Find out the latest on what’s hot and happening on social media in Sri Lanka and across the world.
This week our team wrote about:
Our Blogs:
- Can We Meet up?: Social Media Grooming, Rape and Murder
What Went Viral in Sri Lanka?
- Sri Lanka takes the series 2-1
Perhaps the most discussed topic this past week was the T20 that was played out between Sri Lanka and Australia. The team performed well in the first two matches, Asela Gunarathne shining in his winning innings in the latter. The final match saw Dickwella banned for gaining demerit points, and the match was lost as wickets fell steadily. However, the first two victories ensured Sri Lanka’s overall win even amid dreams of a “white-wash” being washed off. Asela Gunarathne was also the subject of many memes and posts on social media that aimed to praise the cricketer’s brilliant batting.
- Sampath Bank Sri Lanka adds and removes unfair SMS charges
Early last week, Sampath Bank sent out an SMS alert to say that they will be charging 1/- per SMS alert for their credit card promo offers. The first 10 messages, they said would be free. They also announced that the annual fee will be increased from 250/- to 350/-. Both these changes sparked a general outcry on their Facebook page where customers said they were contemplating moving out of the bank. There were also a few petitions that were signed off by hundreds of annoyed customers. The logic behind was simple. Why should customers pay for credit card promotion alerts that are sent by the bank of their own volition? Customers also brought up the point that they need to keep paying per ATM transaction to withdraw their money from the bank. Some went on to even say that this was just another way for the bank to extort cash unfairly from customers. In the face of the outcry the bank gave in and sent out an SMS alert to say that the SMS alerts will not be charged for and will continue to be free. Power of social media and the people!
- Chathura Senarathna
The name is enough, given the amount of memes and videos that Chathura became a muse for following his quite candid interview on the program Insight, which then was uploaded on youtube and on social media. But we must say this particular video takes it away with the quite creatively done Baa Baa Black Sheep tune playing in the background. Why Chathura?
- ISAC’s bomb threat which was anonymous yet signed
AIS sent out a letter to the parents of students informing them that they will pull out of the ISAC or the International Schools Athletic Championship due to be held at the Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium following a bomb threat they received. They went on to say “ Yesterday we received an anonymous letter with a threat signed – LIS Students, Nugegoda”. For an international school, they pulled off the ultimate oxymoron in contrast of being taken seriously, turned out to be the joke of the day when the letter was uploaded onto Facebook. Semantics go a long way on social media
This Week’s International Hubub
- NASA confirms discovery of 7 new planets in space
“We’re celebrating a new discovery! A treasure trove of new planets were found around a tiny, nearby, ultra-cool dwarf star called TRAPPIST-1. Three of the seven planets are firmly in the habitable zone. Details: http://go.nasa.gov/2lvVN7G”
NASA’s announcement went viral across the world as they went on to explain that they have been successful in discovering a new liveable solar system. While the newly discovered solar system is in fact 40 million light years away it certainly does prove a point, that we may in fact not be alone in the vast frontier of space. Do You Want To Believe? Because The Truth Is Out There.
Stats of the Week
Things you should know
- LinkedIn Ads: How to target your ideal prospect, every time
Columnist AJ Wilcox provides important pointers on various LinkedIn targeting methods combined with campaign strategies that enable its users to reach their target audience efficiently and at a significantly low cost. LinkedIn is also the game changer when it comes to targeting professionals in advertising.
The comprehensive article explains, at length, the crucial components of how to target your audience effectively.