As social networks become more and more prevalent in everyone’s day to day lives, it comes to no surprise that big brand names are jumping on the social network train. IBM has announced that they have created their own social networking platform called Connections. IBM states, “IBM Connections is social software for business that lets you access everyone in your professional network, including your colleagues, customers, and partners.” Connections lets organizations apply analytics to their social media endeavors, allowing them to gather insight on social networking opinions at anytime and any place, and in turn being able to take action that very moment.
A few of the Features that IBM lists for Connections are:
- Exchange ideas with, and benefit from the expertise of other people using Forums and Blogs
- Expand your professional network through social analytics based recommendations for people to connect with, and communities to join
- Build vibrant communities that encourage participation with sub-communities focused on key topics of interest to the members
- Access profile information, search for expertise, and view status quickly
- Access your social data while on the go via the micro-browser or the device specific application
The thing thats great about IBM Connections is its range of capabilities, which includes the option to access your company email, calendar and business tasks from inside the Connections platform. This sort of social network software is going to change the way people and companies use social media. Companies will now have real-time access to data that will highlight certain patterns, and show how customers feel about certain products and topics.
It will help businesses react much quicker to the market shifts that occur, but also help in predicting the effects of future campaigns within certain social networks, by analyzing all of the data Connections collects. Connections is a social network that reacts to what other social networks are doing and saying. Given the ability to create a social network to react to insight with one simple click, companies can respond to consumers much quicker. As social media networks continue to evolve and expand we are going to be seeing more and more of this type of software.
