“You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it”. I was talking to a friend about dancing… but trite as this may sound, it’s entirely true for social media too.
I can’t tell you how many people have told me they finally “got” Twitter after meeting someone in person for the first time that they had only conversed with online – they understood the value after making a real-life, meaningful connection.
Who recognizes this conversation?
“Hey are you at this conference too? Where are you sitting?”
“Hi! Yes! Third row left side – come find me, I’ll introduce you to some people!”
And then you slightly nervously wander over only to find that the person you’ve only spoken to online actually looks EXACTLY like their avatar and you recognize them instantly, like you’ve known each other for a while. And you grin to each other and you think, wow, this is really really awesome.
Who recognizes that rush of pleasure and gratitude when someone spontaneously recommends you on LinkedIn? Who recognizes that moment of excitement when looking up some miscellaneous event on Facebook – and realizing you know 15 people who are going to attend – so you instantly click “YES I’m coming”?
Here’s another great example from last week. Nick Barron, social media manager at NAHB, leaves a comment on this blog. I follow him on Twitter, he follows me back. Lindy and I go for a drink at Palette on 15th St; as we walk in I realize we’re across the street from the NAHB building. I send Nick a tweet saying “Hey we’re downstairs having a drink, do you have 10 minutes to pop over?” He tweets me back “Sure! Be down in a bit! I’ll be tall blondish guy in black coat who needs a haircut.” LOL! And bam – new friends.
This happens all the time. All the time!
Social media is all about those personal connections. Whether in a social setting or professional one, it’s about those touchpoints of conversation that means one person gets to know another, online at first but more often in real life too. Through personal connections, you build relationships; through relationships, you build community; and only through community can you turn on the word of mouth engine that leads to business value.
You don’t need to “get it”. You don’t need to learn tricks of the trade (at least not at first). You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it. You just need to step on that dancefloor and see what happens when the music starts.
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19 responses to "You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it"
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You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://ff.im/-bSP3j
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RT @maddiegrant: You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://ff.im/-bSP3j [great piece on getting the socmed rhythm]
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You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://bit.ly/5jmv2T
#socialfish
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You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://bit.ly/6HVOBZ
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You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://j.mp/5wjTg5
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RT @maddiegrant: You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://j.mp/5wjTg5 <awesome post>
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You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://bit.ly/5jmv2T
#socialmedia
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Shake that virtual booty! – "You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it" (by @maddiegrant) http://ow.ly/ETG3
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RT @SocialFishFood You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it — SocialFish http://bit.ly/5r2uq6
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Maddie, having experienced dance and social media, I would say that it’s once you’ve got the moves down really well, that’s when you can feel it. It seems you’re really good at social networking both online and off and that allows things to happen the way you describe. It’s probably intuitive to you right now. Just like someone who knows dance moves down really well, they can start to flow and pay more attention to the music – the moves have become intuitive to them. People like myself have to work really hard at getting to know people and networking. And even though I’ve been doing outreach to the public for a couple of years, since I’m still learning those moves, it’s going to be harder for me to have things flow like they do for you.
hey @maddiegrant has moves!! You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it – http://bit.ly/6kUZL9
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Social media & what it leads to, good stuff by @maddiegrant: You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it – http://bit.ly/4rum96
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Hi Ben, I hear what you’re saying! But I think this is exactly why social media is just like a dance floor. There are all kinds of people on there… And yes, I might be the one who’s getting my groove on front and center on the stage (I used to be found on a podium somewhere in my younger days
– and I also used to be the kind of person who would drag all her friends on to the dance floor to get the party started. But there are also all those people who prefer to stand on the side, slightly in the dark, tapping their feet and nursing a beer until they get the urge to dance a bit once the floor is full. There are the ones who can’t stay still in one place, who keep switching from the upstairs bar to the downstairs one. There are those who hang out by the balcony people-watching. There are those who get very reluctantly dragged on to the dance floor by a friend after much persuasion… only to show off some brilliant moves no-one knew they had. There are the ones who dance energetically but stay off the dance floor near the tables where they are in easy reach of their drinks. There are those who don’t actually dance at all… but chat with their friends and are the last to leave when the lights go up.
I guess my point is it doesn’t matter, there’s a place for everyone.
Maddie, I enjoyed your post and also appreciate Ben’s perspective. I have, at different times in my life, been the guy on stage, the guy in the corner, and the guy who refused to even go to the dance. There will always be trepidation in all things new (and old) but I think its important that we always get on the floor. Like you said in your response to Ben’s post, there will always be a place for everyone to participate and perhaps just as important is the fact that social media allows EVERYONE to enter the dance, regardless of how aggressively or passively they choose to participate. They can join at their own pace without being concerned about the night ending too early. There is no pressure to understand all things at once and although the tools may change, our approach to relationship building will be forever different.
You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://is.gd/52ipe
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You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it http://is.gd/52ipe (via @zyOzyfounder)
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RT @maddiegrant: You don’t need moves, you just need to feel it — SocialFish http://bit.ly/6kUZL9 <awesome>
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