Who are we on-line?

I was recently charged with over-hauling our media relations tactics and like a good worker-bee have been dutifully burning the candle at both ends to meet my (mostly self-imposed) deadline.

During this process I realized that I was spending so much time on the computer that at times I felt like I didn't even recognize myself without first checking out my twitter status.

After bemoaning this fact to friends I was told that I had developed an online persona, one a little different from the girl they knew in "real life." Not a bad thing, just something to be aware of I was assured. Hmmm....

During some much-needed introspection I asked myself if this was true and now I think that this may be what we (online and social media users everywhere) all do, that the online world gives us that anonymity to be whoever we want to be, within reason of course.

Now as to whether this is a good thing, well I think that it is both good and bad. I believe the line can best be drawn between having an active life outside your online world and being so engrossed you become a true internet addict.

It is also important to remember that being online, and especially in a very public sense such as being a blogger, comes with inherent responsibilities. When you blog, tweet or otherwise engage an audience you are making an attempt to connect and although you may want them to read your posts or visit your web site, it is equally important that they are not buying into a false image. What have you gained if a person subscribes thinking they are getting one thing only to be disappointed when they receive something else entirely? Most likely only bad word of mouth, or worse, called a SPAMMER!

Today's Take Away: So if you own a dog, write about dogs and love it then do that but don't try to sell yourself as an expert on dogs, unless of course you are one.

So I have gone back through my posts and although I feel fairly confident that I have remained true to my subject matter and to myself, you might see it differently, and if so I want to know.

Question for You: How can an online image be used for smart marketing? Isn't this what celebrities do after all , sell their image? How can we take that branding process and apply it to our social media networks? More on that next week.

Karma for Bloggers

Help each other

The Golden Rule Still Applies...

I have always been a big believer in karma, the golden rule, or whatever you choose to call it. Basically I try hard to put forth the same kind of energy that I hope to receive back from the world around me. I know this may sound idealistic, but hey that's how I roll. I recently came across a similar viewpoint expressed very nicely on one of the blogs I follow, The Urban Muse . Her post really made sense to me about how karma relays to the online blogosphere. I read several blogs regularly and I always try to pass on the tips and tricks that they so eloquently put forth. So therefore, in that vein, here are a few recent posts that I have come across that may help you in your quest to become a better blogger, writer and social media participant.

How to Be Generous: A Guide for Social Media Brands -By Paul Wentworth at Masheable.com

This is great stuff for helping your organization or blog to really develop your brand using social media.Here is an excerpt:

"In the Wild West of social media, over-protection would seem to be a natural response when faced with loss of control over the conversation, and indeed of the firm’s intellectual property, and yet this is almost certainly the wrong response.

Those brands that take the counter-intuitive path of celebrating their customers (even when they are infringing IP) and of sharing more of themselves (even if that means giving away more of their IP) will be the ones who will win."

The next one, Understanding Social Media Guidelines for Employees - by Don Sears who writes at Careers, is probably one of the best short set of guidelines I have found for integrating social media into employee policy, which as we all are aware is moving to the forefront of many organization's lists of concerns. He says:

"Protecting business and fighting negative perception are important to every company. The last thing they want or need is for employees to be out their in the social media sphere of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or anywhere else spouting false information, making their work life too transparent or arguing with other employees publicly.

Two companies taking social media seriously are Intel and IBM. Intel is taking it so seriously it apparently has created a department dedicated to the practices of smart social media, says ZDNet's Jason Hiner.

From a human resources perspective, it's a really wise move to have clear guidelines and policies, and for most employees, it's good to know where your company stands on posting information--especially with issues of legality, copyright, company secrets and the like. I could very well see other companies borrowing from Intel's and IBM's social media guidelines."

Well that is all I have for now. Hope you found this useful and if so, please pass it on, as in essence, that is how karma works. What goes around, comes around, the good, the bad and the ugly.

xzjkqr7dev