Social Media Reaches Out in a Time of Need

Social media use on the internet has become an overwhelming modern world-wide revolution that enables the people of the world-wide-web to find almost anything or anybody they want at the click of their finger. The new rage has allowed business owners and companies to expand their advertisement — cheaply and consistently — to their fellow consumers and followers on their social media pages like Twitter and Facebook. Deals, previews, reviews, and overall discussion about a company’s products and/or events is easily accessed through these media outlets, and suddenly the entire world and it’s consumer-driven business is activated to a whole new level.

• Internet users in the U.S spend nearly a quarter of their time on the internet using social media(or about 13 and  half minutes per every hour spent online)
• Nearly 4 out of 5 web users visit a social networking site on a monthly basis
• 73% of US companies use social media tools for marketing purposes
• From 2008 to 2012, the percentage of US companies who use social media for marketing purposes is projected to more than double (from 42% to 88%)
• Internet users worldwide spend more hours a week with social media than any other online activity
• 46% of Internet users worldwide interact with social media on a daily basis
• 15% of social media users are more inclined to buy from brands that advertise in social media
• 25% are more likely to find out more about brands that advertise on social media sites
• 18% of new content found online is found through social media
• The average U.S. worker spends 5 hours a month with social media at the office

But what is even greater than the amount of business-customer interaction via social media, is the amount of communication and outreach that occurs in a time of devastation and disaster around the world. Had Facebook or Twitter been around during the catastrophe of September 11, 2001 and all the heartbreaking events that followed, the two media outlets would have been flooded with comments, concerns, prayers, memorial and ceremony event information, and the ability to conduct outreach programs for the suffering people and areas from the terrorist attacks.

Well, it’s been 7 years for Facebook and 5 years for Twitter (exactly from today’s date) that the websites have been up and running, and the social media epidemic has been heavily used for the support and grievance of global disturbances like:

• the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake
• 2005 Hurricane Katrina
• El Salvador’s volcano eruption
• 2006 Bird Flu epidemic
• 2006 Indonesian earthquake
• Wild fires in Southern California
• 2008 Myanmar cyclone kills 78,000, 56,000 go missing
• 7.8 earthquake in Southern China
• Haiti 7.0 earthquake in 2010
• 2011 heavy rains and flooding in Brazil kill nearly 500 people
• And finally, our most recent global disaster, Japan’s 8.9 magnitude earthquake on March 11th.

The truth of these disasters is heart-wrenching and hard for many people to go on with their everyday life after these occurrences. However, the use of these social media sites are actually helping the effects of these disturbing events that cause people all over the world to experience immense amounts of pain. Living Social, for example, has been using their Twitter and Facebook accounts for assisting a relief fund for Japan. They decided to use their large amount of followers that are constantly purchasing their daily deals, and offered a “deal” to buy for $5 that goes directly towards the Japan relief fund. They used the same technique on their Facebook page, in order to link them to the main Living Social site where they can purchase the deal.

Living social recognizes that their popularity with consumers who want the best deals on local events, restaurants, and places, are very capable of aiding the relief for Japan. Simultaneously, Living Social is gaining site visitors, followers, and most of all—respect.