Social Media Madness

Social Media Madness – Psychological Viewpoint !

Over the last year, I have been quietly observing a lot of different folks in social media, from Chris Brogan, to Robert Scoble, Brian Clark, Darren Rowse, Mari Smith,Shama Hyder, and the list is almost endless. How they operate. what they say and do. And of course there are hundreds more that could be listed. I learned tons ofgood stuff from each. It is like going back to High School. I have come to a conclusion that psychology plays a mammoth part in the social media marketing world. It plays a bigger part them most people realize due to the novelty of social media and the power behind it’s capabilities

Over the last 6 months, I also have been studying the Psychology of Social media and why people are into it, what their goals are, what they are looking for, and many other focuses just for myself, as being a an active part of the social media madness. I found some interesting things during this.
I have come to a conclusion to what I call it as “Psychological A’s of Social Media Madness” and the different needs that are a part of this growing social setting. It is what I have observed, and consistently found as part of this awesome new online world.

To start off with, we must first look into what people are looking for in Social Media from a psyche viewpoint.

1) Acknowledgement
The first and the foremost thing that people want in the need to be ACKNOWLEDGED. They want to be acknowledged that their mere presence on the social media scene and simple, “hi I am online !”. they just need to be welcomed and noticed. To be acknowledged and appreciated is by far the best form of motivation that an individual can have. Hailing from a training background, I would like to share this tool that I have been using consistently.


Acknowledge
Respect
Appreciate

First you acknowledge the person and his opinion. Then you respect him for having an opinion and for him to be at ease with you. The last step is to appreciate for whatever knowledge or comment he has come up with. It is only after following this tool that you will be able to get your point across in the best possible manner. It can be so widely and intensively used in the Digital Media Scene.


2) Attention.

Once people are acknowledged, they desire some form of attention-it is as simple as following someone on Twitter or a post on a blog, or friends on Facebook. As easy as it could ever be. When attention is given to someone beyond “hi”, it really does make a lot of prospective conversation down the road. And if you are a advertiser, conversation is critical in the social media scene.

3) Approval

People simple LOVE to be approved of-especially when they have put themselves out in a world they know nothing about, especially when they try to contribute to the conversation. A simple “Thank you for the message” or a “good share!” will go a long way in drawing that person into your globe of influence and world. Most people do not have the fit to sustain the ever growing and improving Social Media, and we can help them by approving, encouraging, motivating and letting them know that we Approve of them. This is critical to online marketing today. You need to know how to approve of what the potentials and doing. You need to Build the Relationship.

4) Appreciated

People in social media space simple love to be appreciated. Who doesn’t t? We all do! As mentioned earlier, the last step is to appreciate. It makes already exixting bonds even stronger. People might not know the know-how of social media, but they know their brand more than anyone elso. Their interest in the expanding Social Media Madness is a lead enough for us to follow. Share the information, share the insight but never spill the beans-ever. Appreciation must also be imparted to the potentials as well. You need to let them know you appreciate their social media efforts and also them as an individual.

5) Acclamation

People love to see their name highlighted- and there are 2 ways that can happen.

• Being answered or featured in a conversation.
• Being retweeted, featured, or talked about in a conversation or mentioned or tagged in a blog/post.


commendation is important to people that are activating their brand out in social media. Being acclaimed-even slightly says, “GREAT JOB!” and “KEEP UP The Good Work!” Who would not love that type of acclaimation? Put the people in the spot light even if they are unknown. Psychologically, people love to be acclaimed and when that happens, they have a tendency to also acclaim the acclaimer !(if that’s even a word). Go about sharing good stuff, which obviously requires finding it first. Good notes on FaceBook. Twwets on Twitter. Good posts on blogs. Good articles found in magazines, journals. And even good attempt at sharing. All these are very critical in the Social Media Madness.

6) Assured

Today, people in social media want to be assured that they are doing the right thing, taking the right actions and being the right person. As simple as it may seem, people really need it. Assuring people that they are needed, they are growing and they belong is another critical factor. Assuring people that you are going to be there when they need you and that customer service is there for them for whatever challenges they may encounter is very important. People need to hear that they are relevant and required.

7) To Be A Part Of

People in the social media scene want to be felt a PART of something that is happening. Marketing them is simple
• Include them
• Invite them
• Entail them
• Engage them

This not only will be feeling a part of something, but also wanting to contribute as a whole that will help them. You have to make sure that you be the person that people want to be around and connected to because they like how they feel about themselves when connected to you or your organization. Make people a part of what you are doing, this will spread the word faster.