The Communication Revolution

Photo taken from here

Although I am studying abroad this semester, I am taking two Communication classes which I am very excited for. I have found Communication Revolution to be particularly intriguing simply because I am taking it abroad. This is due to the fact that many of the students in my class live all over the world, including places like Italy, America, Japan, and Mexico. It is interesting to hear everyone's differing thoughts and feelings on the revolution of communication. It is often hard for us to all come to a conclusion, but one thing last class we were all able to agree on is the importance of social media in the business world.

This consensus drew my attention to a particular  Fox News article regarding a New York City restaurant owner, Sean Connolly, who was able to open three successful restaurants despite the struggling economy. He claims to have "majored in babes and minored in booze", yet is adamant that, "social media is as much a part of the job as anything else, and you'd be a fool to ignore it or fight it". 

Resources such as Yelp and Angie's List have always been seen as reliable sources of restaurant and venue reviews. However, recently even these sites have been accused of false reviews compiled by restaurant owners to make their establishment appear flawless.  

Connolly is aware of the impact Twitter can have from a particular instance in which Kanye West tweeted about Eatery's brunch, causing the establishment to go viral. However, he sees greater importance in outlets such as singleplatform.com, where Connolly is able to send specials and menu changes to them. They then update his social media platforms automatically while sending the same updated information to websites such as NYTimes.com and Urbanspoon. The revolutionary aspect surrounding social media is that it allows smaller restaurants to compete with their bigger counterparts, as long as they are able to keep a strong following. Ultimately, social media is a solid way to expand one's business because at this present moment, it is all about social word of mouth.