SOCIALGO

Image representing SocialGO as depicted in Cru...
Image via CrunchBase

Do-it-yourself Social Networking Website.

Website: SocialGo

TUNGLE.ME

Image representing Tungle.me as depicted in Cr...
Image via CrunchBase

An online tool that works with Google, Outlook, Apple iCal, Entourage for Mac, Lotus Notes, Windows Live, Yahoo! and connects to major social networks including Facebook, Plancast, TripIt, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Connecting allows Tungle.me to keep your availability up to date, and automatically update your calendar as you book meetings. Your calendar details are kept private. You can see them, but others only see your free/busy times.

Website: Tungle.me

TWEETDECK

Tweetdeck

This application can be accessed on your desktop, as well as some smartphones, offering you the ability to quickly browse your social media community including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Foursquare, and more; by selecting the application and creating column views.

Website: Tweetdeck

Celebrating Social Media

Woman with Laptop and Cellphone in cafe Social Media Week.   Celebrating being social?  But I guess it’s like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day…all those holidays created to remind us of things we need to appreciate every day, but take for granted.  And today, social media is something that users take for granted.

Remember when Twitter was down?  When it came back up, all the tweets were about what we did when it was down!  And now that it is more consistent, we go back to taking it for granted.  We have the ability to tweet, update our status on Facebook and continue to communicate through our blogs.  So why do we need a “Social Media Week”?  I think we need it to stop and think.  How much do you appreciate Social Media?  Are you using it to build your community?  How many relationships have you built from  a tweet?  Take a look around and think about the impact Social Media has had on your life.  And then  think about how Social Media impacts your “off-line” relaationships.

While I treasure the friends and relationships I have with people from high school, college and pre-Social Media, I am amazed at the community I have built with the help of Social Media.  Are you using LinkedIn? Twitter? Facebook? Foursquare?  With the help of Social Media, I have reconnected with old friends, connected with new friends, and through these connections, built even more relationships.  And through tweetups and other events, I am able to personalize Social Media.

For those non-believers, Social Media IS social!  It helps to increase your community and your world.  So what are your options?  You can be an observer of Social Media by joining the sites and just reading what everybody else says.  You can participate by updating your status and sharing your news.  And then you can be a motivator by using your community to pay it forward and help others. 

So if you aren’t involved, you should be.  Celebrate Social Media week by becoming more social! 

Friends

woman with @

Giving thanks …
friendsOver this past year I made the decision to embrace social media. And with the help of Twitter and WordPress, I have been able to build a community of new friends and acquaintances. I want to thank them for their participation and comments on my blog. They are always challenging me to think bigger and better.
My community has helped me with humor. And as I have needed it, they have been there with guidance and encouragement. They have introduced me to more people and helped my community grow. So I want to make sure that they know how much they are appreciated, and I am sure that they know who they are.
In 2010, I want to continue to grow my community and the relationships I have already established. I also hope to help others the way people have helped me.

The Season of Giving

christmas tree

christmas treeTis the season. The season of giving. The season to be thankful. So I have decided to spend the next 25 days thinking about all of the things I am thankful for this year and how I can pay this forward. A year ago, I barely knew what a blog was, let alone all of the amazing things that I could accomplish with my blog. A year ago I didn’t understand Twitter or the many ways it could enrich my life. My interest in blogging and social media was a result of writing my first book, EVENTually Perfect. And while I never thought about writing a book, it opened a whole new world for me. And these are the things I am thankful for.
I think about what I have learned this past year. The learning curve was amazing! And while I could have sat back and continued on the path I was on, I realized that I was at a fork in the road. I chose to embrace the new technologies and all that it had to offer. And along the way, I made new friends and acquaintances. I forged new alliances. And I even wrote two more books, The Small Business That CouldTM and The Small Business That Could For Women.
I am currently working on a membership website, and that was what sparked my desire to write this post. After several months of searching for the right tools to create this website, I sought the advice of a friend and mentor, Jen Bonnett (@jen_bonnett) of Startup Chicks (@startupchicks). She shared her insight with me and motivated me to move forward with this project. And while I spent a significant amount of time and frustration, not to mention excuses on why I couldn’t do this, I also knew how important this project was to me. So today I started. I knew WordPress. I knew membership site plugins were available. I just had to find a plugin that could offer the database function I needed. And I had a friend who was helping me with the theme.
So over the next 25 days, I will take a few minutes off from this project to share what I have learned about these new technologies and how they can build a community, a business and most of all a circle of friends. And at the end of the 25 days, I will launch my new website. It is my present to myself. The best gift I can give myself, the gift of satisfaction and accomplishment.

