Social Media – The Good, the Bad & the Ugly: The Love/Hate Relationship We Just Can’t Shake

Nowadays everyone is on some form of social media. From children to grandparents, social media seems to have something to offer every demographic. And with Social Media Day celebrated each year on June 30th, we decided to dive into this complex topic. No matter which sites you frequent, most people agree that social media has an abundance of positives and negatives. 

When we brought the topic up in our virtual weekly meeting at Sheba Consulting, it was met with many different reactions. Some members of the team showed absolute disgust while others were positively joyous. Shani Kedem, Client Success Manager, said, “I use social media to connect with others when needed, but rarely post content myself. This approach lets me balance networking with my preference for privacy.” 

Privacy and social media seem to be conflicting notions, but most of us of a certain age don’t understand the constant oversharing that is so prevalent. But when it comes to business, we all agree social media is an absolute necessity. With traditional forms of advertising becoming less viable, the landscape has changed for getting a business noticed. Social Media Specialist, Lydia Berge, noted that social media has “elevated opportunities for businesses, but has also destroyed a sense of reality.” 

Founder and CEO, Adi Vaxman, commented that social media is especially important for remote businesses like Sheba Consulting. Word of mouth is great, but with everyone glued to their devices, a social media page is a quick way to research a company. Client Success Manager, Heather Stanton, said that companies without a storefront couldn’t be in business these days without social media. 

One of the difficult things businesses have to navigate is standing out. Business Development Manager, Rachel Korepanova, explained that when potential clients search for a specific type of business and are overwhelmed with similar options, having an engaging social media presence can be the key differentiator that sets a business apart. Jennifer Conter LaLama, Client Success Manager, thinks adding some personality to social media helps. She stated that a potential customer “wants to see that you know what you’re talking about, but that you also have a personality and maybe you can make a joke or two.”

Anyone with children knows all too well about the downfalls of social media. Our children are locked on their phones 24/7, and as parents, we worry about addiction and brain rot. Rachel who has two children stated, “I do worry what it’s going to do to their brains and their attention span specifically.”

Many on the team agreed that there should be some sort of age limit. Jennifer thought any social media under the age of 14 was too young, while Lydia suggested that content should be delivered based on the user’s age. At the end of the day, everyone on the team agreed that parents have to enforce limits.

Parents who are trying to keep their children off social media often find a difficult battle when their children’s friends are on multiple platforms. Heather mentioned hearing about communities that form an agreement saying their children won’t have access to social media until a certain age. She said, “When their close group of friends are not on social media either, then they are outside playing and doing other things and being in sports versus having to feel that peer pressure.” 

With technology always evolving, the team was asked about the future of social media and how they might want to see it change. Adi mentioned that she hopes social media doesn’t evolve in the bad ways some sci-fi shows have been predicting, where social media has control over our lives and a social score can make or break us.

With the latest statistics revealing that people are spending around 2 ½ hours a day on social media, chances are you’re on one or more sites than you’d care to be. Whether it’s for personal use or professional, we have all been sucked into the network with no end in sight. So, let’s embrace it and celebrate Social Media Day by enjoying positive interactions, connectivity, and maybe just a few cat videos.