Has social media run it’s course? Not likely. Apps like TikTok, Facebook, and Linkedin more popular than ever. But with fewer people finding it useful and a flurry of mental health-related lawsuits, some users are complaining those big platforms just aren’t keeping up with the times, especially when it comes to workplace networking platforms, which are being criticized for not adjusting for new post-covid workplace realities. Now social media networking is getting a big makeover, with a new focus on user authenticity.
Krishna Dosapati, the CEO of newly-launched networking site Clockout, says the de-coupling between big tech and young professionals is becoming obvious. “You have an entire generation of people who are joining the workforce at a time where everyone is working from home,” she told Fox News. “Meetings are taking over zoom. And so people are really, really isolated.”
And that’s creating a growing need for authenticity when it comes to online networking. New apps like Clockout are now stressing real-life connections, with users able to create their own industry-based social clubs. More than a thousand have been started so far, with about 40,000 users attending live, in-person events. Dosapati says the key is combining old fashioned social gatherings with high-tech networking, especially with a recent survey showing up to 85 percent of all jobs are filled through personal connections, either virtually or in-person.
“We make the interface so fun and organic and the focus is those connections rather than posts or likes or anything like that, she says, adding that when she sees someone she wants to connect with on Clockout, “it’s very organic for me to say, Hey, like, I see you’re a founder, you’re in New York, do you want to grab a coffee? And that sparks a really authentic and organic conversation. And that allows me to form a real connection with that other person that other platforms just don’t focus on.”
And it appears to be working; Clockout says it has a long waitlist of people waiting to get approved for the platform. It’s just one example of how social media is evolving to help professionals build community through authentic interactions.