I was recently introduced to a social media analysis tool called “The Conversation Prism” by Brian Solis. I am a big fan of all visual tools and was very excited about the perspective that this map offers on social media. In fact, looking at an industry as a prism, is potentially applicable to more than just social media conversations. For social media, the Conversation provides context and understanding based on channels. And, for trend analysis, looking at the Conversation Prism since its debut provides a perspective on how social media offerings have changed over time as they became entrenched in our culture, and as natural consolidation took place in some markets.
As an introspective exercise, I tracked my own use of digital media technologies over a period of 24 hours. The intent was to check myself: where do I spend most of my time? Would I be surprised by the results?
The results are that I spend my time mostly on messaging, social networking, business networking, and a balanced mix of numerous other platforms, including social bookmarking, events and music.
Was this surprising? Not so much. My life is aligned with a set of priorities and responsibilities that require me to juggle a lot. My social media consumption represents my multiple personas: a parent, a career technology professional, and then an ordinary person. With that in mind, my daily digital life incorporates technologies and methods to make each day efficient and “optimized.” I use technology as much as I can to simplify tasks (for example, I prefer to use voice interfaces and dictation whenever I can to interact with my devices, and have been using handwriting recognition since the short but glorious days of the Apple Newton Message Pad!)
Even though the best use I can see for The Conversation Prism is when planning out a professional social media strategy, I would recommend this exercise for individuals trying to assess and manage a healthier digital life. Try it out, and who knows, you may be surprised.
Dorin's Blog 