With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, everything has come to a halt. People have been asked to stay inside their homes to curb the spread of the Coronavirus infection. With minimal physical interaction with family and friends, social media has worked like a charm in keeping people in touch with their loved ones during these times.
During the Spanish Influenza pandemic, which happened almost a century ago, people had very limited resources to stay connected with their loved ones or share information and news. This is one of the reasons why people have very few traces of it in their memories.
Social media platforms have advanced to a great extent in the past few decades. It not only keeps us updated with the latest news and information but also lets us grow our businesses on social media. With the right marketing strategies and tricks, any business can grow and reach its audience.
Here are a few roles social media is playing during the pandemic:
Social Media: A Marketing Platform
The pandemic is playing an important role in the growth of many businesses on social media platforms. With everyone isolated at home, the usage of the internet in every household has increased rapidly. As people are spending more time than usual on social media, this gives businesses a chance to market their products and services and attract their target audience.
The consumption of streaming services has rapidly increased as well. To spend their free time, people turned to watch online movies and shows. Businesses such as restaurants providing delivery services turned to market their brand on social media platforms.
For new and small businesses, this is a perfect opportunity to promote their brands. Platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook are the most used among this generation.
If you have recently started a business, you can use these social media platforms to target your audience. Though this may not feel like the best time to help a business grow, it’s worth giving a try. You can create a promo video of your business and upload it on all social media channels. To make it look professional, you can use a video editor for editing.
Social Media: A Non-Pharmaceutical Way of Combating the Coronavirus
In times when there isn’t a vaccine available yet, social distancing and isolation are the only cure. The government uses social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to spread health awareness and advocate on health issues. For instance, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has maintained active social media pages for spreading information and news.
Social media platforms have been beneficial in disaster management and outbreak prevention as well. A study revealed that during the Ebola and Zika outbreaks in 2014 and 2015, social media helped CDC maintain active communication with the community. It also helped in spreading public health awareness.
Social Media: A Platform for Seeking Information
During these times, it has become imperative to stay up to date with what’s happening worldwide, and social media is helping us do that. It has worked as a source of information and news, which can help us feel safe by providing us with everything we need to know about the ongoing pandemic.
Along with consuming real information, we are susceptible to false and fake information as well. A report by PEW Research Centre revealed that about 50 percent of the Americans had come across made-up or false news about the Coronavirus.
We must find sources that provide only real information related to COVID-19. One way to do this is to check if the source is trustworthy. Another way is to see if the information was relayed accurately. If you come across any information related to the Coronavirus, fact-check it before passing it on to your friends and family as misinformation can create unnecessary panic.
Social Media: A Platform Used to Understand the Social Determinants of Health
The environment in which we are born, grow up, and live are the social determinants of our health. Based on these determinants’, professional healthcare organizations’ professionals are using social media to spread health awareness. To get access to patients, hospitals, and health agencies use social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.
Healthcare professionals are also utilizing these platforms to spread news, updates, and scientific discoveries about the Coronavirus. The information can include symptoms of the infection, when to get tested, or where to get medical help. The ‘helpful direction’ is one of the important benefits of social media. Doctors can redirect the users from their page to the World Health Organization’s website to obtain complete information.
But these social media platforms need to be used with caution as any misinformation can create panic among the general population. These are sensitive times, and the rate at which information or misinformation travels among the people is pretty high. Many healthcare organizations have implemented social media utilization standards for doctors and healthcare staff to prevent the spread of misinformation.
Social Media: An Impactful Way to Bring Positivity in Difficult Times
Social media has been impacting our lives positively as well. It has helped us connect virtually with our family and friends living in any part of the world. This virtual connection helps many people overcome anxiety and emotional stress while reminding us that nobody is alone in this.
With all the educational institutes closed, students are taking up new skills and hobbies. Many people are sharing their experiences on social media platforms such as Youtube. These experiences range from their daily workout routine to cooking a meal for the first time.
Many people are catching up with their old friends and sharing pictures and videos online. Many videos were seen where people had taken a bunch of pictures and made a video out of them using a picture video maker.
If you have always wanted to learn a new skill but never had the chance to, this is the time. Being isolated at home is not the worst thing in the world. It is important to take this positively and make the best of it!
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