If you have teenage children, chances are you learn most of what you know about technology from them. So maybe you have heard of Facebook or MySpace? They are two of many social networking platforms, a place where all ages can open a profile page and instantly communicate with friends and others with similar interests.
In very basic terms, a social network is really an Internet inside the Internet. If the Internet is this sea of people with varying interests, then a social network is really a smaller pool of people consisting of fragments or niches based on interest.
These social networks provide platforms for communication that are instant. Imagine having all of your friends linked to your profile, and when you post a message, you have immediately notified all of your friends. No phone, no e-mail; just instant notification through a single platform. Think of social networks as communication within the Internet. E-mail is communication outside of the Internet - it just uses the Internet - while a social network or “social community” is a platform inside the Internet where people spend their time. E-mail requires you to click back and forth between separate applications while you are online. With Facebook or MySpace, no other application has to be open; you communicate right there where people “hang out” online. Facebook, or whatever technology platform you prefer, is simply a platform for communications. And, as a result, another marketing environment is created–an environment for social marketing.