Facebook in the Office, To Ban or Not To Ban?

Facebook can be a blessing or a curse depending on a number of factors. Certain industries such as the music or production industry thrive on networking forcing employees to create and maintain professional accounts. This is a productive example of Facebook use at work. However, corporations around the world are looking into the vast amount of lost productivity from Facebook and other social media devices. This underutilization of labor can be devastating to a nation's economy. Most of these unproductive workers are paid on salaries, preventing the desire to work to their fullest potential.

According to the British website myjobgroup.co.uk about 6% of workers use Facebook for more than an hour a day. This means that one eighth of their workday is spent unproductively. The website estimates that social media devices could be costing Britain up to 14 billion pounds. This is lack of productivity is staggering. In the current recession those fortunate enough to hold jobs should be working to the best of their ability. If they do not, I fear that the recession will last significantly longer. Macroeconomics proves that unproductive workers can help to cause a multiplier effect and driving the real gross domestic product of a country down. I believe that office bans of Facebook could help spur companies productivity and overall profitability. These increases in profitability would help to rebuild the foundations of the world's economy one step at a time.

Are Blog's Changing News?

In the information age, it is increasingly important to check the creditability of news sources. Anyone can write a blog. However, not just anyone can write a credible blog. In order to gain journalistic respect in the information age one must provide sources for all facts involved in their writing. News media is rapidly changing away from paper form.

Credible newspapers and journals such as the New York Times and now hire journalists to write for their blogs. Blogs provide companies' editors the opportunity to interact with their readers, helping to gage their interests. This has helped the media move away from the news and farther towards entertainment. This motion will force people desiring news to search in areas other than their newspapers. The constant need for entertainment and instant gratification embodies the capitalistic mentality held by our country's citizens.

Social Media Advertising

Facebook, the social media device, is currently underutilized by most companies. This is the case because they fail to realize the informational power of access. The access to millions of individuals in "groups" should be used to form free of advertising campaigns in "message" form. News, radio, and television users are switching to internet sources to use downloadable material for free. Not to mention the technological advancements (Tivo, DVR) that allow users to record material with the intent to skip over pricey advertisements. Instead of opting for paid campaigns on television or radio companies should use free media devices. These devices can be equally effective if the market of the sold good is young adults and youth (10-25). These individuals are the most active participants of Facebook and could be most easily accessed by internet advertising. Pop-up ads currently appear on the side on the screen on Facebook, but they fail to grasp enough attention for users to "click". By enticing individuals to join a companies "group" they could stream "messages" daily with new and exciting deals to save consumers money. These groups would also allow companies to speak directly with their consumers receiving instant feedback. The use of feedback and access would help to push a company towards greater profits, while cutting advertising costs.