Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Loggie-log
Social media is the current internet rage, with sites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and MySpace leading the way. But not only are these tools helping people connect in cyberspace, they are also helping more and more people meet face to face.
In some ways this is nothing new. Websites have been used to help groups coordinate events for years. But as tools such as Twitter and Facebook have gained in popularity they have made it possible for groups to form even though none of the members may have met before.
One example of this is the Tweetup, a meeting where Twitter users in a particular area get together. The website allows users to organize and advertise meetings that are open to anyone who wants to come. The select a time and a place, and rely on Twitter "word-of-mouth" to get the word out. Some such events gather hundreds of participants.
Facebook, too, is another tool for creating networking events. In most cases Facebook users are connected to people they already know, or are introduced to by people they know. This makes it even easier than with Twitter for forming group meetings by geographic area. Users also can create pages within Facebook to communicate meeting details.
The meetings organized through social media are, by nature, networking events. Attendees are connected only by geography and use of social media tools, resulting in very a divers group. At a recent Boise Tweetup the group included everything financial advisors, radio marketers, and job-seekers to university recruiters, health product salesmen, and work-from-home moms. It is like a flash mob that stays to chat.
The current troubled economic climate has pushed networking increasingly into the forefront of business activities. Companies are looking to make quality contacts while spending less on marketing. Others are looking for mutually-beneficial business relationships to help cut costs. Government and civic groups are looking to encourage local businesses to support one another and keep spending and investment local. Entrepreneurs are looking to share ideas, experience, and expertise. Networking drives all of these activities, and social media helps open up new opportunities.
As a result, more and more organizations and employees are establishing presences on social networking sites and actively pursuing networking opportunities. The irony is that more and more people are spending more and more time online in order to spend more and more time meeting face to face.
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Comments
As a new social media coach / consultant, one of the biggest concerns I hear is that people want to network in person, rather than via the internet. As you say, the social media sites can help you find like-minded people to network with in person! The tools give us the ability to network with the people that will be the best contacts.
We could help with that.
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