Keeping Social Media Social

Of all the Social Media tools available for communicating today, Twitter is my favorite (tied of course, with Blogs). Many of my friends would think this is strange since my “old school” Nokia phone doesn’t have the capability to do much more than handle phone calls and text messages.

So what is it that I like so much about Twitter? The ability to communicate! I enjoy the interaction that takes place on Twitter, in “real time.” I’ve called friends whom I first met on Twitter. I’ve run into people that I’ve been following and vice-versa, in social settings around Atlanta. I’ve even had someone come up to me who knew my name, based upon my Twitter background and say hello. And of course, there are the “Tweetups” where people can bring Social Media relationships to real time. Quite simply, I enjoy the communication!

I enjoy the ability to get a sense for what others are saying and what is important to them. For that reason, I typically “listen” on Twitter much more than I “tweet.”

A few days ago I came across a new post by Scott Stratten, on his Un-Marketing Blog. In his post, Scott discusses why he believes automated tweeting is not a good thing and refers to the practice as “Mannequin Marketing.” I laughed out loud, as I typically do when I read Scott’s cleverly written posts! I could not have agreed with him more!

Perhaps it’s the BtoB Marketer in me who values the interaction. I believe that engagement is critical in sales and marketing. Without engagement, we cannot learn what it is that the customer needs and cannot handle any of the customer’s objections.

Without engagement, the opportunity to learn is lost!

I have to confess, I’m not totally pure when it comes to my belief, since I use SocialOomph to send automatically generated welcome messages to others as they follow me.

However, I’m not in favor of automatically generated tweets. In fact, I can typically tell which tweets have been “scheduled” to run, since they typically offer no value to me and are used to “tweet the horn” of the Twitter user. I don’t have enough time to read through these types of messages, so like a billboard, the effectiveness is lost on me after the first couple of times I see something from the sender.

Social Media has provided such a valuable way to interact with others, share ideas and promote brands (both personal brands, as well as the ones we purchase in the marketplace). I believe that it’s a mistake to desensitize people with a message that gets lost before it can ever be “scheduled” to run.

Simply put, I believe in keeping the “Social” in Social Media.

This doesn’t mean I spend many hours on Twitter, or get up in the middle of the night to reach people halfway across the globe. When it comes to relationships, I’ll take quality over quantity any day.

When I retweeted Scott Stratten’s blog post, someone responded to me in disagreement and mentioned that he/she didn’t see any harm in automated tweets. I understood the points that were made to me. The good news is that we had an interaction – precisely what I enjoy about Twitter!

I would enjoy hearing what you have to say. Drop me an e-mail if you have a chance, or of course, you can always send a tweet to @wolfejeff

A Time to Stand Up

Two weeks ago, I hung up the phone after speaking with a good friend that I used to work with. I was totally shocked and saddened to learn that someone we both knew had just taken his life. The gentleman worked for a competitor and was very well known and respected in his industry. I would go so far as to say that everyone who ever met him, liked him immediately. At least I did. We met once at a customer’s site and I was immediately struck by his presence and vitality. Now he is no longer with us.

This was the second instance of its kind that I had heard about that week.

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of attending the first on-site meeting of Christian Professionals of Greater Atlanta. The group was formed on LinkedIn, as a subgroup of Christian Professionals Worldwide. I always enjoy opportunities to bring Social Networking to real time by meeting people in person. I had a great time meeting so many wonderful people at this event.

During the course of the evening, Peter Bourke, volunteer Chairman of Crossroads Career ® Network (www.crossroadscareer.org ) and Principal at The Complex Sale spoke to our group. He made several references to his newly published book, A Better Way to Make a Living… and a Life during the course of his powerful presentation. To learn more about Peter Bourke’s book and his purpose for writing it, you may visit www.betterwaytomakealiving.com.

The messages that I send in this blog post are inspired by the content of Peter Bourke’s presentation.

Message to Career Seekers:

Stand tall and remain strong! You are still who you were before – perhaps even better!

While times may seem difficult now, this too shall pass.

One may ask what gives me the right to say these things? It’s quite simple – I too am in transition. My last day with my previous employer was December 18, 2009.

I believe that I am even better now than I was then and am using this time to seek out an opportunity to serve a new organization. In the meantime, I’ve created an LLC which I intend to use to provide value to clients seeking to bring their sales and marketing efforts to the next level.

I have been abundantly blessed by the support of my family and friends during this time of transition. My time of transition has been made much less difficult by knowing that I can pick up the phone and call my family or friends and they will be there to listen and offer guidance.

Is this the time for you perhaps pursue a dream that you may have of starting your own business? My response is a resounding yes!

Message to People of Faith:

We are called upon to serve and rise up in the name of our creator to help others. While I approach this topic from a Christian perspective, I know that every religion professes to have this mission. The time for us to proactively reach out, lend an ear and provide positive words to others is today and everyday.

People are hurting all across the world today and are looking to People of Faith to see whether we walk the walk, or just talk the talk. Join me in walking the walk and reaching out to others. I know that when I walk the walk, Jesus Christ is right there beside me.

Does this just pertain to reaching out to career seekers? Absolutely not! Peter Bourke references the fact that there are seventy-five million people working across the US today who are “chronically miserable” in their work.

Add to that the fact that many people have become underemployed or have received drastic cuts to their salaries.

In fact, the two people whom I mentioned earlier were both employed at the time that they took their lives.

If you are one of the “chronically miserable”, I challenge you to change your situation by reaching out to others. It will make a world of difference in the lives of others, as well as your own life.

So, let’s get out there and do what we are called upon to do! Let’s reach out, reach up and stay in the game!

I challenge everyone to use this time to draw upon your faith, as we are called upon to do, and become a difference maker in the lives of others!

Battle of the Titans

It’s that time again, when everyone is talking about the big game! The Indianapolis Colts, led by future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning battle against the New Orleans Saints, who appear in the Super Bowl for the very first time. Both teams have potent offenses. Both teams will be playing on the “Big Stage” for the right to walk away as NFL Champions.

Another Battle of the Titans will be taking place tomorrow. While some will talk about the “two minute drill” at the end of the game, others will talk about the creativity displayed in two minute increments, while the game is not taking place.

I dare say that more people will be talking about the Super Bowl Commercials around the water cooler on Monday, than will be talking about the actual game.

Which Super Bowl commercial was your favorite, and why?

I would love to hear your thoughts.