Tech picks: Andrea Syrtash

When I was first introduced to Andrea Syrtash it was at an event in Santa Monica this past spring when she was touring for her book. But neither the event nor her book had anything to do with business or technology. Instead, it was a girls night out and a book about boys.

As an author, life coach, advice columnist and dating expert, Syrtash is as entrepreneur and businesswoman as they come. She's been working with clients as a life coach since 2002 and she's a regular dating and relationship advice columnist for Oprah.com, The Huffington Post, It's Just Lunch and Yahoo! Personals. She also hosted numerous episodes of a dating advice show produced by NBC Digital Studios for On Networks. Her latest book, He's Just Not Your Type (And That's a Good Thing), debuted in April.

Although Syrtash still represents the print world, she's clearly very active in the digital and tech spaces – and those aren't all the ways. Her, she shares how she uses various web and tech tools.

Must-have for mobility: Because Syrtash travels extensively for her book tours, mobility and being able to work on the road is critical. For this, she depends on her iPhone. "I'm like Pavlov's dog when my iPhone bings," she says, referencing the Russian physiologist who introduced the idea of classic conditioning through his study of dogs (think: salivating at the idea of food). "I rely on it [a lot] for business, especially when I'm on the go all day." It allows her to stay connected and check in on social networks from wherever she may be, whether at her home in New York or at in event in, say, Santa Monica.

So need I ask . . .

iPhone or BlackBerry: "I should say BlackBerry since I'm Canadian, but I prefer the iPhone," Syrtash says, giving a shootout to her home country and that of BlackBerry's maker, Research in Motion. She likes the iPhone's touch screen and the user interface that's identical to that of her Mac. "I also prefer the look, feel and esthetic of the iPhone," she adds. "But don't get me wrong – I sill get in fights with the phone."

Social networking style: Syrtash says the apps she uses the most on her iPhone are Facebook and Twitter, so it's reasonable to assume she's partial to these social networking sites across all platforms. "Facebook has been an invaluable tool as a journalist," she explains. "For my last book, I got sources, research and suggestions from my community. I'm a big fan of crowd-sourcing." Aside from a personal profile, she also has a Fan Page where she enjoys meeting new people.

The same goes for Twitter, where Syrtash has met many people "with common professional interests who I otherwise would not have access to," she says. "Twitter is great because, as my friend Jeff says, 'It's like standing on a big world stage with a megaphone.' "

Even though these two are her preferred networks, Syrtash is a big proponent of social networking in general: "I often tell people who are trying to network to consider using [social networks]. People and companies are easier to reach on these platforms than if you cold call them."

Web 2.0 in one word: "Community." OK, now elaborate. "I'm a big fan of learning from my community – it's a wonderfully creative space," says Syrtash, who conducts market research on social media by gauging reactions to certain posts. "You can't have an effective brand without listening to your audience or customers and [using them to help] shape your company and community."

Serious tech snafu: As an author and regular communist, you can imaging Syrtash spends a significant amount of time on her laptop – á la Carrie Bradshaw. It took only one incident of losing pages from her last book "when my computer freaked out and shut down" for her to start backing up her files on a regular basis, she admits. "I now obsessively save my work every few minutes and back up on a thumb drive every day."

Syrtash also recalls the week earlier this year that she was launching her book and moving. At that time, she was doing more media events and interviews in a week than she had done in months, she says. But the fact that her iPhone was acting up and the internet wasn't working in her new place made doing all this nearly impossible. She ended up going to a friend's house to do radio spots and live web chats. Says Syrtash, "When technology works, it's fantastic – and we take it for granted, perhaps – but when it's down, all hell breaks loose!"

On her iPod: Her playlist runs the gamut, from Chopin to Imogen Heap to Mos Def.