Today, it’s difficult to imagine life without social media. Many of us wouldn’t know what to do with ourselves if we couldn’t update our network with a current relationship status, favorite band or lunch ideas. While it may seem that social media is the relative new kid on the block with the more recent popularity of platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, this isn’t a new fad.

Social media, in one form or another has been around since the 1970’s. Although the look and feel has changed greatly since the early days, the communication concept remains the same. Today technology allows for a greater interaction and real-time communication but similar to its roots, social media allows individuals to broadcast to the masses.

Take a photo tour of the evolution of social media with us.

Bulletin Board Systems (BBS)

The BBS began as a virtual imitation of bulletin boards found in community halls, schools and grocery stores. Primarily used by gamers, hackers and other less politically correct Internet users, Bulletin Boards were among the first online communities. Users could communicate by email, dial-up chat rooms and community message boards.

The first commercial BBS was brought to us by Prodigy, yanking social media up from the underground and making it more mainstream. Launched in 1990 it gained mass appeal because of its color interface.

America On Line (AOL) gained critical mass by using an aggressive direct mail campaign to reach the public. It’s hard to forget the weekly arrival of AOL disks.

Profile sites

Social media started to look and act more like we know it today with the launch of profile-based sites like Six Degrees in the late 1990s.

Friendster

In 2002, Friendster was launched. The platform allowed users to set up profiles, contact other members and share information with them.

MySpace

Launched in 2003, Myspace held the title of most popular social networking site for a couple of years. Although the platform's glory years are over, it is still a useful site for artists and musicians to promote their work.

Facebook

Facebook was launched in 2004 by Harvard student, Mark Zuckerberg. The platform has been integral in bringing social media into the mainstream and today sees over 500 million active users.

Twitter

Twitter launched in 2006, is a popular microblogging site that is estimated to have over 200 million users.

From underground to mainstream, social media has secured its spot as a staple in our lives with an evolution that plays like a trip down memory road. The possibilities are endless for future platforms. It's hard to predict what will come next for the social web. One thing is for sure — HATHWAY will be there to figure it out!

If you need to add more social media savvy to your marketing arsenal, give us a call.