Social networking still to grow in 2008

According to a report by Experian, the social networking phenomenon is set to continue booming. Newspapers better catch up with the Web 2.0 bandwagon, and develop more than simple user profiles.
Companies, including newspapers, will increasingly seek to tap this trend by developing services for niche audiences that will attract advertisers.
"Experian's Tony Mooney said companies need to think beyond gimmicks such as setting up a Facebook profile, and need to understand the web 2.0 environment," reported the Guardian.
"Just look at some of the marketing gaffes from last year when social network members spotted a hackneyed marketing campaign and tore it to shreds," said Mooney.
But the report also predicts that leading social networking sites such as Facebook, Bebo and MySpace will significantly improve their organization and targeting methods, and be more attractive to advertisers.
New media proponent Jeff Jarvis has argued for the benefits of social networking for news organizations and users, and a recent study found that 43% of US journalists believe new media has affected news coverage - for good and bad.
Stay tuned for an upcoming interview with the CEO of Skyrock's SkyBlogs, Europe's most popular blog platform, which spun out of a traditional media company.

Published:The Editors weblog Source: Guardian