Business
Business Buzz: Social media on the rise

PHUKET: I have been talking about the power of social media for over a year now, but there is no better way to showcase this power than to look at the US Presidential circus that is unfolding right before our eyes.
As an avid follower of social media and how it is used both successfully and unsuccessfully, it is always interesting to see examples of when it is used really well. And the ongoing US election campaign provides us the best current example. This is not the first time that social media was successfully used in electioneering, with the current president owing a lot of his political success to it.
Donald Trump, who it seems is generally hated by traditional and mainstream media, has however, taken the deployment of social media to a completely new level.
President Obama had a brilliant social media campaign and spent millions of dollars on both his campaigns (reportedly about US$600 million prior to the last election). This year Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have reportedly already spent over US$150 million each, and Ted Cruz had paid out a reported US$70 million.
But Trump has reportedly spent less than US$50 million, far less than any of his serious rivals. And given the success he has had, especially taking into consideration the negative press that mainstream media has published – he must be doing something right. And that appears to be his social media footprint.
Trump has over seven million Twitter followers, and has been using this, as well as other social media such as Instagram, Facebook and YouTube to his advantage.
To be fair, it also seems to be a case of Trump being in the right place at the right time, as people seem to be getting annoyed with the big institutions and the information they spread, believing that it may be somehow biased or false. This has built mistrust, and a general feeling of resentment which also fuels the conspiracy factor.
So Trump has managed to create and market his own version of Donald Trump, and there have been a constant flow of “Meet the real Donald Trump” posts and content that has been very well received by the masses. Content that has been carefully designed to show a very genuine, real and caring Trump has been plastered over the internet, and has been shared and spread like wildfire. Yet there has been none of the normal fact checking, or filter of BS from truth. It has all been accepted as gospel.
Also with his Twitter-feed, Trump has been able to almost create his own reality, and the New York Times recently reported that he has thereby generated almost US$2 billion worth of free Twitter exposure.
So what can we learn from all this?
Firstly, social media works. Secondly, if you create the right content and branding, and put it into the right market segments, you can create your own image or reality. Finally, and most importantly, this can be done far more cost-effectively than via any other option.
So. if your business is not engaged in social media, or you are not using it professionally, isn’t there enough evidence to suggest it is time to get serious?
Simon Wetherell is a Social Media expert, trainer and lawyer. He now resides in Phuket where he trains businesses and individuals on how to profit from the Social Media industry. For more information visit https:// PhuketOnlineMarketing.com or call him on 095-085 3355.
— Simon Wetherell
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Business
Governments & old media versus social media – who will win? | VIDEO

We look at the recent changes made by the Australian and Indian governments to except control over the world’s biggest social media platforms. India has issued strict new rules for Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms just weeks after the Indian government attempted to pressure Twitter to take down social media accounts it deemed, well, anti social. There is now an open battle between the rise of social media platforms and the governments and ‘old’ media that have been able to maintain a certain level of control over the ‘message’ for the last century. Who will win?
The rules require any social media company to create three roles within India… a “compliance officer” who ensures they follow local laws; a “grievance officer” who addresses complaints from Indian social media users; and a “contact person” who can actually be contacted by lawyers and other aggrieved Indian parties… 24/7.
The democratisation of the news model, with social media as its catalyst, will continue to baffle traditional media and governments who used to enjoy a level of control over what stories get told. The battles of Google and Facebook, with the governments of India and Australia will be followed in plenty of other countries as well.
At the root of all discussions will be the difference between what governments THINK social media is all about and the reality about how quickly the media landscape has changed. You’ll get to read about it first, on a social media platform… probably on the screen you’re watching this news story right now.
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Business
The social media giants in battle with ‘old’ media and world governments | VIDEO

“The rules signal greater willingness by countries around the world to rein in big tech firms such as Google, Facebook and Twitter that the governments fear have become too powerful with little accountability.”
India has issued strict new rules for Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms just weeks after the Indian government attempted to pressure Twitter to take down social media accounts it deemed, well, anti social.
The rules require any social media company to create three roles within India… a “compliance officer” who ensures they follow local laws; a “grievance officer” who addresses complaints from Indian social media users; and a “contact person” who can actually be contacted by lawyers and other aggrieved Indian parties… 24/7.
The companies are also being made to publish a compliance report each month with details about how many complaints they’ve received and the action they took.
They’ll also be required to remove ‘some’ types of content including “full or partial nudity,” any “sexual act” or “impersonations including morphed images”
The democratisation of the news model, with social media as its catalyst, will continue to baffle traditional media and governments who used to enjoy a level of control over what stories get told.
The battles of Google and Facebook, with the governments of India and Australia will be followed in plenty of other countries as well.
At the root of all discussions will be the difference between what governments THINK social media is all about and the reality about how quickly the media landscape has changed. You’ll get to read about it first, on a social media platform… probably on the screen you’re watching this news story right now.
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Never miss out on future posts by following The Thaiger.
Business
Turbulence ahead for Thailand’s aviation industry | VIDEO

When the airlines, in particular, were asking the government to put their hands in their pockets for some relief funding in August last year, it was genuinely thought that international tourists would be coming back for the high season in December and January. At the very least local tourists and expats would head back to the skies over the traditional holiday break. And surely the Chinese would be back for Chinese New Year?
As we know now, none of that happened. A resurge in cases started just south of Bangkok on December 20 last year, just before Christmas, kicking off another round of restrictions, pretty much killing off any possibility of a high season ‘bump’ for the tourist industry. Airlines slashed flights from their schedule, and hotels, which had dusted off their reception desks for the surge of tourists, shut their doors again.
Domestically, the hotel business saw 6 million room nights in the government’s latest stimulus campaign fully redeemed. But the air ticket quota of 2 million seats still has over 1.3 million seats unused. Local tourists mostly skipped flights and opted for destinations within driving distance of their homes.
As for international tourism… well that still seems months or years away, even now.
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