Social. Media.
The two paths of social media and why you’re failing by trying to do both
Hi,
has been living rent free in my head for years for writing this article about the two different types of social media companies, and how we’re thinking about them all wrong.“Social media” actually refers to two very different types of apps:
Social: “I want to connect with others.”
Media: “I want to be entertained.”
An app that pursues both at once is destined to lose.
I have been telling people about it for years, and turning it over in my brain enough that I’m now ready to talk about the strategy behind this idea.
Social media has always been a catch-all term that implies every platform works the same way. Creators jump in expecting to “grow their audience” without realizing that the game isn’t the same everywhere.
Some platforms exist to create and deepen relationships. These are social apps. Others are built to broadcast content to as many people as possible. These are media apps. The difference between the two is massive. Social apps thrive on conversation. Media apps thrive on c…
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