Social Networking: Where I'm At, Two Months On

I suppose it's not strictly true that I have only been doing social networking for two months.  I have been an active member of a UK-based life coaching forum for three years, but even though thousands belong to it, there is a core group of regulars, so it has come to feel very personal, as well as professional.

On the advice of some coaching colleagues, I decided to really give the bigger, more public networking sites a sincere effort.  I have joined Facebook,Twitter, LinkedIn, Holistic Local, a coaching Mastermind Group, the EuroCoachList and my University Alumni network, creating profiles under my name and under the Your Great Life name. I must admit that, in the beginning, it all seemed like a huge effort.

First, I had to get over my squeamishness about putting personal information out there on the internet.  I proceeded very cautiously, hiding very personal details from view.  I immersed myself in these sites all at the same time, give or take a few weeks. Just figuring out how they worked and what to post took a lot of time.  My evening TV watching diminished (not a bad thing), but conversations with my family also seemed to happen behind me, as I frequently checked my various pages on the computer.  I felt like an adolescent who can't pry themselves away from their Nintendo DS.

It was about one month before I was able to judge the value of each site relative to my goals. I immediately re-connected with a few old friends through Facebook, some of whom I hadn't seen in 30 years. That result was enough to propel me further.  I quickly realized that HolisticLocal was not worth my daily visit, as questions I posted and private messages I sent to other members went unread for weeks, if at all. One less site to visit meant more time for the others. LinkedIn, which seems strong in some areas, hasn't really paid off for me yet.  I found it difficult to build a network there, as I don't know that many people yet who want to list themselves.  I joined a few groups, but put LinkedIn aside for the time being. I will re-visit it once in a while and hopefully, make better use of it later.

So, here it is the end of March and I am more fluent in Twitter-speak and have 52 followers (that isn't alot) who regularly receive updates from me.  I have picked up some really useful tips from teleseminars on social networking:

• Spend some time reading other people's posts before deciding how you want to use the site.
• Increase your networks (Facebook Friends or Twitter Followers) by:
  1. linking with friends or colleagues of your own friends
  2. joining Facebook Groups that interest you
  3. attracting Twitter Followers and requests from others to be a Facebook Friend by "adding value" through your posts. Basically, that means giving people something to read that helps them. 
  4. highlighting or recommending someone else's post to your Friends and Followers through a ReTweet (RT @) or a mention on your page
• Learning the art of the 140 character post, as that is all you are allowed
• Make use of special tools, available through Twitter-related sites, that alert you when a post has come in regarding an area of interest, or link you to Twitterers (or is that Tweeter? You do have to learn a whole new language.) you may not have found on your own.
• Make your Twitter page your own by adding a custom background, colours and widgets
• Link your Twitter page, Facebook page and your blog site, so one post to Twitter shows up on all three. See my left-hand sidebar?  There are digests of my latest posts listed there.

So, where am I now?  If I post on my blog, I will immediately let my Twitter Followers know about it just by saying New Blog Post and the title of my post. If I receive useful information about a coaching tool, seminar or idea from the EuroCoach List, I can let my colleagues know about it through a post here or on Twitter. If I find out about a free teleseminar happening through a Tweet, I can Re-Tweet it, knowing that among my Followers are the members of my coaching Mastermind Group, so I don't have to cut and paste to EMail. 

My most valuable benefits so far have been:

1. Being able to educate myself about what is going on in the areas of Miscarriage and (In)Fertility, in terms of patients/clients, how they are being treated and by whom and how I can connect with them professionally;
2. 24 hour access to current events worldwide (Twitter is SO immediate);
3. Feeling less isolated as a coach. There is a great camaraderie and generosity among us that really shows; and 

4. Letting me in on what my old, present and new friends are doing in their lives and allowing me to connect with them personally.

The downside of social networking for me, if any, is:

1. How easy it is to spend extraordinary amounts of time on the computer when I could be doing something more personal, i.e. face-to-face with my family and friends; and

2. Receiving some quite offensive  or just plain useless Tweets, among the valuable ones, through the Twilert tool.

Goals

So, on the whole, I would say it is worthwhile and I am looking forward to more discoveries.  In the next month, I aim to make better use of my social networking opportunities, and maximise my presence on LinkedIn and Emory University's site. I am also going to try to attract a minimum of 100 new Followers to my Twitter page: http://twitter.com/yourgreatlife

I invite suggestions and recommendations if you have any.  If anyone is particularly savvy, I would love a personal tutorial.  Contact me below.