Blog Relations
Social Media Works…
I often hear something like “I would never go on Facebook” from my friends. For the more conservative types, Linkedin is just about the limit of their experimentation, because it looks professional (and is very boring). Here’s a couple of examples of where the sort of social media that you are not supposed to do at work as been working for me.
Example 1 – Flickr
For a long time I’ve been looking for an illustrator to work with us on Storynory. I’ve asked a few people if they knew of anyone, looked at a few portfolios on the web, even emailed one or two – but never really found anyone whose work that I really liked.
Then Sophie became a contact of Storynory’s flickr page. So I took a look at Sophie’s page on Flickr, and then her website, and realised that she’s a talented artist who wanted to do some children’s illustrations. I got the hint. And so I asked her to do some illustrations for us. And then, as she’s a graphic designer, she started to do some of that – - see the new banner and colour scheme of this blog. And soon we are working together on Blog Relations. She’s in Liverpool, I’m in London. We’ve never done anything so old fashioned as to meet or talk on the telephone. It doesn’t seem necessary.
Example 2 Facebook
Facebook has been great for me for catching up with old friends scattered around the world in places like Iraq (working for UN) and Israel (working for Reuters). But recently I found a very old friend nearer to home. I was looking at the corner of Facebook dedicated to my old prep school, and left a comment there. Soon I was in touch with Jeremy, somebody I haven’t seen since (I hate to admit this) the 1970s. We met up at the Royal Festival Hall’s bar near Waterloo. Jeremy, who always was better at maths than me, worked out that it had been 32 years since we had last seen each other. Neither of us had changed a bit of course. And what’s more, it looks like we might be working together on an interesting web project of his.
So next time somebody says “I would never put my mug on Facebook” I’m going some things to say back to them. Facebook etc is not only about socialising (see BBC Bosses should Embrace Facebook). I’m both finding work for myself, and giving work to others via social media. In fact, work and social life always were connected (the golf course, the Lloyds Coffee shop). I’m so enthused, I’ve even signed up for Twitter. See you there !
P.S Linkedin has never worked for me, because it’s so stiff and formal and false. Everyone is in it to show how successful they are – not really to meet up and chat, and see where it goes.
Hi Hugh, Thanks for the kind words. I’m already using that BBC article as the basis for a proposal to my boss in having a Facebook group for all the guys at the level below me (approx 120 globally). Perhaps 15% of them are known to be on Facebook already and they are scattered far and wide across the globe (eg I have 12 people from 6 countries reporting in to me, and I’ve only ever met 1 of the 12), and it would be a good way of getting them together. We are already looking at using SecondLife for delivering internal training. The Facebook age profile is heavily focussed on 15-30 age range and that’s why you and I were there, right
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I agree that LinkedIn is very different beast and is focussed on people’s employment and thus v.few under-21s on there. I find the benefits there to be more related to recruitment (I know a head-hunter who finds it very useful!) or for organisations of <10 employees because it gives them a much wider contact network to tap into. “It’s not _what_ you know, it’s _who_ you know and what _they_ know”. I sometimes wonder what my colleagues think of the range of contacts on my LinkedIn network!
I don’t think these two should be compared. LinkedIn is “business networking” and Facebook is “social networking” (along with Bebo, MySpace etc). If there is an overlap to be found, I guess you and I have found it!
Jeremy
Hi Jeremy, It’s true about the age ranges – most of the Facebook people who are talking about our old prep school were there more recently than the 1970s. The fact that we met up there shows that we are young at heart !
Linkedin probably is the place for recruitment… I suppose the fact that I am chronically unemployable points to the reason why I don’t find it so interesting !
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