Social media summit recognises contributions from the Gulf

DUBAI // In front of an audience eager to capture selfies with all the social media celebrities in attendance, experts at the Arab Social Media Influencers Summit spoke about the merits of an ever-evolving medium that rewards originality and perseverance.

The two-day summit at the Dubai World Trade Centre is being held to recognise contributions made by individuals in the Gulf and to draw examples from the past and to make predictions for the future of social media.

The man behind the popular Humans of New York website, Brandon Stanton, opened the talks, and said the pursuit of his goals began four years ago when his life completely changed.

“I started photographing just five years ago when I lost my job working in finance in Chicago, and what I would do is just go out in Chicago and take pictures of anything I found interesting,” he said.

The idea for his blog developed from iterations to his initial concept. “The story of my website is very much in the ethos of Dubai and how, for example, the Burj Khalifa was invented.

“I think what is one of the most amazing things about it, when I started Humans of New York, is it looked absolutely nothing like the Humans of New York that later became successful.”

On his blog, he posts photographs of strangers he stops in New York City and other parts of the world he travels to, including the UAE. He asks a few questions and relays what he learns about his subjects in small stories with the photographs.

“Nothing huge, nothing wonderful was ever built because of waiting for the perfect idea,” he said. “It starts with the work and then the greatness of it comes out of hundreds of thousands of tiny evolutions.”

The site has grown from 2,000 followers to 15 million in two years. Mr Stanton said: “In the world of social media, so many people are trying to get your attention at all times, so how do you stick your head above the crowd in that audience? How do you get noticed? You be different. It’s important to be good, yes, but it’s more important to be different.”

Chris Messina, creator of the now-ubiquitous hashtag, offered his motivations. Seven years ago, his idea was met with disapproval by three people who were, at the time, the most important people in Silicon Valley.

“Twitter had just blown up, and I’m standing in their offices saying ‘Guys, I think hashtags are a good idea, I think you can do something with it’,” said Mr Messina. “And of course they turned to me and said, ‘That’s a horrible, stupid idea’.”

He said when he was rejected by the biggest minds in the tech world his determination was further ignited – a message he delivered to social media enthusiasts in the crowd. “The moment I left those offices, I left more determined to make hashtag a thing than when I had walked in that morning.”

He said the hashtag was born in 2007 when he tweeted from BarCamp, a gathering that brought together many of social media’s top minds. He used the gimmick as a way to share.

“Much like this conference today, we wanted a way to share with each other,” he said, “and I was determined to make it happen.”

nalwasmi@thenational.ae