Revenue Disruption: Game-Changing Sales and Marketing Strategies to Accelerate Growth

Chapter 6

The Sea Change Called Social Media

When did you finally realize that Facebook was more than just a flash in the pan? Was it when you starting receiving daily “friend” requests from people you hadn’t heard from in years? Or when you literally couldn’t avoid seeing something about Facebook in just about every news outlet on the planet? Perhaps it was when the reports started circulating that Facebook’s valuation was approaching the stratospheric level, especially for a young private company, of nearly $100 billion? Or maybe it was when you found yourself wondering, “is it Winklevosses or Winklevii?”

How about Twitter? Do you remember when you went from having no clue about what a hashtag was, or why you should even care, to figuring out what hashtag to use for your upcoming family reunion or company user group meeting?

And what about LinkedIn? When did you first realize that you actually cared how many connections you had, and felt a twinge of pride that you had more than your boss? (Or was it jealousy when you realized that the hotshot on your team had more connections than you did?)

And Google+? If you’re like me, it took about two days to go from sighing in wonder at why the world needed another social network, to busily organizing your circles and inviting your Facebook friends to join you there.

It has been less than a decade since any of these social media services started, yet in just that brief time they have become an inescapable and ubiquitous fact of daily life. ...