Is Clubhouse a game-changer?

The simple answer is YES, the new social media platform Clubhouse is something very different and its impact will be far reaching.

If you didn't take a look at Snapchat, TikTok or the plethora of other social media start-ups over the last few years, well Clubhouse is probably going to be important to you somewhere in the future, and it is probably one of those platforms where being an early mover has its future benefits.

I know, platforms that start with invites, like the long lost Google Wave (for those of us who remember that chapter) often don't finish well. Wave was complicated, difficult to learn and use, and Google as a rule, are much better at building deep functional, behind-the-scenes algorithmic magic, than elegant front-end app utility.

Clubhouse is easy to use and easy to learn, the front-end is clean and simple and intuitive, and really, as an audio platform, there isn't that much tech to learn. The learning is truly social not technical. The 'by invitation' similarity is more about constraining load, managing growth, and dealing with some scale and platform issues. Whether by design or accident, it has so far been a pretty clever way of keeping the user-base more about 'real people' than most other social media platforms.

So why is Clubhouse changing the game?

OK, indulge me for a second. Language and communication is what it means to be human. When technology got involved in influence communication and reach, it was primarily our written language that came first, with the development of books, publishing, signage and other platforms for multiplying audiences. Then telephone, radio, and with the addition of images film, TV and other non-written communication that still retained human nuance and sound.

Yes, you've moved ahead of me I know, the internet already went from text all the way to video, with voice in there all ready, voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) no less! Yes, you are right, it did ... but Clubhouse is the first truly all-voice-social-media-platform, and that is a bigger fundamental change than it may at first seem.

How does online social change with voice?

Let's start with just the simple fact that everyone 'publishing' or 'influencing' on the Clubhouse platform is talking not typing, and that there is no pre-creation, editing, filtering or other methods of enhancement (or hiding behind your text), at least not yet.

That means nuance, tone, emotion, stumbling, mistakes, pretty much everything that happens between human beings in the realm of verbal communication, in every single encounter on the platform. That is just the beginning, it also means dividing participants into speakers and listeners, and if you are contributing, immediate feedback on the resonance of your message.

Good engaging verbal communicators, with interesting stories to tell and deep subject matter knowledge, will hold influence on Clubhouse. That doesn't mean all is lost for introverts trying to learn. There is an enormous amount on offer for those who want to listen, learn and perhaps occasionally ask a question.

If Twitter and Facebook made people 'citizen publishers', then Clubhouse is making them 'citizen community-radio broadcasters', or at least offering that format up for information delivery when you want it. If your interests, your business, your charity, your organization or community group needs a platform to educate and discuss issues with others, and can generate enough interest, then Clubhouse is probably going to be in your communications mix. For some, it will lead your communications mix, in ways other social media platforms have failed to deliver.

Isn't it a 'free for all'?

It's the god-damn wild-west. Yes it is, and right now, it's also an adrenaline raising land grab. People are trying to build their reach, connections and influence in a way I haven't seen since the early days of Twitter. It is crazy-town and probably will be for a while to come. Really just what we need in a Covid-safe package, a bit of energy, craziness and newness.

It has some big issues. Only one person can effectively speak at a time in each room, some people talk too much and have little of value to add - they are often the same person - and being live and largely un-moderated, it has the potential for defamation, hate, incitement, bullying, and all aspects of the less savoury sides of human social behaviour. Perhaps surprisingly though, it also has significant inbuilt correction mechanisms, not least how we all behave around speaking people.

When people speak, they don't generally have the anonymity and 'key-board warrior' courage to attack without repercussion. Unless you are in a particularly unsavory room, or cultivate connections and topics where this is likely, speaking to people is more self-correcting than typing to each other. More self-correcting than you may expect. The rooms are also convened, they are moderated by the conveners and there is a process to speaking that is more akin to a class-room than a town-hall debate. There will be bad deeds, but there is also good utility to help reduce this and vocal socialization already has a lot of this behavioral control inbuilt in us all.

What are the other issues?

Well for now, it's iPhone only until the Android version is available. It is also a data hungry beast, really its quality WiFi networks only and not really what you want to be using to chew up 4G or 5G cellular data when out and about – which is good, because no one wants dozens of people talking to passengers on a train in Clubhouse rooms. It's voice, so you need good headphones or quiet locations, and it's immersive, so not really the drop in and out experience of other social media channels.

It's also very US-centric at the moment, in both participants and topics, and China has already pulled-the-plug, banning it for Chinese nationals and even preventing the SMS invitations, so the usual VPN work-rounds, don't work.

It isn't really searchable, so once the scale increases and the number of rooms grows, it will be very important who you connect with, what topics you follow and how you make use of your time. Some early topic 'owners' are likely to do very well, because a critical mass of people in each room is needed, at least for public Clubhouse rooms.

Also, as with almost every early stage social media platform, it isn't monetized. It is unclear, at least to a user how the owners plan to 'make money' in the future, but of course that will have to happen. So at some point the wild-west will give way to commercial imperatives and that will change the dynamic and modes of operation.

The upshot is, you should probably have a look. Another dynamic here, especially if you watched the 'Social Dilemma' documentary, is that you control your own 'echo chamber', it's going to be harder to voice an opinion here, and get a load of similar people around you without hearing other views. You sort of have to play nicely with people and actually be social.

If you have an iPhone, get the app and register. Ask someone you know who's on it to send you an invite to get in now in this early phase. If you do join, hit me up @drwarwick on Clubhouse, and let's see where this freight train takes us.

David is CCO of HR Tech start-up SHFT, if you're interested in technology for supporting management and communication with your front-line workforce, message me about that too. [email protected]