Thought Leaders

One of the hot new terms in our lexicon these days is the concept of a thought leader.  Those of us who have a specialty can now share creative thoughts, views and opinions with the rest of the world through social media sites.

If you happen to specialize in romance writing, for example, you can visit any number of writing sites to post your expertise.  Recognition for your contribution comes in the form of e-networking opportunities, which may parlay into meeting an editor or a literary agent.

So be bold.  Share your thoughts.  Just a note though.  Remember that your information has a far reach and therefore, you need to always remember what the image you are trying to create for yourself and make sure that publication of your thoughts are aligned with your desired image.

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Tweeting about Twittering

I truly don’t know how anyone gets anything done, if they spend time with all these social media windows open on their computer.  While I see the merits of staying connected, I also know someone’s every move, sharing every feeling with not just one or two seems like too much information. 

And pardon me for being so cynical, but what if some not-so-honest person decides to use the online exchange to help himself to the twit’s belongings because the twit announced that he is driving 40 miles away to  be in a wedding party.  Bingo, the twit just opened his home to thieves.

With Google, you can pop the person’s name and do a search.  You can learn how old the person is, where he works and what’s his position, his college information, how many places the twit has lived.  You can Google his present address and see quite clearly all the locations the individual has lived, how many living there complete with full names.  Google maps can show you the front door, the topography.  Yes, there is very little left for the thieves’ imagination.  And if the person has joined and added a profile on any one of the social media websites, the thief knows much more about his victim than he ever needs to know—thus making his job all the more easy.

Oh and let’s have some computer nerd genius decide that it would be great to develop a software that will track a person’s personal daily time line with behaviors and preferences based on the information in cyberspace.  This would be a thief’s HOW TO book.

The not so nice people could also include rapists, pedaphiles, and scam artists.  There is no telling what other occupations may burgeon from gathering personal information.

While we benefit tremendously from news around the world and personal enrichment from these sites, will the downside outweigh the good?

As social media becomes one of the primary sources for news, will we suffer inaccuracies and purposefully placed lies?

Will politics gain another outlet to galvanize public opinion and perhaps, not in a good way, because there will be no fair and balanced reporting?

Will our children who grew up with technology have another vice that will keep them tethered to hardware and not to people in person?

Will the new generation find themselves even more sedentary because the social media connection is addictive?  Will their health suffer for all the hours on line?

It will be interesting to see how people will use this media.  I doubt this will be a fad, but like everything else human beings need to find a balance.

Working With Social Media

The Internet has given rise to a new marketing twist. Born as a direct result of online chatting is the concept of Inbound Marketing. To define Inbound Marketing, maybe we should start with the definition of Outbound Marketing, which is a concept we are most familiar.

Outbound marketing is when you —the vendor, the purveyor of goods or services — reaches out to the public for business.

In contrast, Inbound Marketing refers to you, the vendor, attracting people of like interests or needs by just existing. Inbound marketing is based on you putting yourself out there and people deciding that they are interested in your ideas, your humor, or your knowledge.

Here’s an example: An Outbound Marketing activity might be placing an ad in the newspaper or launching a direct mail campaign. We are waving our product or services in people’s faces to see if they are interested.

In Inbound Marketing, the perspective is the opposite. It is more like going to a cocktail party. You aren’t selling anything in particular. You are sharing information and ideas. People gravitate to you because of who you are. You are building a relationship online, which might someday lead to a business transaction.

The fluid nature of the Internet made this possible. It brings you in contact with people in all corners of the globe. There are social media sites in every industry and every avocation.

What is amazing is that these sites are not just for the very young or the tech savvy. http://www.linkedin.com boasts that the average person in their membership is between 32-45, earning about $79,000 per year and owns a business. These sites are generally free. All you have to do is sign up for a membership.

The most popular social media sites are http://www.facebook.com and http://www.myspace.com. Other business oriented sites are http://www.linkedin.com, http://www.brownbook.net, and http://www.jigsaw.com.

http://www.twitter.com has gained tremendous popularity in a short time. It is best characterized as a mini-blog because contributions cannot exceed 140 characters. As you blog you attract people with similar interests. Common interests creates an immediate connection, even if it is only tenuous.

There are several social media sites for writers, which I will post next time.