Two recent articles have got me thinking:

Twitter Leads to Narcissism, an article by Edward Barrera which appeared on ADOTAS, and a recent blog post by Jeremiah Owyang called Expulsion of the Social Media “Gurus” – Impacts of the Recession.

I don’t agree at all with Susan Greenfield, the neuroscientist quoted in the ADOTAS article who claims that social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter “shorten attention spans, encourage instant gratification and make young people more self-centered.” But the word ‘narcissism’ certainly gets me thinking when it comes to social media.

Jeremiah Owyang’s blog post makes a very pointed argument that if you’re a self-proclaimed social media guru who is focused more on your own reputation than delivering valuable information and measurable results – your days are numbered, especially with the recession we’re in the middle of right now. That I agree with wholeheartedly.

As for me, I’m a true believer in social media for businesses, but it took me some time to get here. I have a skeptical streak. I tend to hang back to see how things work before diving in, but I’m in now and I see the potential.

But there’s one area where I remain skeptical and frankly annoyed – that sense of ‘popularity,’ who’s ‘in’ versus who’s ‘out,’ and the self referential patting on the back that goes on with individuals and among followers. That’s high school and in professional circles, I thought that was over a long time ago – but I guess that mentality still persists wherever you go.

Admittedly, the ego trip can be all too tempting. We’re talking about self-publishing after all, and there’s no denying the thrill of seeing your own words on the screen getting shared and linked to and retweeted. And to have a forum for your ideas and viewpoints – what PR or marketing professional wouldn’t want that? But if you’re using social media on behalf of your clients or a business, it’s best to check your ego and personal brand at the door and focus on client needs and getting results.

Certainly, we all earn our stripes as armchair experts in the industries and markets we follow for our clients, and part of relationship building is demonstrating that you get it. But if you’re talking more about yourself and your personal viewpoints rather than providing valuable information to your networks and followers, then maybe you’re cut out to be a independent consultant or social media “guru” rather than a PR ‘hack’ or marketing exec.

And even then, I agree with Jeremiah Owyang that “times are different now, with budgets under scrutiny, layoffs at hand, companies don’t have time for gurus filled with opinion, over-used case studies and empty books.”

We’d love to hear your thoughts on these viewpoints.

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Technorati Tags: ADOTAS, Facebook, Jeremiah Owyang, PR, Social Media, Twitter

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I recently went to the movies to see the chick flick “He’s Just Not That Into You.” The movie, which is about men and women and the relationship/dating world, had one scene that left me thinking about social media, technology and public relations.

In the scene, Drew Barrymore explains all of the different ways she and a man are trying to reach each other. It started with a message left on her work voicemail telling her to call him at home, then he emailed her blackberry, which made her text to his cell, which he then emailed to her home email. You get the picture.

Is this an accurate portrayal of how “connected” we are these days? And how connected is that, exactly? The question is, are we really as connected as we think are, given the multiple ways that are available to reach out and be reached?

Take for an example, a simple business card or email signature. The person’s email address (sometimes multiple addresses), work phone number, cell phone number and home phone number are listed — as well as twitter name, screen name, skype name, etc. With all of this contact information, sometimes it’s difficult to figure out which is the best — or even appropriate — way to reach somebody.

For PR professionals, there is a need to always be reachable. You don’t want to miss out on a reporter calling about a story for your client or your client needing your services in a time of crisis, so it’s better to err on the side of caution and provide as much contact information as you can. But when does it become overkill? And what exactly are you suppose to do with all of those extra lines of communication? When is appropriate to call which number or to send a message to which email account or post on which blog? And how much time will it take to figure it out?

Are we just too connected?

With the rapidly developing social networks and other means of communications, what is the way you prefer to be contacted by your peers?

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Technorati Tags: movies, networking, relations, Social Media, technology

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My car’s clutch went on me the other day, and it made me think about PR.

I grew up in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, during the tail-end of the Steel City’s reign as one of the most polluted cities in the United States – and as a young boy developed a peculiar fondness for the odor of industrial pollution.

About a week ago I smelled something while driving to work – a faint aroma both metallic and burning — that sent me mystically back to my boyhood days in Pittsburgh, in the time-warping way that smells often do. I think I actually smiled at the thought of it.

It’s true that my car’s power and shifting had changed over the past few days, weeks, or months. I couldn’t remember how long it had been since the changes had started, or how the issues had progressed. I put it all down to the cold weather.

I didn’t connect the smell with the power and shifting until plumes of acrid smoke filled the intersection near our office on Commerce Way last Tuesday.

I’ve been around the block. I’ve seen clutches go out more than once. But this is the point: The clutch had been staring me in the face the whole time and I didn’t even see it.

With public relations it’s also easy to get used to a subtle reduction in performance that, over time, adds up to a drastic and even frightening breakdown in visibility and influence. No search results in Google News. No media releases for months, no product announcements, no survey results, no executive interviews, no podcasts, no analyst meetings. No awards.

The sound of crickets chirping is nice on vacation. But it’s not what you want to hear when it comes to your company’s buzz. Listen hard. What do you hear?

Remain calm. There is no need to panic. My advice for worried marketing folks? Pop the hood of your organization now. Use a hybrid mix of social media tools and traditional PR to get your name back in the conversations that matter. Recession? Who cares. Life – and buzz – go on.

And besides, sitting on your PR strategy without doing anything will propel you down a shame spiral of coulda-shoulda-woulda’s that even primal scream therapy won’t cure.

Whatever you do, please be proactive. And remember that Topaz is always here to help.

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Technorati Tags: PR, public relations, Social Media, tech PR, Topaz Partners

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