Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, FriendFeed and the other mega-social media channels have broken 50 years of viewing habits but have not changed the fundamental reason why people "tune-in". Although the computer was designed as a time-saving device, it has become a time-wasting device, just like TV has always been. 

 The personal computer now predominantly exists to entertain, not help you get things done. People now use social media for the same reasons they watch television, to feel that they are part of something larger than their own lives. TV viewers seek out characters and stories with which to identify. Social media users are now doing exactly the same thing, except it's real people and real stories they are seeking to connect with. It's a deep psychological fix that can't be explained in economic terms.

This fundamental dynamic of "connection" is thoroughly understood by all producers of broadcast media, not just TV. Soap operas, reality shows, Broadway shows and novels all take an audience on a journey. Gripping characters are introduced, the characters are developed and a back-story told so that the audience actually cares about them, they are then put in a situation that compels them to act, the story is resolved and the audience is satisfied. However, brands attempting to exploit media channels are often at best amateur storytellers and in many cases do not even realise they are telling a story. As computers, through the Internet and particularly social media, have now predominantly become a source of entertainment, this is an enormous issue. Audiences expect to be entertained, they expect to be taken on a journey but the storyteller no longer can ensure they start the story on page 1. Storytelling in a multi-user environment is hugely more complex than one-to-many, linear storytelling. Storytelling in this new media requires multiple, simultaneous story strands, aimed at multiple audiences of one.

One of the basic tenants of storytelling is to introduce characters (read brands or products) in a way that allows the audience to understand who they are and give them a reason to care about them. Once the characters have been introduced, their actions advance the story in a discernible way. Characters are not randomly parachuted in for a brief period of time only to equally suddenly disappear forever, they are carefully nutured and become increasingly complex as the story, and correspondingly the audiences understanding, develops. The challenge for brands in the social web is to simultaneously introduce themselves to new audiences, add richness and depth to newly acquired audiences and suprise and reward the existing audience, without clumsily invading the personal space of the wider community. This requires an innate understanding of the brand, the audience, the medium and the art of storytelling. It also requires committment.  

Picture thanks to 1sock