Which One is the Last Word?

Social media can never truly replace in-person conversation, but it’s trying. In fact, many people refer to social media as a conversation. It is, really. The short form and quick, easy access allow people to exchange thoughts on myriad subjects in real-time; just like in an actual conversation, but without all of the annoying inflection and intonation. Wait, that’s what’s keeping social media from being an actual conversation. Being able to hear how people are saying things and seeing facial expressions during a conversation are what adds intimacy to the exchange. When actually talking with someone, it’s easy to tell when it’s time to move on to a different subject. What about online, though – when is the conversation over?

Some online venues, most often forums, have a way to close a thread to comments. This usually can be done by either the original poster, or a moderator of some sort. If you can’t comment, it’s a pretty safe bet the conversation’s over.

Barring the obvious, some other ways to tell a conversation’s over may be:

·        That’s it, I’m out – The person who started the conversation says it’s over. It doesn’t happen that often, but sometimes whoever initiated a thread will curate the posts and, when satisfied with (or frightened by) the outcome of the discussion simply say “next topic” or something similar.

·        OP absconditus – The hidden originator. If someone starts a conversation online, either via an interesting or inflammatory statement or fact and then abandons the thread, the topic could be dead before it gets going. The community can move the topic forward without the originator, but where’s the fun in that?

·        Time will tell – There may be a zombie apocalypse coming, but there’s no reason to create zombie threads in social media. If people stopped commenting two days ago, it’s safe to assume anyone who’s already involved in the dialogue has moved on and may not be interested in resurrecting an old topic. Some issues won’t die though. If there have been comments within the last 12 hours or so, keep it going if you’ve got something to add.

·        Closure happens – Similar to an interview, open ended questions and statements lead to more digging and information exchange, but a closed statement doesn’t require your two cents. Look at the last few posts in a thread. If they seem to bring the conversation to a close, listen to Paul McCartney and let it be.

There are definitely other ways to tell it’s time to move on, but these should help you navigate the social media discussion. What do you think – what are some of the ways to tell a topic is dead? Tell us via social media. You can leave a comment here, on Facebook, Twitter, or send an email through our website.