The more I delve into social media, the more questions I have.
Here’s what I’m wrestling with today:
Are all of my readers and commenters the same as yours?
If everybody’s drawing water from the same pool, and the pool’s not getting bigger, then we’ll eventually dry the thing up, won’t we?
If everybody is adding water to the same pool, but nobody is coming to take that water away, the pool becomes a cesspool. Nasty.
Are bloggers creating a cesspool of mind-dump…or a refreshing well of idea swap?
Sometimes, I wonder if the people that ReTweet my updates are the same ones that ReTweet yours. And whether the folks that comment on my blog are the same ones that comment on yours. If there are a few thousand people that read blogs, and promote them among themselves, but they never really get outside of that circle, then isn’t it like we’re just scratching each others’ backs? Spinning our wheels? Puffing up our own numbers so that we look good…to each other?
Maybe this is a form of effectiveness. Maybe we’re making an impact in the lives of this pool of social media-ites, and they’re impacting the lives of those they come in contact with on a regular basis. Maybe.
But maybe we’re ReTweeting and commenting so that somebody will ReTweet and comment on our stuff…so that our numbers will increase, so that we can draw a little more ‘water’ from the pool of bloggers. So maybe ReTweeting and commenting are just a form of self-service.
I love social media. I just want to continue to strive for effectiveness, reaching new readers, sharing ideas with folks who are putting them into action, and propelling people to take steps of faith.
Are blogs really making a difference in the world?
Is social media worth the effort?
