Social Networks

Jannelle Robichaud, Regina Sawe, Sagara Dindyal, Chanspreet Singh

What is a Social Network?

Social Networks are cloud-based platforms whereby individuals can interact, chat, and share valuable ideas among their community without any limit of physical or intellectual borders.

Social networks include characteristics of :

User-generated content - when people post photos and/or videos for people to view and comment.
Profiles - simply creating a public, private, or anonymous profile on a social media site or app can be considered social networking, as it holds personal information and content one would like to share with others.
Connections - Following, Friends, exploring friend suggestions created through mutual friends or contacts.

Social Networking emphasizes forming relationships and connections.

Written By: Jannelle Robichaud

How to use Social Networks

Social networking can be as simple as using a social media app to text a friend or co-worker about needing a shift covered. Others enjoy building their network by posting daily updates and creating content, but this typically only allows for a one-way connection; the content creator posts and others engage by commenting and liking. Then, some prefer not to engage through social networks and prefer making connections in person either at work or out for a walk. At the end of the day, it relies on the individual's preferences.

Written by: Jannelle Robichaud

2. Social network plays a very important role in the life of every person as it connects people and builds a complete social network profile using a clear image and brief information, along with proper links and enables successful social networking. Users should decide the main purpose behind their social media use between work promotion, academic pursuits, and leisure activities. Activeness comes from managing immediate message responses, enjoying posts from others and maintaining regular posting activity. Users will engage with content which provides enjoyment, such as posting educational information and visual updates from your business activities and candid behind-the-scenes moments.

Written by chanspreet Singh.

3. Some tips on using famous social media apps like TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube include: Utilizing trending sounds along with popular hashtags and challenges to reach a wider audience (Hardey, 2024). Respond to comments using video replies to build deeper connections with followers and stand out from competitors by creating a distinct style or character that helps your content pop immediately from others.

4. People should also be cautious when using these applications as everyone must be mindful and respectful. This can be achieved in various ways: Never disclose the location of photo shoots, important off-site meetings or events, and other people without their permission (Smith, 2021). Avoid using social media as a space to voice your complaints as this could damage your reputation. Once published even if deleted can be kept alive by screenshots. People and companies also tend to address concerns if approached privately and professionally. Keep off personal ongoing activities from social media. Sharing incomplete work can expose sensitive information or ideas. This can also protect one from negative and discouraging public feedback.

Written by Regina Sawe

Why use Social Networks

To get instant online discussions. People prefer social networks for interactions that happen in real time.

To create relationships. We cannot exist alone. Naturally, we seek new connections, and social networks have made this easy.

We use these networks to share knowledge. This leads to deeper understanding, and collaboration and encourages innovation and growth.

It is cost effective. One can access many published materials to research as it is usually free for the end-user.

Social networks now consist of search engine results (University of Cumbria, 2025). This allows businesses to be as specific as possible in their content creation reaching more consumers.

Written by Regina Sawe

There are numerous reasons why we use Social Networks, a few are listed below.

Staying connected by using different social media platforms, everyone can stay connected with family and friends, as-well as their team members.
Promoting business in the modern era, Social networks play a very important role in making businesses successful.
Gaining information and news. Everything is posted on social media platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook, so everyone can gain knowledge very easily.
Having fun sharing videos, messages and photos to each other is very beneficial to us as individuals using these networks.

written by chanspreet singh

Examples of Networking

Facebook

With a staggering 3 billion active users, this social media networking service is the largest in the industry and commands a global presence.
It is designed for personal use, such as connecting with friends or family; however, it can also be employed to engage with potential clients for business purposes.

Designed mainly for the business community, LinkedIn provides the access to a professional connection with others rather than personal.
It uses data-driven patterns to provide others with information of what the work trends are within their area, allowing them to thoughtfully plan their career.

X (Twitter)

X, formerly known as Twitter, is one of the world's largest social media platforms with over 611 million active users.
It is used mainly as a form of microblogging for personal, professional and even news media through the form of 'tweets'.

References

Backlinko Team. (2024, Seporking service examples for 2023. Leanring Center. https://penji.co/social-networking-service/

Nguyen, S. (2020, April 24). Social networking vs Social media: Differences & similarities. Avada. https://avada.io/blog/social-networking-vs-social-media/

Hanna, K. T., Wright, G., & Yasar, K. (2025, January 22). What is social networking and how does it work?: Definition from TechTarget. WhatIs. https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/social-networking

Hanna, K. T. (2022, October 24). LinkedIn. WhatIs. https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/LinkedIn

Hardey, M., (2024). Marketing: Visual and Social Media Marketing. In SAGE Business Skills Collection 2. SAGE Publications, Inc., [https://doi.org/10.4135/9781071959602]

Smith, S., (2021). Organizational Communication: Media Richness Theory: Matching the Medium to Your Message. In SAGE Skills: Business., [https://doi.org/10.4135/9781071861677]

Singh, S. (2025, February 10). How many people use Twitter (X) – active users [2025 stats]. DemandSage. https://www.demandsage.com/twitter-statistics/

SocialBee. (2025, January 28). What is X (Twitter)? - SocialBee. https://socialbee.com/glossary/twitter/

University of Cumbria. (2025). Why Use Social Media. https://my.cumbria.ac.uk/Student-Life/it-media/Social-Media-Guidance/Why-use-social-media/

What is social network? - Definition from WhatIs.com. (n.d.). SearchCIO. https://www.techtarget.com/searchcio/definition/social-network

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