Posts Tagged ‘social networking’

I have been tagged by my friends David Mullen, Damien Basile and Amber Naslund to share seven things about me that you might not know (or want to know).

Since this isn’t something that I normally write about, please promise to respect me in the morning…

1. I was bit by a snake when I was five.  And as you can imagine, I now abhor snakes. I can’t even look at them on TV or in a glass case…doing so causes me to get sick to my stomach and makes my hand ache. Completely psychological, I know. And, after all what other choice did the poor snake have after being snatched up like that?!
2. When I was in college I volunteered for a semester at KenCrest. My job was working with infants and children that had developmental, neurological, and different learning difficulties. I worked with kids whose parents dropped them off for the day and kids who were institutionalized because they were born with down syndrome, trisomy 13 or survived SIDS. Needless to say, it was the full-time, live-in kids that grabbed my heart.
3. I started riding horses (Hunter, not crazy Jumper) when I was 19. Through the years I have ridden all kinds of horses: Quarter, Welsh Pony, Arabian, Hanoverian and a Mustang, but never owned one. Eventually, I had to stop riding at 35 when a car and subsequent riding accident caused a lot of soft tissue damage that lead to severe migraines. I love horses and miss riding a ton. Someday I hope to get back in the saddle.
4. I am REALLY bad at math. Really. Bad. Well, except for tipping and figuring out a 20% discount on a new pair of to-die-for Lucchese boots. And yet I am very analytical…how’s that for a cruel joke? Being bad in math probably explains why I am addicted to shows like CSI, House, Bones, etc. It’s not the blood and gore; it’s the analytics behind what they do. I have always dreamed of working for the FBI or CIA. I guess I am just jealous that I’ll never be able to catch murderers, criminals or solve weird illnesses.
5. I have this weird ability to connect things that seem completely unrelated. It’s like putting together a puzzle in a nano second. Apparently it’s a trait that is inherent to being an ENTP. But who knows for sure, it could be some odd genetic flaw that is still undiscovered.
6. I don’t have a creative bone in my body. I can’t draw, paint, play an instrument, sing, or dance. Nope, nada, not a one. That’s probably why I am so passionate about music and the arts. The ability for a human to create, draw or paint a life-like image or to sing a Verdi opera just stirs me to my soul. (Yeah, and I am jealous too.)
7. And in killing two birds with one stone, the photo of the Triumph up above is the 6^th picture in my Flickr account (thanks to Michelle Wolverton for tagging me in that meme. BTW, I don’t have a 6^th page yet) and my last little known thing. What’s so special about the Triumph? Well, it’s my husband’s and I have been dying to ride on it, but haven’t gotten up the nerve to actually get on it other then when it’s parked in the driveway. Oh, and my mom promised to break both my legs and disown me if I ever did. That might explain a few things…

I tag the following people:

• Connie Reece
• Heather Rast
• Jason Falls (pay back for the best practices meme that went around)
• Paul Chaney
• Sonny Gill
• Michelle Wolverton
• Marc Meyer

Here are the rules:

• Link your original tagger(s) and list these rules in your post.
• Share seven facts about yourself in the post.
• Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names and the links to their blogs.
• Let them know they’ve been tagged

Chris Brogan had a recent post about whether or not every conversation needs to be touched. Of course touching or engaging in every conversation that occurs across the Internet would be virtually impossible and a full-time job.

But how about when the conversation is no longer touched by the person/company that created it?  It could be because they just don’t have the time to engage in the conversation or that they just chose not to.

When the two-way conversation ends, is that an indication that social media doesn’t scale? When I asked this question on Twitter, I received some interesting insights. Some folks thought it’s okay not to respond to every comment (and I’ll expand this to it’s okay to not engage every conversation) and some thought that companies are already showing evidence of scaling. But the most interesting perspective, and one I hadn’t thought of, came from Russ Somers. His thought was that social media scales like a party. As in you can’t dance with everyone at the party, but you can throw such a great party that everyone dances with each other.

