What are your thoughts about connecting with folks on more than one social media site?
For example, do you find it beneficial for your Twitter connections to also be your LinkedIn connections?
In large part, what I decide to do depends on how I met the person in the first place. If our initial cyberspace conversation was warm and inviting, then I am more apt to respond positively to a “let’s do Pinterest too!” suggestion.
In the last few weeks I have met two women through Twitter: Marty Diamond of Diamond Website Conversion and Kim Starr of Starry Nights Social Media.
Find out more about Marty at http://www.diamondwebsiteconversion.com/
Find out more about Kim at https://www.facebook.com/StarryNightSocialMedia
Both sought me out and then followed up in very positive ways. It felt very comfortable to expand our relationship to LinkedIn and to like each other’s Facebook pages. I am also connected with Marty on Pinterest.
Already I have spoken by phone with Marty, who could be a great strategic partner for me and is already a social media cheerleader for me and my business.
Kim is someone I hope to speak with by phone sometime soon, as our businesses are very similar, though she is more established and serves a slightly different niche. She too might become a strategic partner and has already been very supportive of what I do.
These relationships, though fledgling, have evolved very comfortably and naturally in the short time I have known these women.
I found it ironic that just as I was thinking of writing this post about connecting across different social media sites, I would get the following emails today from two men who are LinkedIn connections of mine.
How would you respond to the following requests?
A. Please add me on Facebook and follow me on Twitter (he provided his Twitter handle). We may be able to do business together.
B. I am glad you’re handling us Boomers. Hopefully someday I’ll make it out to Denver & meet you in person. If you’re on the other social channels please send me your links so I can connect. Have a great day.
My intuitive reaction, even before I went back to the profiles of these two people, was to ignore request A. and to positively respond to request B.
Why? Requestor B honored me for the type of business I had created. Second, he referenced where I live, so he had been paying attention to that part of my life too. Third, he asked me to send me my links so that he can connect, not just saying – how about following me, which was the approach of Requestor A.
To me, there can be a tremendous value in getting to see a social media connection in different social media worlds. You learn more about different aspects of their business and about them as a person.
Yet, for me to want to connect with someone beyond one platform, I want that person to take a personalized and friendly approach to making that suggestion to broaden our social media relationship.
What are your thoughts on the approach to use when inviting people to connect on additional social media sites?
Joyce Feustel, Founder of Boomers’ Social Media Tutor, helps people relatively new to social media to become more effective and comfortable in their use of this medium. Find her at www.boomerssocialmediatutor.com
Now that the sheer novelty of social networking has worn off a bit, I have stopped focusing so much on quantity (e.g., number of fans and followers) and more on quality.
My strategic focus for 2013 is “engagement.” To me, that means meaningful exchanges with those in my network. It will definitely take some time on my part, but anything worth having, is worth some effort. We’ve all heard that “you get out of it what you put into it,” and what I want out of social networking is good relationships with smart and interesting people.
And to weigh in on the two requests you received, my initial reaction was the same as yours. The first request seems to lack any personal touch whatsoever; the second definitely feels warmer and more genuine.
Thanks so much for your point about meaningful engagement, Debi. I agree with you. Although I must admit it can feed my ego when people follow me on Twitter or ask me to connect on LinkedIn. I do my best to assess each possible connection to see if it is mutually beneficial for me and the other person to connect.
Thanks so much for the mention in your blog. I agree with Debi – numbers (although impressive) do not accurately measure your actual influence or true reach. We’re all more comfortable referring business to people we know, like and trust. And we’re all more comfortable asking colleagues for referrals when we need a service or product -rather than doing a Google search. What makes social media so amazing is that your colleagues are no longer local – they can be anywhere in the world.
Marty, I am happy to include you in my blog. I agree entirely with your point about preferring to business with people we know , like and trust. And how sweet with social media that those folks can be located anywhere.