Dubai: With the proliferation of social media channels, exchanging Eid Al Adha greetings via Facebook, twitter, among others, and using photo sharing applications like Instagram, has become the norm.
On twitter the ‘Eid Mubarak’ trending topic saw a range of tweets from the straightforward ‘Eid Mubarak’ to more elaborate wishes specifically for Muslims around the world whereas on Facebook, eid greetings were part of status updates and tagging activity. While some shared Eid plans and exchanged ideas on celebrations, others used various platforms to promote Eid-related products and services.
Social media offers flexibility that previous channels didn’t offer, said Farrukh Naeem, a social media consultant from Abu Dhabi, speaking to Gulf News. He explained that people used to send a one-size-fits-all message to their contacts via SMS. With social media, people not only choose the tone of the message, they choose so depending on whether they are addressing family, friends or colleagues - all this for free.
“Cost is an important factor. Social media has been a beacon of relief for many reasons including preventing spam using impersonal Eid greetings. With over 60 per cent of all UAE internet users now connected on some form of social network or another, people have different ways to connect,” he said.
