Learning is a big part of the exploding online social networking surge. How big is online social networking? Forrester Research has just published findings that show a surge from 57% of online adults participating in 2007 to 75% in 2008. If you’re not in on the surge personally (Myspace, Facebook, YouTube communities, Twitter, Biznik etc.) you might not grasp how to leverage the surge professionally. Does your organization promote peer-to-peer learning through blogging, bulletin boards, creation of short videos, narrated PowerPoint flash presentations? If not, maybe it’s time for some R&D.
Some steps:
1. Set a personal goal of establishing trial “memberships” in 3 to 5 social networking spaces over the next few months.
2. Try searching for friends. Career networking sites like LinkedIn have made this easy, and networks like Facebook make it even easier.
3. Find someone among your friends (or your teenage offspring) who’ll sit by your side and show you some tricks. Personalize your identity with photos. Try uploading a short video. If a few things blow up on the launch pad, chalk it up to necessary research costs.
4. Look how organizations are representing themselves in online communities. Got a favorite Nascar driver? Political candidate? Cellular provider? How do they represent the brand in social networking sites?
5. Brainstorm ten or twenty creative ideas for rolling out your online presence. Then take a look at this article in Advertising Age that talks about brands like Dell and Zappos online social networking presence.
Are we getting outside our comfort zone yet? Well good!
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