Chatting on Cliqset

cliqset-w[1]

chatThere’s a whole lot of chatting happening on Twitter. I participate in a few of the chats, and some I just try to follow. I say “try” because that’s what it is. If someone is participating in the chat and has a great comment, but forgets the chat hashtag, most people following the chat miss it. As I continue to join more chats, this particular problem becomes more frustrating. There has got to be a better way to do this. And I think I found it.

I have been thinking about starting a chat group for a while, but because of the issues stated above, I changed my mind. A few weeks ago, I joined Cliqset. (http://cliqset.com). I am still getting used to this new program, but have quickly learned how fabulous it is many things, including “chatting”. Here is what I l have earned:

  1. Cliqset is real time, so I can chat with people just like I would be if I were having a live conversation, no delay.
  2. My conversation flows in a stream on Cliqset and does not appear on Twitter.
  3. You get 200 characters per comment on Cliqset vs. the 140 in Twitter. And since you are following the conversation on Cliqset, you don’t need the hashtag, which saves even more characters.

I have to wonder, why wouldn’t everyone want to move their chat conversations to Cliqset? In order to participate in the chat, you would need to be registered on Cliqset. Not very difficult, and well worth it. You would have to be following the person holding the chat on Cliqset. Again, not very difficult and well worth it.

Social media is about engaging with others. And building a community is critical to the success of your business. Since the internet is every changing, new services are constantly evolving to help make tasks easier. Through the use of a service, like Cliqset, your community can start to form and become active, without you having to spend too much time on upkeep. The user-friendly features of this program will help you enhance your current social media program.

So now, I have decided to launch my #partychat. It’s the holiday season and we are all thinking about social events. What better way than to share our ideas through social media. I hope you agree, because this is your official invitation to follow me @eventperfect and join me on Cliqset for #partychat on Monday night at 8pm EST.

What Price Reciprocity

What Price Reciprocity?

Networking, online or in person, has become even more prevalent in business today. We look at social media as a norm of online networking, and attend “in person” networking meetings at an amazing rate. New meetup (http://www.meetup.com) and ning (http://www.ning.com) networking communities pop up daily. Traditional networking groups now have competition for our time and efforts as we all work together to help each other through this economy.

But what price reciprocity? As you recommend a fellow networker, do you have expectations that they will return the favor? After all, if you don’t have that expectation, what is it that you hope to gain from networking other than meeting new people? While many established businesses have been networking for a while, they are much more proficient in their methods of garnering referrals. Perhaps the reciprocity could be as basic as showing you the ropes and helping you learn how to garner referrals.

As you follow people on Twitter, are they following you back? Do they see value in your message? What did you see that made you follow them? Have they delivered on that value? Sometimes we go to tweetups and other networking events and quickly follow people we meet. Once we have time to review their profiles and reflect on their message, we realize that they really aren’t part of our community. We don’t share the same values. Do you unfollow them? Only you can answer this. But if they are not following you, the answer is evident.

A community, in person or on-line, is built on reciprocity. We all help each other. We are building relationships and sharing ideas. A member of the community who doesn’t join in and reciprocate is not adding any value to your community. Their authenticity is questionable and they have chosen to be an outsider. But as your community continues to build, they may decide to be a part of it. Now the choice of reciprocity is yours.

Are You Listening?

