Internet Marketers Want More People Using Social Networking But Not on Their Time

Internet Marketers Want More People Using Social Networking But Not on Their Time

It’s true internet marketers, businesses, corporations and even the Government want everyone to access Web 2.0 social networking sites more often. But how would they feel if their employees did it on their time? It’s the same argument that everyone has relived over and over from taking personal calls, emails, texting and now Twitter. Pockets of employer time disappear every day with astonishing speed never to be found again. Add them together and you have waves of downtime that grow like weeds in offices all around the world.

A new study from Ohio State University linked Facebook activity levels to a lower grade point average. Unlike students who pay for classes companies are paying workers to turn up and produce. Being on Facebook during working hours means not only taking time away from tasks but splitting concentration throughout the day making the time to complete tasks even longer or, even worse, generating an imperfect result or product.

So if you add emails, texting and Twitter together how does anyone get anything done? What about a government office where it’s the tax payer bankrolling the pay roll?

As Facebook becomes as common as answering email employers are in constant dread of trying to put limits on not only whether but when, why and how much time their staff spend on social networking sites and should they consider it a short term epidemic or a long term addiction?

Not every employer create its own Web 2.0, equip with its own rules and regulations like the US government. Some government social networking sites contained within certain agencies, like the State Department’s Exchanges Connect, forces those sites to be productive reducing trash talk back to the water cooler.

Likewise, federal IT employees have found using Govloop extremely productive for exchanging workplace best practices.  Right now the tax payer is safe.

A college student or office worker needs to display high level discipline if they’re free to create their own rules. Students and employees can easily fire up Facebook during a boring lecture, client or executive meeting. Hardcore fans will use Facebook to make plans, discuss baseball, that Oscar dress, weight loss plan or some ridiculous photograph. Government users are forced to keep it clean passing on or discussing information pertaining to work.

Social networking is here to stay. And no one wants to spoil the fun, but its effect on student, employee and government performance will depend on how each sector can make it productive.

Internet marketers, businesses, corporations and even the Government are secretly betting that everyone will access Web 2.0 social networking sites more often to scoop news, stay in the loop and eagerly pass on their powerful messages. And if their employees did the same thing? Employers already have to put up with a lot. Of course, no one in their right mind would openly abuse personal calls, emails, texting, Facebook and Twitter unless trying to commit career suicide. But even in small doses the outcome is lethal and the result is something even the tax man will not allow you to deduct a resource too hard to quantify, file or find: time.