Page 23 - Sphere No.26 (Mar 2010)

nnections
Issue 26 21
But this is a market that never stands still, so what’s the next step for social networking and what stage
are we at in the development curve? It’s no longer just about staying in touch with friends and celebrities
– business is also catching on to how social networking applications can improve marketing
and grow revenue. Applications that will enhance customer relationship management will
be at the forefront of this trend.
It was suggested at a recent seminar at Oxford University that the future is not about
crowd sourcing but crowd filtering because there are now enough social networks to fill
all the obvious niches, but making use of the stream of information that pours into them
is something that has only just begun.
At the same seminar LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, who graduated from Stanford University and
Oxford with a Master’s degree in philosophy, put it this way: “I actually think we are just beginning to
see how people launch the eventualities of social networks into their life,” at the same time
reminding the audience of the way that mobile phones had grown from being a tool
for bankers to being a part of everyone’s life. “I think the phenomenon of the online
relationship empowers our personal and professional life. You might think ‘Who