioned, the internet contains thousands of forums where people with similar hobbies, jobs, tastes, and other traits can visit and post discussions of these interests. Other users have the option of making a direct reply or posting a comment on the post and sharing this other readers as well.

Users also have the option of creating Blogs, user generated sites where an individual can compose and write his/her own content about any subject. The content of these entries immediately becomes searchable on the internet and can be viewed by anyone with access and an interest in the topic of the content.

Social media sites were created for the use of individual users who wished to share information. More and more businesses are finding that these sites are useful tools for them to use in raising product awareness. They can use these sites to generate trust in their opinions and expertise. However, directly trying to push a person to buy a particular item does not work on these sites and could get a business banned from access. Consumers are usually repelled by such overt advertising techniques.

The most important thing one needs to know about social media sites is that 100 percent of the content is generated by users of the site. This content is fluid in that it can be edited or changed at any time by anyone. These sites allow individuals to reach a worldwide audience and to interact with others located anywhere in the world, often in real time conversations.

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