Technology: May 8, 2012

Nestle, the purveyor of the decades-old KitKat snack, launched app says addresses a growing problem among young social media users - giving them a break from the stress of posting updates to make it for them.

The software, Social Break, automatically sending random updates for users of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts. It will be officially launched in Singapore later this week and is free to download from kitkat.com.sg / socialbreak.

While the application is a tongue-in-cheek marketing gimmick, the developers behind the software, agency JWT, say it also highlights a serious problem among young users, particularly in Asia, increasing stress on time spent maintaining a presence in social networks.

JWT surveyed 900 19-26 year Olds in China, Singapore and the United States and found that more than half considered too time-consuming to keep with all their social media commitments, and recognize that the time spent in such places had a negative impact on their work or studies .

JWT says that their research shows that young people feel under increasing pressure to maintain their social media relations, responding to friends' requests to comment or "like" their posts, photos or other updates.

Almost two-thirds of Chinese respondents said they felt pressure to be in constant contact in social media, with 58% saying their social media duties caused them stress.

"Social media used to be fun. It should not be required, it should not be another life, we must maintain," says Valerie Cheng, executive creative director of JWT's Singapore, which was hired by Nestle to develop the program.

Asia home to some of the biggest social media populations in the world. Socialbakers, a service that controls the use, lists Indonesia, India and the Philippines among 10 countries on Facebook. Almost 57% of Singapore population is on Facebook.

A survey published by consultants McKinsey last month found that China has by far the most active social media population, with 91% of the respondents said they visited social media site in the previous six months, compared with 30% in Japan and 67% in the United States.

Random response

Users of the KitKat application can enter account details to Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook and then choose how often they want the software to send updates. It will then reply to topics where the user has been tagged with one of eight random messages. LinkedIn now and then would forward links posted by other users, while Twitter will respond randomly to messages from other users.

"We have found that the reason young people need a pause is due to their social media responsibilities, but that is exactly what they are doing when they are in a pause," said Lydia Daly, JWT planning director.

"It's a vicious circle." JWT acknowledged the application can not find favor with Facebook. Cheng pointed to app launched by fast food chain Burger King in 2009 that, she said, was like an irreverent attitude to one's social media network - calling on users to delete friends in return for free hamburgers. Facebook disabled the application, saying it violated its privacy policy.

JWT says that if the Social Break application is successful they hope to adapt it to work in China homegrown social networks and, eventually, to introduce elements of artificial intelligence in automated responses.

For now, said Daly, the most important thing to avoid causing offense or embarrassment with inappropriate responses, such as posting something flippant to news that a friend's grandfather died.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Social media stress? There's an app for that

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