Business cashing in on social networks

Is it such a bad thing? To a purest of the social networking scene, such invasions can be like water torture. The reality is without business involvement these social networks would never have arrived. To the purest it is a necessary evil.

So why can’t everyone just get along? They can and they do! As we have seen recently with large players purchasing social networks for sums of money that would make Oprah cry.

Google’s purchase of YouTube was met with complete shock and horror. But like everything these days the community lets out a collective sigh and say “can’t do anything about it; better learn to live with it”.

I must agree with many, YouTube has seen its interface invaded by Google and not for the better. Yet the site seems to be performing better than ever and with improved functionality.

Today I drew a very long line between Netscape being overtaken by IE with the likes of YouTube being overtaken by P2P IPTV in the near future. We are already seeing signs of this with Joost.I have also just discovered a vodcast I get everyday with the (so called) best of YouTube.

I’d love if Vodcasts appeared on my phone (one less device). But like Joost these innovations are not going to happen without the involvement of large organisations. I’m finding that businesses seem to be drawn to social networks because of how they bring their target audience together. Then like rounding up fish they sweeping through with a net. Only minimal by-catch and the little fish (small spenders) slip through the net. ROI is too good to resist.

So where do we go from here? I can see businesses of all shapes and sizes culturing their own Petri dishes of social interactivity. The insight that this will provide will improve products and/or services, and in turn increase profits. To the colony of microbes on the Petri dish they get a platform to discuss, argue, show photos of their dogs to the world. Who can argue with that.

And then I wonder how the traditional advertising agency will ever survive.

I smell an opportunity.

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