Social Media Musings

Maybe some of you out there can relate to this.  I got on Facebook this week and saw that I received a wall posting from none other than Johnny Depp.  “Woah!”  I thought.  “When did I become Facebook friends with Johnny Depp?”  I looked through my home page and saw the faces of Katie Holmes, Reese Witherspoon, Tom Hanks, etc.  I thought, “Did I hack into a celebrity’s Facebook by mistake?  These aren’t my friends!”  Suddenly I realized these were indeed my own Facebook friends disguised as celebrities.

I wondered why many of my friends were flattering themselves by suggesting they are as attractive as these celebrities.  Such a coincidence that all of them are doing this!  With a closer look, I realized what’s going on.  It’s Doppelgänger week.

This week of flaunting celebrity look-a-likes on Facebook, was started by IT worker Bob Patel.  Annoyed with being called “Tom Selleck” every day by his colleagues, he decided to start a trend.  A light bulb flashed over his head and he went straight to the computer.

Days later, celebrity’s faces are all over Facebook, and Bob Patel is basking in his fifteen minutes of fame.  Amazing right?  How could one simple inside joke between co-workers start an international fad?  Well ladies and gentlemen, this is just one of the many beauties of this massive trend of SOCIAL MEDIA.

As an IT Specialist, Patel probably had an inkling of hope that he would one day become famous for something related to technology.  However, he probably had no idea how easy it would be.

This is what this new age of social media is all about.  It’s easy. Anyone who has a basic knowledge of computer social networking can do it.  Socializing is fun!  Communicating through text is fun!  Social networking websites like Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace have become popular pastimes, and it’s no wonder given this popularity, that trends like Doppelänger week spread with such unbelievable speed.

Social media has become such a successful fashion of communication simply because it’s very appealing.  It sucks you in.  What started out as a way to easily keep in touch with friends has snowballed in gargantuan proportions.  So many people have been using these social networking websites so often, that there has even been talk in the world of psychology, of Facebook and twitter addiction.  Whether this is a real diagnosable problem or not, has not been confirmed.  The big message here, however, is that this is a monumental change that cannot be ignored.  There is something about this trend that is contagious, and it has become a metaphorical if not literal epidemic.

Business savvy professionals, Marketing Specialists, job seekers, and entrepreneurs alike have wasted no time capitalizing on this opportunity.  Fan pages, pop-ups, and side banners are some of the more obvious means of advertising.  Others are not so obvious and are disguised as simple fun.  Doppelgänger week for instance is a fun and intriguing concept, but what many don’t realize is this was a successful marketing campaign for Bob Patel.  What was he marketing?  Himself, of course!  Whether this was his original intention or not, Patel is now known for this week of fun which will perhaps be an annual social event.

The examples of this snowball effect are endless.  We have the comical pre-teen known as “Fred” whose silly videos on YouTube made him a national star.  Turn on any celebrity news show and you will see Twitter blurbs instead of responses from actual interviews.  Talk show hosts are now utilizing Skype as a medium for conducting interviews when travel is inconvenient.

Effects of social media surround us each and every day, and to call it a trend seems like an understatement.  It is becoming an all-encompassing global phenomenon, and if we are smart, we will all jump on this speeding bandwagon, hold on tight, and see where it takes us.

Let’s continue to explore this exciting new world of social media, shall we?  As possibilities for contemplation on this topic continue to grow, there will be many more blogs to come and many more discussions to be had.  To wrap up these thoughts, I pose a few questions to you:  Could recognition for starting a social networking trend improve a person’s life professionally even if the person’s profession is unrelated to the trend?  If so, and if this is something worthwhile, how does one come up with a successful trend that has the potential to spread quickly?  Is it sheer creativity?  Is it luck?  Does it take brainstorming and planning?  Are there other possibilities for social media inspiration?  I will leave you with these thoughts for now.