Social Media

In a recent blog post for Harvard Business Review (Harvard Business Review Blog), social media strategist Umair Haque offers a worthwhile hypothesis to consider (then turn on its head and re-consider). Mr. Haque says that social media is largely home to weak, artificial connections or what he terms thin relationships. He quips that such thin relationships are patently bad in that they do nothing more than create the illusion of real relationships. “Nominally, you have a lot more relationships,” he notes, “but in reality, few, if any, are actually valuable.” I’m sure at one time or another we’ve all agreed with Mr. Haque. I myself found Twitter, Facebook, et al superficially thin when I first dipped my toes into the social media-scape. 140 was the new TMI. But that’s the glass half empty, and we’re in PR where the glass is always full.Yes. Social media can and does create thin relationships. And that is our hallelujah moment. Thin relationship connotes acquaintance, a connection and connectors. Or, put differently, a potential (and potentially untapped) network to acquaint and network connect. And networks, as the economic books say, can bring many positive externalities such as following and befriending, digg’in and re-tweeting, linking and checking-in ... on and on. But it all begins with that first “no there, there” virtual relationship,.So when you next think of Mr. Haque or are just plain trying to figure out why social media is relevant to your client, remind yourself that thin relationships are where relationships start, not end.


Gregory Papajohn