As someone who is active in the social media arena, I have found participating in the social networks to be beneficial to both my personal life and my business. So much so that I have been espousing the benefits to several groups in San Antonio. Sharing the benefits of participating on sites like LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube to name a few. Most folks have heard of these sites, but don’t realize the importance of participation.
In the real world you develop a reputation for yourself or your business by what you do and how you interact within the community. The online world is no different. You develop a Social Media Reputation or gain “Geek Cred” by how you interact within the community, what you do and don’t do.
I discovered just how important this is when I met Byron Van Arsdale at the San Antonio Professional Coaches Association (SAPCA). He walked up to me and proceeded to tell me the story of how he had come to be there. He had received a flier from SAPCA announcing my presentation and was excited about the topic until he saw the word “guru”. (Note: He was refering to a story in the Express-News which had labeled me a “new media guru” for an article about Podcamp San Antonio: Numero Dos) His opinion of me turned south based on that one word. He reached out to his local network to solicite opinions about this so-called “guru”.
What happened next showed me just how important my network is even when I don’t know what is happening. Read his story to find out how it all turned out. Suffice it to say, the development of my “Geek Cred” and my network made all the difference.
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