Doing a Web search for "Social media is like" gives some fun and interesting results. (Make sure you use the quotation marks to search for this exact phrase. And don't tell Patty Seybold I'm spending my time doing this...)
Below are some of the things you'll find. Except for the first couple of examples, you'll have to click the links to understand the rationale. (As an intellectual challenge, you can try to guess at the reasoning before visiting the site in question.)
- Social media is like a Mr. Bubble Pool party...it has a way of bringing people together and can be a heck of a lot of fun!
- Social media is like water...don’t be afraid to dive into the deep end of the pool; water is best when added to other things.
- Social media is like speechwriting...
- Social media is like playing slot machines...
- Social media is like visiting a good hair stylist...
Many analogies relate to the entertainment industry:
- Social media is like punk music...
- Social media is like "Survivor"...
- Social media is like "The Matrix"...
- Social media is like "The Deadliest Catch"...
- Social media is like Bam-Bam [of the Flintstones]...
There are a few regarding exercise:
- Social media is like working out...
- Social media is like running a marathon...
- Social media is like sex... [wasn't sure how best to categorize this one]
And several involving education (I like this progression):
- Social media is like recess...
- Social media is like the seventh grade...
- Social media is a lot like high school...
- Social media is like parenting...
We tend to use analogies/similes when we're trying to understand something we don't quite have a handle on, or when we're trying to explain to others something that's difficult to explain. It seems to me that those who wrote the creative analogies above were trying both to make sense of this new phenomenon and looking to communicate some complexities to others.
The social media of today's Internet is unlike anything we've seen before. The low cost, the widespread accessibility, the technological applications, and the immense scale are key contributing factors to its tremendous appeal and rapid growth. But we're still in the early days. We're all still learning and dealing with social media's implications for us, the groups/communities to which we belong, and for society (locally, nationally, and globally), for personal use; for managing our identities and relationships; for learning, teaching, and knowledge sharing; for doing business; for entertainment; and much more.
Devising analogies supports and extends the dialog, particularly if it brings a smile to one's face along the way.
What is social media like, to you?
Comments