Event Three of 2009: The Social Media Branding of Tom

My choice for event three of 2009 is the social media discovery of Facebook and Twitter and what the mean to me.

I had already been on Myspace for some time and met some really cool people.  I liked the way you could customize the look but there was some really bad designs.

Then I checked out facebook. I didn’t like the less restrictive designs options that Myspace had, but in time, it seemed I was able to start connecting with old classmates as well as friends from work who were showing up there.  It also has some neat little apps and features like posting pictures but I was looking for a blogging feature on the site. There was a notes section, which I tried out, and seemed just shy of adequate.

At about the same time, I also heard about twitter and the micro blogging moniker that was placed on the service. This appealed to me since I felt I did not have time to do a full blog. It was a slow go at first. What was I going to say? Who was reading what I posted? I then decided I needed to establish a “brand” for myself and focus on people who shared my interests. I decided on following fellow Cub fans, Outdoor enthusiasts, and people who shared common musical tastes. Once I was able to find and follow people that fell into these categories, I made it a point to engage in dialog with them. If I received feedback, great, if not, that was fine too, but at least I was trying. I quickly found out the difference between a genuine person and someone just looking for eyesballs to try to market products and services towards.  I don’t mind following somebody who represents a product or service  that takes the time to get to know me and converse. If I can use their product or service, I would strongly consider going to them because a trust has been built up. They are using Twitter the correct way,  IMO.

I have been fortunate that people I converse with have allowed me to actively be part of their twitterverse. There are some amazing people who I am proud to call friends. The obvious next step is to meet up in person, which I have not done yet, but is a goal of mine in the new year.

I have even added people I have met on Twitter  to my facebook list of friends as well. Seems to be quite a few people that use multiple avenues of social media to connect with the world.

Who knows where this social media will lead. Maybe someone will use my “open” policy to do harm to me, or maybe I will gain employment if I was ever to lose my job. I guess that is what makes life interesting. Nobody knows, but I am willing to bring you along with me for the ride!

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~ by Tom Reutebuch on 01/03/2010.