Sticking with this analogy, I’ll ask how long does just being able to throw a great party last? When do the guests get tired of dancing with each other because their host can’t or won’t dance with them? What happens when a guest feels slighted, do they move on to the next party where the host does dance with everyone?

Analogies aside, what does this mean for businesses? If they are enticed to join the on-line conversation (social) via Web 2.0 tools (media), what happens when they can no longer provide that two-way conversation…the reason behind why they got involved in the first place?

Chris has another recent post that equates social media to café-shaped conversations as in conversations aren’t suppose to scale because they are meant bite-sized.

After mulling this over for the last four days, here’s the conclusion that I came to. Let me know if you agree or disagree.

Two-way conversations are not scalable. Once they reach the tipping point, two-way conversations revert back to one-way conversations (or the community conversing amongst themselves). At this point, Web 2.0 tools join the arsenal of traditional marketing tools (such as direct marketing, e-mail marketing, PR, advertising, etc.) to continue mass, one-way communication efforts.

If you agree, how can companies manage small-scale two-way conversations in such a way that they do  not alienate the people that are trying to have a conversation with them?

If you disagree, how is social media scalable? Is it only a matter of building out a social media department that handles responding to blog posts or community managers to handle on-line requests?

[Image: Archives of Ontario]

“One can never pay in gratitude; one can pay “in kind” somewhere else in life.” -Anne Morrow Lindbergh

This quote truly sums up this Thanksgiving holiday for me. I am thankful for my family and friends as they are my life.

I am also very thankful for the social media community (you know who you are!!) and how you have embraced and accepted my passion for marketing, communications, PR and social media.

I am truly grateful, but what works for me this holiday season is paying in kind somewhere else. And hopefully I can do that by creating content that makes someone’s job a little bit easier or stretches their brain a bit and by sharing the brilliance of others. In return, I am the recipient of thought provoking and engaging conversations (on- and off-line) and wonderful friendships. I am continually amazed everyday how my world keeps getting smaller and smaller!

This Thanksgiving, how are you “pay[ing] ‘in kind’ somewhere else in life?”

Wishing you, your families and your friends a lovely Thanksgiving!
Beth

[Image: Positive Communication]

Remember when you were a teenager and you experienced something that seemed so once in a lifetime? And you knew, you just knew deep inside, that it would never happen the same way again. It could have been a great vacation, a fun time with new summer friends…or yes, even a summer romance.

Many people in social media talk about “shiny new object syndrome” or my favorite from Scott Monty—GMOOT—you know, when the powers that be demand that you “get me one of those!” But my experience with Plurk is not that.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a Plurk evangelist. Or was.

I like Plurk A LOT and I actually quite like and enjoy the user interface. But more than anything, I really like the people (well, the people I friend and who friend me) most of all.

Here’s the thing…

I can’t, with a straight face, continue to say I am a Plurk Evangelist because I so rarely use it these days. It’s not that I don’t think it’s a viable social networking tool, heck no! It’s just that I don’t have the time to dive into so many great conversations…and that above all else I miss tremendously.

Jennifer Leggio’s recent post, ‘Plurk dissolves into a social networking ghost town’ hit me like a running start punch right to the gut. I didn’t like what she was saying. I didn’t want to hear it and I wanted to tell her that she’s wrong. Jennifer dissects Plurk like a new shiny object, but it’s her job to be analytical and objective. She wonders how Plurk can be used as a business too and dismisses it as not being sustainable or viable. I can’t do that. Plurk to me is the people, NOT the tool. And through Plurk I have hired three vendors/partners that I might not have known otherwise (last time I checked that is business, is it not?!)

Plurk is my summer romance and I won’t let anyone tarnish the memories I have of the hours (and I mean HOURS) of long conversations, the super smart Plurkshops, the kidding around and silliness and best yet, the truly wonderful friends that I cherish. Those experiences can’t be taken away or forgotten.

I will continue to use Plurk, you bet your bottom dollar. But I just can’t use it like I once did, that’s all.

