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Social media – a thread going dead?

There has been a lot of talk about the power of social media and the potential of associated businesses. Google and Facebook take front burner in the news. As a consumer, I use Google tools all of the time. Sometimes, I get into Facebook because I have an account and because someone pings me now and then that I care about. Google is a behind the scenes tool that has so much functionality I cannot do without it. Facebook is a play thing.

My friend, Chris McGill at MIXX got me hooked in participating in his site, reading and voting on news stories, commenting and such. The users take charge within the context of business rules for the site. Administrators sometimes intervene when communications between participants get too hostile, and sometimes that happens. The site encourages conversations but not creating story content per se.

NowPublic is different because writers can practice their skills, write stories that interpret and complement the news. The NowPublic audience votes as they are the “Crowd,” thus the site is “crowd powered.” I like that.

The Examiner.com, owned by Clarity Media, acquired NowPublic.com. Because I use these services like Google, I don’t pay much attention to their business. Because I am a former print media publisher, I am curious at times about their business model, earning income from people buying e-space.

I am aware that as a writer on NowPublic, I am a part of the patter that creates an audience. In magazine publishing it is the editorial that is the asset and advertisers pile around the pages based on the audience attracted by the writers.

The trouble with much social media is that writers don’t get paid. We are cannon fodder. So, after awhile when the fun and practice has run out, the writers burn out and move on. A large part of the audience at NowPublic are fellow writers, and they seem to be disappearing.

It comes down to the issue of things being worth what you pay for it, I guess.

I care about the audience at NowPublic as any writer who cares about their public. I analyze stories written over the past months to see what plays in the Poconos.

My biggest story by far was the killer whale that ate its trainer. I had little to do with the success of the story because it was simply the news value. People like stories about animals eating people

My second most popular story was about women crushing kittens with their high heels. People like stories about people abusing animals. That is substantiated by the presence of television programs like “Animal Cops.”

My blizzard reports got consistent readership because they had news value and were live reports. The same with my World Cup soccer live reports.

So, I conclude that news events really drive the crowd. One must have news to make readership.

To keep the thread from going dead, we need writers who attend the news. That takes some skill and for that, in the end, there must be incentive.

You want a piece of me?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2LdHH0hmHY

Social Media Market 2010