Sometimes we spend so much time clicking away at our keyboards, we don’t stop to listen. If you are a court reporter, this may be fine. But at a conference, or while taking notes at a meeting, this can be a mistake. And don’t forget that even though you can’t hear someone speak their message, their words can speak volumes. As you read their blog posts, are you listening to what they are saying?

At a recent conference, I reflected on a comment made by Jeff Turner (http://www.jeffturner.info/) He spoke about Twitter and gaining more followers through four things: listen, ask, reciprocate, comment/comment back. His comment caused me to analyze the authenticity of Twitter followers. I look at the people I follow, and the ones following me, and think about the value. If I am following someone that I respect and admire, but they are not following me, are they listening to my message? But if I am not following them, then how I am I listening to what they are saying? A true conundrum! So what can I do? I follow them because I want to listen to what they have to say. I believe that when I have something to say of value to them, they will hear it. Until then, I need to make sure their message is heard.

But now we reflect on the other side. Some people use social media to broadcast, they do not need me to follow them and retweet their message. Their message is loud enough and those that want to listen can hear it themselves. Their blog posts are usually longer broadcasts of the same message. And while they are broadcasting, many of them are not listening. So are their followers listening? Is their value and authenticity to their broadcast? It does not matter to me how many followers you have, what matters is the value of your message.

And when you do have something to say, hopefully people will be moved enough by it to add their own thoughts. Their comments become part of your message and add to its authenticity. And if you do receive a comment, treat it like a conversation. Does it require a response? We are all listening to each other. And as we build relationships and community, we need to continue to communicate. This open dialogue strengthens our bonds and validates our messages.

Reflection in the Mirror

I attended New Media Atlanta yesterday. Advertised as “Social Media for Business”, I was anxious to hear the insights of many of the speakers, especially Chris Brogan and Jeff Turner. The excitement leading up the event was exhilirating as 140 characters described different people’s thoughts and anticipation of the event on Twitter. And after a difficult flood soaked week in Atlanta, this conference was the social respite needed for all us.

As we took our seats and logged on to our computers, I expected to see the New Media Atlanta program popping up on screens throughout the room. (Matt Fagioli and Brad Nix had decided to respect the environment by offering the day’s program online, instead of printing the program.) But as I looked up from my program, I saw a sea of screens with BackNoise.

As an event planner and speaker, I welcome constructive feedback from attendees in order to improve the experience. Unfortunately, what actually took place were nasty, hurtful comments by attendees that obviously went to the Kanye School of Audience Participation. BackNoise participants “hijacked” the conference and became the focus for many speakers, even from the very beginning. Jeff Turner had a prepared presentation which was aborted to discuss BackNoise and its effectiveness at a social media conference. And the day began. The “headsets” of BackNoise prevented its participants from hearing these comments. Their childlike behavior was embarrassing and cowardly. And here is why. The “Noise” became deafening. It was difficult to hear anything else. It drowned out the effectiveness of any of the speakers. The event organizers continued to address the thoughtful “noise” issues throughout the day and reacted quickly to many comments, i.e., timing, lunch, snacks, beverages, etc. I applaud them for this.
As Chris Brogan placed BackNoise on the stage screen, it became quieter in the room and those of us not involved all of the “noise” were able to hear him speak. Unfortunately, his comments fell on deaf ears to many that needed to hear what he had to say. We are all part of the social media community. Our relationships on and off-line are important. The trust we have in each other and the comments we share in our blogs and other social media help us learn from each other and move forward. This can be seen in our use of Twitter during the Atlanta flood earlier this week. Through the use of a hashtag, we were able to quickly follow-up and communicate issues between our followers to help each other. If we had used BackNoise during the #atlflood, I think it would have taken a different direction. I am not sure it would have been anonymous, and I think it would have been more constructive. So the use of a tool like BackNoise could be very useful.

So now I look at my reflection in the mirror. Our social media presence is a reflection of ourselves. It is a way of us being heard and seen through our words. As you post on your blog and comment on Twitter, are you sure you sent the right message? Is it a reflection of yourself? Can you recite the comments in the mirror and respect what you see? Can you trust what you hear? Do you wonder if there is “backnoise” in your reflection?