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No Substitute for In Real Life Interaction

By: Marijean Jaggers | 03/06/2009

There's a point I try to make, every time I speak or write about using social networking for business. It's this: social networking is not a total replacement solution for real-life experiences. That is, using social networking tools such as LinkedIn and Facebook is not a replacement for In Real Life (IRL) interaction, rather a facilitator to get to those IRL experiences. Since the advent of the blogosphere and the beginnings of corporate uses of social media, the ideas of transparency and authenticity have come to the forefront. People want to know you, as the face of your corporation and as a person they think they might like to work with.

Social networking tools are great to connect to new people, former colleagues and others with similar interests, but don't let the relationship end online. Here are some ideas for moving a social network relationship to an IRL meeting:

1. Post events you're attending, and look for fellow attendees online; send a photo of yourself (if you haven't met) and offer to save them a seat/look for them during the networking event so you can meet in person.
2. Host a coffee/lunch/happy hour gathering for a Facebook group, blogger group or Twitter friends in your community.
3. Ask! Don't be a business wallflower -- get out there and invite new contacts to meet for coffee because you'd like to learn more about what they do. Remember the book Never Eat Alone? It's a good policy, and helps develop relationships that last.
4. Share who you are. Don't be shy about sharing your profile or accepting invitations and friend requests in social networking applications, especially those from people in your community. If someone is interested in learning more about you, it's possible they're thinking of you as a resource, for their business or a business they can connect you to. People enjoy being connectors; help make that possible.
5. Keep your information up-to-date. A current profile means an active user; a savvy business whiz who knows how to interact with his/her community. Make sure people can contact you and when they do, respond, even if it's just to thank them for the outreach.

What are some ways that you've used social networking to move a relationship to a real-life relationship?

Posted in Digital Communications