We’re in the age of social media, and that means it’s possible to have a platform to share with the world your ideas, thoughts and dreams. While once it may have been nerve racking to difficult for a single person to reach many people at once, today it’s quick and relatively painless.

There are some people out there who aren’t so happy about just anyone having a platform to assert their opinion. Some people are, in an ironic twist of events, voicing their opinion about how others shouldn’t be voicing their opinions on Facebook.

Too many people trivialize what social media is. Yes, it’s a tool for music marketing and artist marketing. Yes, it’s a tool for business and connecting with others. But it’s also a tool for the individual to have a platform to speak to the rest of the world.

Just like indie music has allowed more artists to make their music heard, it has also allowed more people to make their opinions heard. This is important when it comes to a number of things in modern society. In terms of political action, spreading new ideas and connecting people like never before, people who express their opinions online are extremely important and often influential.

Not only should we not underestimate the people power of social media, but we should also not underestimate its market value. People are on social media every day all day. They are constantly checking their Facebook, Instagram and other accounts to see what the people in their world have to say.

Any company or artist who scoffs at using social media and social media marketing are buying their way into obsolescence. Where advertising on television used to be the way to sell products, advertising is increasingly being shifted to the web.

Social media shouldn’t be trivialized and it shouldn’t be sold short. It should be seen for what it is: an excellent platform which allows people and businesses alike to make their opinions and ideas known. The more power it has, the more power people have.