What is the point of social media? To advertise your business? Talk to your friends? Reach the top of Google?  Yes, yes, and yes.  But there really is so much more to it.  The point of social media is to connect.  Connect on some level, whether that may be talking to your old high school friends, networking with like minded people in your city or your office, or engaging your audience on your Facebook business page.  People are still people and people want to talk to each other.  When it comes to using social media for business, connecting with people is key.

I spoke with a good friend of mine today, Mark, who told me about a recent meeting he went to called a “TweetUp”.  This was basically a networking meeting for Twitter followers (friends, tweeps, twibes, whatever you want to call them) to get together and discover who is behind the Avatar.  I personally found this to be a brilliant concept!  Most of us out there have friends on Facebook and Twitter who we really don’t know but maybe would like to get to know better or maybe we already have developed a relationship with this person and we want to meet face to face. (And no, I’m not talking about dating).  Think about it in a business sense…Wouldn’t you really like to know who is the “voice and face” behind your favorite business page?

As a business owner, we have the opportunity to be that transparent.  We have the opportunity to connect with our fans, followers, and customers in a way never before!  We have the opportunity to provide the kind of customer experience that we all want from other businesses.

Talk to your followers. Engage your audience. Listen to their wants and needs. Create an emotional connection.  Build relationships.

Don’t hide behind the avatar.  You created this business and gained those customers…now go talk to them!

Will The Real You Please Stand Up?

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