We have our annual company holiday party today, with “Secret Santa” being the highlight of the event. For the record, I’ve never been a big Secret Santa fan. For me, it’s more fun – and easier – to do a Yankee Swap – you don’t have to know anything about the person who gets your gift. You don’t have to think about it, you just have to get a gift, wrap it (or if you are like me, stick it in one of those gift bags) and Voila! Done!

To me, social media can be like a Yankee Swap. You don’t have to have a relationship with someone you call a friend on Facebook or follow on Twitter. You can just write what you want, post it out there and Voila! You’re doing social media!

Of course, that’s not the way it is meant to be…social media is supposed to be more like a Secret Santa. While you may never meet a person, you are supposed to know enough about them to be able to give them meaningful dialog. And vice versa. But that’s the trick. How many people take the time, for example, to look at who is following them on Twitter to see if it makes sense that you are connected? Too often, it becomes a Yankee Swap scenario…no real interest in a relationship, just as long as what I say gets out.

So while I still like a good Yankee Swap – nothing like the general hilarity and mayhem that ensues over that one sought-after gift, or the desire to get rid of that scented bath soap – I see the social media side to Secret Santa…and I like it.

Happy Holidays!

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

The web never forgets.

Between Google, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and now Google Dashboard, I can see my life in writing for the past several years (as long as I’ve had an account on each).

Is it invasive that there is a record of me searching for directions to a restaurant in Marblehead back in May 2008, according to Google? Or that I my posts to Facebook friends dating to 2006 are sitting on a Facebook server in Silicon Valley somewhere? Or that Gmail provides me with online ads based on a demographic profile it has gleaned from my private emails? Or that LinkedIn and Facebook routinely suggest the names of people they recommend I contact, based solely on what these social networks already know about me?

Yes, and no. From the start, I made the choice to use the web, to connect with other people, to exchange ideas, and sometimes just to have fun. Reading my chronological web trail is like flipping through a diary. These records remind me of past experiences, past ideas and of who I was then. I’m the one who published the content — and I continue to put myself out there. In the end, I am in control of, and responsible for, the message.

Is it scary? Sometimes. Google knows what time of day I look up my client coverage scans, what I read on blogs, what my private emails contain and what searches I’ve conducted. That’s a lot to know about someone. Cookies allow advertisers and marketers to track the websites that you visit. How secure is the data? In 2006, 36 million member AOL search queries were published on the web in a massive security breach. What’s going to stop something like that from happening in the future?

I became aware recently that someone I know in real life has been keeping regular tabs on me via Twitter without making any actual contact with me. My gut reaction surprised me. It felt like some sort of invasion of privacy. But in the end I realized that I made the situation possible. I’m the one who posts the content about my life, after all. If that’s how someone wants to keep up with me, that’s their decision, not mine.

Privacy is a concern, but it’s not going to keep me from continuing to use social networks, Google search, Gmail, and other web services. In these busy, multitasking times, it may be the most efficient way to keeping a diary. I’ve willingly engaged in an online public conversation, and it’s been worth it. I just hope that the online communications and activities we assume to be private are secure – and remain that way.

Technorati Tags: Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Social Networks, Twitter

The following video, “Social Media Revolution,” does an excellent job of capturing why social media is such a force for businesses today and why companies should take notice. Social media is changing the way advertisers, marketers, public relations professionals and businesses reach their target audiences. The research and predictions outlined here provide a persuasive argument for using social media strategically as part of your outreach efforts.

Thanks to Socialnomics for putting this together.

What are your thoughts about this video? What do you think of social media and the latest trends? How will social media affect your life in the future?

Technorati Tags: Social Media, social media revolution, Social Networks, statistics, video