By-and-large most of us would agree with that Social media is still in a nascent stage in the Indian context and there is a lot that remains to be explored in the Social media space.
Having said that the ripples in the social media wave created by many Indians involved are ensuring that Social Media is taken to the next level.
Note: For (businesses [small or large] or individual/s) who are trying to understand the online medium and how they can use it. You should definitely follow these guys, not because some of them qualify as so-called thought leaders, but since they’re early-starters, they might have a degree of influence on your mind with their observations.
Observations
- Platform independence: Like at the global stage, Indians are not confined to usage of one platform in particular. A couple of years of ago, one could easily identify active users through blogs & discussion forums. But now the platforms have diversified, today there are Indians heavily discussing social media on twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. In other words, Social media trend-setters in India are spread across different platforms.
- Usage pattern: I think the usage varies from pure fun to serious stuff i.e. profession.
- Individuals who are doing serious business (social media as a profession)
- Individuals sharing constant news-streams.
- Individuals who are purely sharing thoughts on the value aspect of social media
- Geography: No particular region accounts for bulk of activity. There are Indians in social media who are based abroad and within India we have metros and (tier-1 & tier-2) cities.
- Ranking: Unlike the Ad Age Power 150 rankings, I think it won’t be justified to rank Indians in Social media. The idea is not to create a feeling of competition but a strong group which can collectively spread social media usage in India. Moreover, we don’t have a quality ranking system yet which goes beyond the numbers (i.e. technorati, back-links etc.) and the Indians in Social Media are still very less.
Indians in Social Media (References)
There have been several efforts in the past by many individuals to consolidate list of all the Indians who are in Social Media.
Please note: All the ratings and consolidated listings have been prepared by individuals based on their findings, observations and beliefs.
Here are some handy references which collate the names & links of Indians involved in the social media space (please feel free to add to the list below):
- Google docs spread sheet – A consolidated google-docs spread sheet listing the names of Indians in social media, their profession and URLs.
- Top Blogs Directory – The marketing & social media section in the directory of top Indian blogs.
- Social media alltop – Filtered listing of Indians from the social media blogs on alltop is a good resource, but the filtering process is cumbersome and time consuming.
- Twitter – Prepared by Gaurav, follow the social media section for a listing of influential Indians in social media on twitter. I won’t be surprised if see other such lists in the near future. (influential Indians in social media on Facebook etc.)
- Social media Blogs in India – Prepared by Sampad, this is a list of social media blogs in India. [Ignore the ranks 😉 ]
Next Steps
- I would propose creating a Wiki of active & influential Indians in Social media. This wiki will also categorize the names according to how they’re using social media. (Any collaborators?)
- What am I missing? – More references for Indians in Social media?
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I must say this is really useful stuff of information. I was wondering this only.Thanks for sharing such a great reference stuff here on a single page.Lets see what will be new in 2011. Just want to say keep sharing….
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Very nice article…we all know that social media in India is increasing at a fast speed but is limited to metros and tier 2 cities. It is not only English but also in small cities there is a small population online regularly. We Design and Develop websites and promote them online through various mediums. Website design delhi Really a nice post 🙂
Very interesting post. Many people are using social networking not only to keep in touch and share ideas, but also to build sales and improve customer relations. I work at Miracle Technologies, a webdesign company based in Chandigarh, India, and we also use Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to promote our brand and get in touch with our clients.
We’ve just updated our blog with information concerning the importance of social media for small business (http://www.miraclegroup.com/blog)
For the first time in India, PMI is hosting a three day conference on Project management where distinguished speakers from all over the world are invited. Know more at PMI conference website.
Thanks Daksh for the list. My list is near about an year old now. But your aggregation and your PoV is quite refreshing IMO.
Cheers
—
@Sampad
Anytime Sampad and good to see you posting your opinion here 🙂
Hey – am commenting here after a long time. Useful reference this is. I find the LABNOL list pretty useful as a ready recknoner to find good blogs on any subject – it would be great if it was regularly updated.
Yes, Apu after a long time. What is going at your end?
Apu, you know the problem with Labnol’s directory is that currently it is being maintained by one individual so to say. I think it would be great if we get this over on one wiki.
Here are two more lists about Indians on social media:
Indian Learning Professionals on Twitter
Blogs by Indian Learning Professionals and Companies
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I think there are obviously a lot of barriers for social media in India…
1) Language. English is not that widely spoken. In fact not ever state speaks Hindi. There are several different dialects and people from different states often do not have the ability to communicate with each other due to the language.
2) Furthermore states are very clique-y in the sense that people from Gujarat have stigmas with regards to people from UP and people from Maharasthra, etc…
3) Also access to computers is another barrier. In India, because majority of the population fall below the poverty line, computers are not found in every household (which is the case in Western countries). Internet cafes are common practice. So the accessibility is a key issue that serves as a hinderance.
4) Furthermore, with social media, you would find that it would be people of a certain generation who would be more inclined to partake in social networking sites etc… In the West, a lot of people of an older demographic have blogs etc, but in India (because engaging in social media is not a norm), the older generations will not be so familiar with it…
There are several other barriers, but I dont want to write you an essay.
🙂 Great post though.
Excellent stuff. Regional diversification in India do create issues but I don’t think this will be a big deterrent. Primarily, if you are on Facebook do you think before you connect with a fellow from Bangalore?