social media questions
Choose 5 of the 10 questions below and provide a thoughtful response (at least one paragraph) that includes your position. Be sure to include examples, where appropriate, to support your response. Each question will be worth 20 points. The best answers for full credit will combine these three elements: (1) your position, (2) your defense of your position/response, and (3) clear examples and be as free of writing/grammar/usage errors as possible.
- While some people think that social media use hampers productivity, others believe that spending time on social media actually makes you more productive. What are your thoughts on this? Does social media make “us” more productive? Offer examples to support your position.
- We have repeatedly mentioned in class that today’s media audiences receive in excess of 2200 messages per day, including those in both traditional and social media platforms. What are the positive and negative consequences of this abundant flow of information? Do you feel that you are getting too much or too little of the type of information you need?
- We have noted that in today’s world, simply digitizing old business models doesn’t work; businesses must fully transform to properly address the impact and demands of social media – leaving them “no choice” in the matter. Do you agree with this premise? Why or why not? Provide examples of how businesses are conforming to this expectation.
- One reported outcome of the information-laden society we live in is that “we no longer look for the news; the news finds us.” Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? Provide at least 3 examples of where the “news” has “found” you – whether you were interested in it or not. What did you do with that information? How did you react?
- Explain your views on the value/benefit of reading others’ comments about a product or service. Has this by-product of social media helped or hurt the consumer process? How often do you look for advice from friends and peers when making purchase decisions? Give an example of when advice from someone affected your decision to buy.
- Social media enables customers to instantly post what they like and don’t like about anything from products to government and this has implications for communication, including the importance of accuracy, privacy, and the need for a precise definition of censorship. Under what circumstances do you think that companies must delete comments made by the public? Do you consider this a form of acceptable censorship? Are there times when companies should allow those negative comments to remain in view? Explain.
- If done properly, one can use social media to get hired versus fired. Provide at least two examples of how social media might help someone and two examples of how social media might hurt someone as he/she pursued a job opportunity (internship, grad school, are also acceptable). Do you think that this use of social media as a screening tool is appropriate? Why or why not?
- One attribute of the people in Generations Y and Z is that they have a desire to contribute to the greater world around them and leverage social media for social and charitable causes. How might access to social media has contributed to this social phenomenon?
- Explain the concept of “information overload” as it relates to communication in general and social media in particular. What type of information is now readily available to you that you might otherwise have not had access to in a pre-digital age? Do you think this is helpful or not?
- Today’s marketing professionals spend much more time listening, engaging, and reacting to potential and current customer needs, suggesting that the two way symmetric model of communication is becoming the standard for many companies. Do you agree that companies, who do have more information about consumers, are actually listening? Why or why not? Provide an example that supports your opinion.