And because words don’t often times communicate what I really think/feel, here’s a video version (4:44):

[Image: PBase]

First, I want to thank everyone for such a great conversation with my post “Who are you? And why should I follow you?” Looks like I wasn’t the only that gets either amused or frustrated by what is experienced on social networks.

Not having any guidelines to follow when I first started on joining social networks, I learned the below etiquette from people experienced in social media who guided me and from continuing to follow just good, common sense off-line business etiquette.

If Emily Post and Miss Manners were involved in all these social networking sites with us, I wonder if they would agree with the below etiquette tips…and what we’d learn from them.

People use social networks for different reasons and this is my personal etiquette list. Feel to let me know if you think this is an appropriate list, what you’d add, what you’d question and what you’d change.

Be real
This seems simple, right? Be who you are, let your personality shine through. But, the funny thing about being on-line is that the first reaction is to hide behind monikers, avatars, etc. And with the stellar security of the Internet, who wouldn’t consider it? It takes a lot of courage to put yourself out there…findable, in public, permanently. As well, there have been more than enough posts on personal brand management to make those in the corporate world leery of being real on-line, which is also understandable. However, the more real you are, the more people will trust your presence. If you are engaging in social networks to personally or professionally network or engage with potentials customers or clients, the benefit of being real outweighs not doing so.

Be nice
This one is simple. Just be nice. Most people are inherently nice and if they aren’t being nice to you, well you can just unfollow/unfriend them. It’s not worth getting into snark wars…remember you are on-line and your comments are public (unless you choose for them not to be) and permanent. As well, comments found outside the context in which they were made can be misunderstood and misconstrued. So before engaging someone, even if they are attaching you, ask yourself, “is it worth it?” Most likely, it’s not.

Be respectful
We might not always agree with how people use social networks, what they say, how they handle themselves or what they share. But we should always be respectful of each other.

Listen then talk
When joining a social network, sometimes it helps to sit back, listen and learn. All networks have a culture and it makes sense to understand the culture before you dive in. The good thing is because you pick and choose who you follow/friend, you already have a sense of what the culture will be and how to join in-at the right time.

Give then take
Provide value to your community; let them know they can count on you for good information, genuine conversation, insights, sharing, fun, humor, etc.  Once you have earned their trust and respect, and then ask for what you need. Handle on-line relationships just like you would with new off-line friends, business acquaintances, etc.

Try to be consistent
When you join a social network, people get used to your presence. When you aren’t there it’s obvious. Everyone gets busy and social networks can be time consuming. Before you join a bunch of them, make sure you have the time to be involved.

Apologize when you make a mistake
We all make mistakes. If you state something publically that is wrong, admit to the mistake and move on to something else.

Say thank you
If someone spreads information you have shared, posts a comment on your blog, refers you, adds you to their blog roll, etc., say thank you. Let people know that you appreciate their time to do so.

Don’t broadcast
You can tell the broadcasters a mile away. They use social networks to broadcast about their companies, their posts, their daily activities. They never interact or respond back or interact. Conversation is key to social media and broadcasting, in my opinion, is just traditional one-way marketing using on-line tools.

Don’t stalk
Everyone gets excited about joining social networks. But, it’s a little bit aggressive to track down someone in every social network they belong to and follow/friend them. Take the time to get to know the person and then follow them where it makes sense.

It’s not a numbers game
The benefit of social media and social networking tools are the connections, conversations and engagements they provide. How can you really connect with 5,000 followers/friends? I would think it would be a challenge.

Don’t publicly or privately unfollow/unfriend
If there is someone in your social network that you no longer want to follow/friend, just quietly unfollow/unfriend them. It’s okay. And it happens all the time. It is natural that you may find there are people who just don’t work for you. What’s the point of embarrassing the person by publicly unfollowing/unfriending them?

Below are some insights from other social media folks. If you have any links to share, please do! We are all still learning.

• Considering Social Network Etiquette
• Etiquette in the Age of Social Media
• Etiquette For A Social Media World
• Miss Manners We Need You
• Rob’s Rules of Social Media Etiquette
• OMG! I’m adding followers faster on FF than I did on Twitter! Amazing!

[Photo: iStock]