New social media trends for 2012

Those who predicted unstinted growth for social media in 2011 got it spot on. The global appeal and adoption of social media continue to create a hyperconnected world where, LinkedIn tells me, 240 connections can link you to over four million people.

The ‘six degrees of separation’ theory, thanks to social networking sites, is all but dead.

The tools and trends in social media have continued to evolve with time. And the once messy and unplanned connectedness they created has now morphed into a social system that is both mature and mainstream.

So what’s next? What will change in the world of social media as we know it? This blog post on Harvard Business Review offers some predictions for 2012. If the author gets it right, we can expect some new trends, fresh buzzwords and certainly new rules for social media engagement.