Are You Popular?

I’ve just read a research paper which finds the importance of online influence is measured more in terms of participation, name recognition, frequency of posting and search engine ranking above other factors such as content quality. It also recognises that measurement criteria for social media elements (like audience awareness) are currently lacking. This also seems to support other research (such as: 1) analysis; 2) examination) where the perception that online media is less credible, accurate or ethical (compared to traditional media) persists. So, success online seems to be all about winning the popularity contest. Maybe I need to start thinking more in terms of visibility and presence versus quality and substance!