Put down your Blackberry and step away from the keyboard. Seriously.
Social media monitoring is important for countless reasons, many of which we’ve elucidated on this blog. But sometimes, a very real benefit of social media monitoring is to find cool opportunities to make genuine human connections with other people — the kind that can only happen face to face.
We had a great moment in random social media connections last week. As part of regular daily monitoring for both the Advertising and PR sides of our agency, we caught this Tweet by Jeremiah Owyang, a nationally renowned social media VIP, columnist for Forbes, and web strategy genius:
@fahlgren. I see you. http://twitpic.com/13s6d1
We responded immediately, realizing he was across the parking lot at the Easton Hilton, and asked if he’d like to come over for a tour of our office. He suggested breakfast or lunch the next day instead. Naturally, we jumped at the chance to pick the brain of one of our favorite bloggers while he was on a quick visit to our fair city.
So why am I blogging about this now? Because it reminded me how important social media is for fostering real-life relationships. I’ve read Jeremiah’s blog for years but having met him and broken bread in person, there’s far more of a real connection there than could ever be achieved through a computer monitor.
What opportunities can social media uncover for you to meet in person with key influencers, customers or prospects? How should you be listening for chances to not just build or grow your business, but also connect and talk face to face with smart people who are tuned in to what’s coming next?
Let’s not forget… it’s called “social” for a reason.
