What is the value of social media?
Posted By: Brian Collie
In: General
Date: Mon, Mar 1st 2010 8:25 am
As I am sure many of you already know, our firm has recently “gone live” with the use of social media to stay connected to our clients. We currently have a Facebook Fan Page, LinkedIn Company Profile, and Twitter account. While some may question the business utility and effectiveness of social media in staying connected with existing clients and potentially connecting with new ones, a recent story from a good friend of mine confirmed the potential value in using social media properly.
This friend is a former athlete at a well-known private university in North Carolina, and now works here in Charleston for a large consulting firm based in Charlotte. We were discussing the potential benefits of using the popular business network tool LinkedIn, and he told me that he landed a meeting with a potential top client for his firm through a connection made through LinkedIn. Astonished, I asked him how the meeting materialized. He said that he connected with a top manager at the particular company by finding a link between himself and that manager. They both played college sports at schools in North Carolina. Through that commonality, he was able to build a rapport with this individual. And the end result of this connection, a potential big fish client for his consulting firm.
The moral of the story is this. While social and business media tools should never replace good old-fashioned personal contact, there is undeniable evidence that when used properly, they can be a starting point for broadening your professional network. Happy hunting.