Social Selection Pressure
The rise of MTV and the age of video heralded the end of the line for the ugly rock star. Why? Media places selection pressures upon the content that flows through them and a visual medium had no use for the likes of Foghat.
Media is Darwinian. Which is to say the medium of communication inherently enables or inhibits certain traits. Consider the rise of literacy which promoted abstract thinking done in solitude versus orality, which favors skills of memorization and shared experience.
In similar fashion, Social media is placing selection pressures on business (along with every aspect of society). As more and more of our friends, customers and business colleagues begin participating on the web (as opposed to just reading on it) it has become a fundamentally social medium; its operating principles now follow social norms more than they do traditional business norms.
What’s the difference?
Social contracts are founded upon trust, authenticity, reputation and reciprocity to name a substantive few. While these traits have always governed our personal relationships, until the rise of social media most of business that was transacted was remarkably impersonal and asocial.
This leads to an obvious assertion that has huge implications: Over time businesses that “get” social and adhere to a social contract will thrive – while those that do not, will wither.
