Reference no: EM132809108

Since the early 2000's social media has risen in use exponentially and what started as AOL and MySpace, both used solely as a place to connect and socialize with people online has become Instagram and Tik-Tok, sites where you can place ads, make a professional account, direct business, and socialize all at the same time. Social media has gained and retained popularity with millennials and Generation Z, they are the rising market and companies have to adapt in order to remain relevant and have a competing chance for this wide range of customers. Younger companies such as Amazon, Google, and Uber have successfully adapted a business model that includes social media and newer technology as part of their daily operations, some of them having even changed their operations to rely solely on these two new assets (such as Netflix that went from mailing DVDs to people's homes to becoming a streaming service titan and dominating the entertainment world). Established companies whose main market was baby boomers and Generation X have either given in and adapted to these new business conditions or have gone under due to their inability to reach the new era; a great example of this is Blockbuster who we all knew about in our childhood and was one of the most successful chain stores at the time, however they filed for bankruptcy a couple years ago because they refused to adapt and join the technological revolution that the world was going through. Blockbuster had the chance to buy Netflix but they refused, believing that customers would not want to order movies online and have them delivered at home and we now know how that ended. Social media is being used as a tool to connect with the majority of their customers because it binds together communities that are geographically isolated. This made cultural influence to become more direct and substantial.Businesses are using social media to their advantage. When societal issues arise like The Black Lives Matter movement, companies and brands will turn to social media to take their stance or show their support for the movement. Companies now have direct access to their consumers by staying up to date through social media and connecting with customers.

For this project we will discuss the rise of social media and technological advancements regarding business development and adaptation, we will also discuss how it transformed how culture works in a way that weakens certain branding techniques. We will analyze how social media can become an incredible tool for businesses to use but how it can also deter their image and business, while offering ideas as to how to successfully approach this never-ending cycle of new social media platforms rising with young generations. The development of new technologies also affects businesses and how they take on these new challenges could dictate the success of the brand for the nearby future.