according to emily zager…

In the near future, social media technologies, platforms and programs will advance and thrive as a major facet of contemporary culture and communication. Technology will continue to open up more opportunities for individuals and companies to connect with others, share and collect information, initiate dialogue as well as craft online identities.  This outlook calls for a change of approach in social media services as well as a willingness to commit to such progress.

Advancing technologies are challenging developers to create social media platforms and programs that continually promote cutting-edge points of engagement.  Worldwide, social connectivity is revolutionizing the way every industry connects to its stakeholders and supporting communities.

With this in mind, fresh possibilities and developments in social media will occur inside of the “golden triangle.” The Golden Triangle offers a visual metaphor of trends and characteristics that fuses together aspects of social media applications, devices, networks and relationships, regarding mobile, social, and real-time segments. This illustrative example encourages agencies and businesses to take a more active approach towards their respective target audiences and clients.

Check out more regarding the Golden Triangle in a great article by Brian Solis.

In my opinion, the leading player of the mobile trend is the iPhone, due to its presently dominant influence and positive trajectory.  The iPhone, one of Apple’s signature and most recognizable products, crafted a reputation for its multimedia capabilities, touch-screen functions and sleek interface.  This smartphone provides the standard voice and text features of a phone while inviting users to update their Twitter and Facebook accounts, research and access breaking news as well as the download the latest up-and-coming official and third-party applications.

With its 3G and upcoming 4G networks which enable fast connection, the device parallels the role of the computer in the palm of one’s hand.  Despite lacking “Smartphone” capabilities of the official iPhone, the iTouch enables wireless Internet and digital connectivity with the similar ease of its touch screen and hand-held size.  In fact, these devices seemingly will eliminate need for the laptop computer.

In the future, Apple’s iPhone will work diligently with location-based social networks, especially with the dawn of location-based tools and platforms.  Today, users are beginning to describe their favorite local destinations on Foursquare.  However, this may be just the tip of the iceberg, as the iPhone may initiate an influx of not only mobile gaming and networking, but mobile commerce as well.

The leading player of the Golden Triangle’s social angle is Facebook.  Since its launch in 2004, Facebook has been a major contender in the realm of digital communication and social media. With over 350 million users worldwide, the social networking site is a powerhouse program that aims to increase the flow of information between people and promotes connectivity on a personal level.  The recent launch of Facebook’s chat enables instant, real-time communication messaging with users, and its surge of users has surpassed the popularity of its rival, MySpace.

With the program’s ever-growing collection of tools, games and other features, Facebook may need to utilize brand advertising. Companies seeking to gain attention or interaction with their target audiences need to adjust their focus towards crafting a presence on the social networking site.  In the future, companies and businesses who utilize Facebook will do so to strengthen – not create – their brand focuses, and to actively reach out to others in a similar sense with Twitter.  Facebook could also benefit from forming trustworthy alliances with other key digital media programs in order to maintain professionalism and profit.

The major trend associate with the forefront of the Golden Triangle’s real-time segment is Twitter.   An important leader in social media web technology and communication, the messaging service promotes immediacy in user presence as well as conversation on a global level.  Twitter’s current influence is reflected not only in a time-sense, but in the way the microblogging service has expanded over generations and purposes.  Users who “tweet” are accessible via Google and social search engines.

In the near future, more companies will utilize the free service to research consumers, build brands and provide real-time insight to users.  The service will continue supplementing other Internet services as it expands with larger encompassing programs, such as TweetDeck.  The microblogging site would benefit by creating, executing and organizing a “home page’ of sorts, which would segment main features of the site.

This could include a more accessible search engine to seek out news-based Twitter accounts, individual Tweeters, official company accounts as well as social media Tweeters.  There’s also a lot of multimedia to monitor, including television and radio content that is increasingly easy to find online. Both Twitter and Facebook may encompass these abilities.

Although communication has always been at the pinnacle of successful business, the advancement of social media will force companies to repurpose and restructure their methods of conversation.  Companies need tangible as well as digital connections to their target audiences in order to develop long-term loyalty. Since all forms of new media are currently at a changing point, companies will need to be realistic in embracing the social media movement.  In fact, in order to maintain a presence ahead of the movement, people need to remember to not only be “business savvy” but “social savvy” as well.