Feeling Addicted to Facebook and Twitter These Days?

[image error]While it certainly is not as damaging to one's health as such vices like cigarettes and alcohol, is it possible that you can share or tweet to much?

According to a recent survey from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business focused on 205 people (ages 18 to 85) in the German city of Wurtzburg, social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter are harder to walk away from than cigarettes and the bottle.

The study polled participants through BlackBerry smartphones at seven intervals daily, asking them to notify study organizers at what times they felt a desire to share or tweet within the last half hour. They were also tasked with gauging every desire on scale that ranged from somewhat to "irresistible."

When all was said and done, 10,558 responses were tallied, with a total of 7,827 "desire episodes" noted by study-goers.

As the study coordinator pointed out, individuals might fail to stay away from social media due to the fact there is no clear-cut or immediate negative side to checking services like the two leading social networking venues, Facebook and Twitter. When it comes to items like alcohol and cigarettes, however, not only is there the health matter, but both can be very expensive over time for one to afford and enjoy.

So, which "vice" is more time-consuming?

Yes, while it takes a few minutes to smoke a cigarette and can take longer to down alcohol, how long does it take to share and tweet?

Well, that obviously varies from participant to participant. Some folks make what we might call a "drive-by" to sites like Facebook and Twitter, while others can be perched on there for a significant amount of time each day.

The result may be of interest to employers too, given the fact that both cigarette breaks and timeouts used for social media can impact millions of employees on a daily basis.

In the event you're wondering how to manage social media usage during the day at your company, keep these factors in mind:

Monitor but don't obsess – All companies have different rules and regulations in place when it comes to in-house social media. Some companies encourage SM use by employees as it pertains to tweeting and sharing links related to company news, white papers, studies, etc. Others, however, discourage use of SM during the work day, some even going as so far as to ban it. Find a happy middle ground for your employees so that they are not spending too much time on it, yet they are helping you to spread word around regarding the company;
Make sure policy is referred to new employees – When someone new comes on board, it is important that you let them in on your company's social media policy. This way, they know the rules from the beginning. Consider it part of their training regimen when they join;
Don't discredit the power of social media – Despite the fact that countless individuals and businesses use social media on a daily basis, some businesses still don't quite get it. With a New Year underway, take the time to sit down with your staff and feel them out on how many use social media, both personally and professionally. Ask them about ideas they might have to give the company more exposure through sites like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and more. The more ideas floating around, the better chances your company will properly use SM.

 Photo credit: woowoo-web.com

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