Linked Up & Signed On (Just What is All This Social Media Stuff About?) #FFTech

I remember it clearly - it was my first time. I was a spry young college student accessing my computer to check my email. I waited, patiently (now...even a nano-second seems too long) for that buzz, crackle, and ring as my tenacious dial-up modern connected me to that vast network they called the INTERNET. It was love at first click.

A lot has changed since then. My relationship with the web has grown and changed many times over the years.

My how far we both have come. 

The web has grown like an out of control wildfire, creating an ever changing landscape, some things have survived and others didn't.  We have seen the advent of social media grow from its humble beginnings with such things as guestbooks and interest boards to Pinterest, Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram just to name a few. Just like any child it has had its growing pains but now that it is a little bit older it has become an asset to those that choose to use it wisely. 

Some say it is all just too much. "Bah humbug!" I say to those people, my husband being one of them. He says that at times I am "too connected". He does have Facebook but that is about it. I do understand that mentality though. I now sit here and think of the number of times I have been out with the hubby and have "had" to check my phone for email, messages, Facebook, twitter and the myriad of other apps that always await my attention. I have heard often the "Can't you just  put that thing down?" more than a few times. Yes folks there does need to be balance. It can be tricky to find that balance but it is worth the effort to do so. 

By a virtual raise of hands who has been on their mobile device, while on a PC or Mac, looking at multiple outlets?

GUILTY!

Social media has helped me tremedously as it allows me to stay in touch with friends and family. Since moving to Las Vegas in 2007 it was hard for me to make that transition. Many of those I hold near and dear to my heart are now spread across the county and live in different time zones in some cases, making phone calls a bit of a challenge. Without social media I would not be able to have the type of interaction I do, visual and conversational, without using these outlets. 

I have also been able to reconnect with friends I have not seen in many years and was even able to help with my high school reunion using, you guessed it, social media. I have seen kids grow up, families and friends achieve success, and have benefited in the form of my own personal growth. I cannot count the number of awesome people I have encountered and friends I have made simply due to this little thing we call social media. It really does bring people together.

I recently taught a class to small business owners and showed them how to link their social media together and the ways it can be used to send messages important to their business all at once across several channels. One comment I got often, "You can really do that?" You bet. The trouble wth social media is that on the front end it can take some time to set up, link up, and use. However, like anything, it really comes down to the amount of time you are willing to invest to get it going. Once you do that, everything else will come a little at a time. My best advice? See what other companies and blogs similar to yours do for a week. Just watch. I believe once you do that you will see how it can be an useful tool.

I will always come back to the potential that lies in social media. Potential that needs to be worked.

Here are just some reasons to love social media:

• gateway for users to seek out people and companies that have similar interests
• connect with friends and family in different time zones 
• business can search for and seek out new trends that affect their markets using hashtags
• become more engaged with clients, customers, and blog readers 
• social media applications are often free (though some are not and all have a time investment) 
• can offer businesses a way to offer a better customer service experience
• "The Kevin Bacon Effect" - if you have every played the 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon game you know that the amount of people who know people can easily add up
• find new customers or readers that are seeking out new products, services, or information online
• YOU pick how engaged you want to become
• it can be for your business or personal use
• it's not going away - so it's better to get on board early than get left out in the cold later
• BUILD YOUR BRAND!!!

Social media is not something to be feared but something to be embraced. You choose what applications benefit you. Look at web pages, blogs, company pages similar to yours and see what they use and how they use it. Is that something you could benefit from? Learning how to set it up and how to use can be daunting but before you take that step find out what avenues are going to be a good fit for you by doing that research. 

See you all soon on Twitter (@K_Hannington) or on Facebook at Run with K.

#socialmediarocks

:)

Karen