This week there were several readings and videos that definitely opened my eyes to the world of social media and the impact it has on our society. I really enjoyed the video, #Socialnomics 2014 by Erik Qualman. I thought it was fascinating to see so many statistics about social media and technology and how it effects us. Some of the stats, including relationship ones were surprising. It shows that 1 in 5 straight couples meet through social media and 3 in 5 gay couples do. I was kinda surprised but kinda not from that. Social media is a great way for anyone to meet their future partner through because it gives you access to all over the world instead of just your local city.

I’ve also enjoyed learning about new things through some of our readings this week. The article “Digital and Social; The Changing Media Landscape” by Team Next was somewhat of a shock when realizing how Internet and social media has not only changed us but also the way businesses work. I t’s crazy how everyday news outlets like newspapers and magazines are either going out of business or going virtual based on the decline of people going out buying newspapers when they’re reading the news on their smartphones and laptops. Facebook continues to evolve, now even having their own online newspaper, FB Newswire, making it even easier to find newsworthy stories and articles by using a hashtag or the tap of a screen.

Although many of the things I’ve read and watched this week are things I’ve known about and are obvious, it’s defninitely surprising to see so many facts about social media and how it’s changing basically everything.

This week I learned quite a bit from the Hootsuite SCMD 121 workbook and videos. The video and exam were great tools in learning about some social media sites that I either don’t use or don’t know much about. Also, for the social media sites that I do use, such as Instagram, Facebook and Youtube, I was able to learn a bit more about how you can use these for business and branding instead of just fun apps. It allowed me to want to explore more of the social media sites that I currently don’t use such as Pinterest and Tumblr. I actually have accounts on most of the social media sites, however I haven’t really used them and explored them before. I would like to learn more about Facebook because it’s something I have and use often but it seems to be constantly growing and changing, so every time I check out my facebook page or view posts from others, it seems new things have been added. Also, I would love to learn and use Pinterest because it’s something I know several people love and use daily but I have never even been on it before. Tumblr is another social media site that seems to be extremely popular among younger generation, such as highschoolers and I have viewed Tumblr sites but I have no idea what people do on it or what makes it so popular.

I was surprised by how just googling my name popped up with so many results, including myself and other people from all over the world. I love social media and I have several different accounts. When I typed in “Adam Alsup”, I noticed that the websites and social media apps I tend to use the most were what showed up as most popular and on page 1 of the search results. Facebook and LinkedIn seemed to be the ones showing the most results. Also, Twitter and Instagram showed up along with many random things such as white pages, spokeo, etc. I also did a Google image search and was surprised by how many of my photos I’ve posted through Instagram and Facebook showed up on there. You sometimes forget how open the Internet can be and although you don’t think much about posting a photo on Facebook at the time, I’ve realized once it’s uploaded, it can be all over the internet within a matter of seconds.

I was also surprised by how many Adam Alsup’s there were in the world. I wouldn’t be so shocked if my name was John Smith but my  last name is somewhat unique so I thought it was odd that not only are there so many Adam’s but there were multiple Adam Alsup’s from all over based in the Google search results. What I’d like to achieve and accomplish this semester is using some of these social media outlets as more business and branding myself and not just for fun. I am more cautious and aware of the impact posting info and photos on sites like Facebook can have and how some future employers may see this and judge you based on what they’ve googled searched about you.

Hello everyone! My name is Adam and I’m currently in my junior year of college. My degree program is Business/Marketing, which is one of the reasons I’m taking this course. I’m excited to learn about using social media in marketing. Also, I’m optimistic about exploring new techniques and tools with using social media not for just personal use but for business and to better brand my future self and business. My past work experiences  include interior design, graphic design and have mostly involved visuals and working in a creative atmosphere. I’m looking forward to learning more about social media, networking and a more in depth look into marketing.

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