How Social Media Has Influenced Online Trading - Social Media Explorer

How Social Media Has Influenced Online Trading - Social Media Explorer

Online trading, be it forex, stocks or crypto, has changed dramatically over the last decade or so. The advancement of the internet, the relaxation of regulations and the willingness of everyday people to delve into what was once the preserve of big financial institutions and professional traders only, has seen forex trading grow into a multi-trillion dollar a day industry. However, there is one unsung hero when it comes to online trading, and that hero is Social Media.

Social Media in its many forms has been essential to the growth of online trading. Although ‘Social Trading’  –  a form of investing that allows investors to observe the trading behavior of their peers and expert traders and to follow their investment strategies using copy trading or mirror trading – is becoming more and more popular amongst traders, it is the early days of Forex, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp and now Telegram that have propelled online trading to the masses.

Initially, the draw of instant posts saw forex trading groups, pages and people able to communicate instantly; essential when there are just seconds to make a trade. Forex trading thrived with Facebook and Twitter. The instantaneous method of communication enabled traders from around the world to follow news, events and signals as they happen. The various Facebook groups and pages enabled traders of every level to swap ideas, discuss trading and form kind of support groups. Professional forex mentors sprang up with massive global followers, passing on forex trading signals to a growing receptive crowd.

However, Social media hasn’t always been a force for good in online trading. Anyone versed in the world of Binary Options will tell you how Ads on Facebook roped in tens of thousands of people into a form of trading that nine times out of ten, was just a shady Ponzi scheme, designed to fleece the unsuspecting trader out of whatever their credit card could manage. Once the truth about Binary Options came out, Facebook eventually banned all binary options advertising, as well as clamping down on crypto advertising.

As one door closes, another one invariably always opens. In Social Media, the new door opening was the world of WhatsApp and Telegram groups. Facebook’s algorithm and greed limited the audience, whilst a general apathy towards Facebook’s ethics saw the online trading and Facebook partnership peak and decline. Around the same time, people started turning to WhatsApp and Telegram for the instant news, signals and knowledge sharing.

Traders still used and continue use Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to communicate, stay in touch and keep close to trading and traders, but the dynamics have changed and keep on changing. Trading is different, we have crypto trading now and traders’ expectations from social media are greater than ever before.

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