There was a time—not all that long ago—when business people were wondering if this “Internet Thing” was really going to develop into something. There were those who claimed that the Internet was going to change everything. There were those who thought it was just a fad. Those who believed it would change everything were right.
Over the past couple of years the same kind of thinking has surrounded the whole social media phenomenon. Some business people wondered if Facebook, Twitter, blogging, and other social media tools were just a fad—or if they were part of the wave of the future.
The good folks at Hubspot recently posted a blog that highlights some of the facts about social media that are pretty compelling. Here’s an excerpt:
11 Social Web Facts That Will Blow Your Mind
1. In 2010, 107 trillion emails were sent on the Internet. (Source)
2. At the current rate 36 billion photos will be uploaded to Facebook each year. (Source)
3. Each day 2 billion videos are watched on YouTube. (Source)
4. Each month 30 billion pieces of content (links, notes, photos, etc.) are shared on Facebook. (Source)
5. In 2010, users sent 25 billion tweets. (Source)
6. Worldwide there are 1.97 billion Internet users. (Source)
7. At the end of 2010, there were 88.8 million – .COM domain names registered. (Source)
8. As of December 2010, there were 255 million websites. (Source)
9. Worldwide, there are 2.9 billion email accounts. (Source)
10. The average Internet user watched 186 online videos per month (USA). (Source)
11. Every minute 35 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube. (Source)
What does this mean for you? Nothing lasts forever, but it doesn’t look like social media is going away anytime soon. How can you take advantage of this phenomenon? The very fact that you’re reading a blog about social media is a good sign! Keep educating yourself about what’s going on. Read about it. Take part in online webinars. And try some things for yourself. Make some mistakes. It’s OK to make mistakes as long as you learn from them. Social media is evolving. What worked yesterday may not work as well tomorrow. It’s a bit like riding a rollercoaster. It’s a little scary—but it’s fun, too.