Analysis of Collaborative Social Media

Collaborative social media interfaces provide users a virtual space and the tools to co-create, publish, assess, promote and discuss content. Examples of social media interfaces which encourage collaboration include Wikipedia, Digg, Epinions, 7tipson, StumbleUpon, Reddit, and Yelp. Of these interfaces, Wikipedia is one of the most successful examples of large scale collaborative content development. There are however an emerging number of collaborative communities which focus on niche industries such as Travel. TripAdvisor, Wikitravel and LonelyPlanet are three virtual communities dedicated to the growth of collective intelligence in relation to all things travel. The sites include accommodation, transport, dining and activity reviews and tips. They also contain tools such as discussion pages, message boards and forums. These tools make the space a valuable source of travel information.
The role of intermediaries such as travel agencies is being challenged through the growth in collaborative user generated content. Travel information is now among the most popular and frequently visited information on the internet. Collaborative online social media content creates transparency, particularly among destinations. “The mirror has never been shinier but it also has never before been pointed as directly at the destination and its suppliers as it is today”. The social presence within social media channels creates medium richness. This is demonstrated through high rates of immediate feedback, a personal focus, unbiased opinions and the diversity of contributors. The audience now has more control over a brand or destinations image, and can therefore influence others perceptions at will. An ignorance or avoidance of the conversation which is taking place within the collaborative social media platform could potentially be damaging for an organisation. The opportunity to respond directly to consumer complaints, criticisms or questions before they get misrepresented through main stream media, is lost.
Through the investigation of collaborative media an overwhelming number of benefits have presented themselves. However, one problem has emerged in relation to the equality of collaborative social media contributions. Research reveals that approximately 80% of contributions to sites such as Wikipedia are contributed by a mere 20% of users. This phenomenon is called the Pareto Principle, or the 20/80 rule, proposed by Italian economist and sociologist, Vilfredo Pareto. This inequality of contributions is found in not only collaborative social media, but reflected through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other social media channels contributions. Marketers should keep the Pareto phenomenon in mind when measuring the effectiveness of social media marketing efforts. The use a analytics tools which measure ‘unique’ visits or contributions can reduce such distortions.