Why I love Social Networking

I just realized today that I have been using Facebook only for about 9 months and Twitter for only about 3. So, how is it that I am totally and fully hooked? When I started thinking about it, I came up with a few good reasons.

1. It's free! Not much in life is free these days, in fact most costs continue to increase. Think about the postage stamp! But, online tools such as Twitter, Facebook, this blog and others are great ways to get my message to customers, family and friends. As far as time, it just doesn't take very long once you're used to it!

2. It's informative! When I tell people I tweet, I always hear, "Why would I want to hear all about what someone had for breakfast." Well, it's a lot more than that. Sure, there's the occasional non-essential piece of information. But, I now use Twitter for my morning and evening news. The best part is that I follow local and industry specific news sources. So, I don't get a lot of the negative stories we are all too used to in the newspaper and late night news.

3. Stay in touch! These days, everyone is on Facebook. While status updates and photos shouldn't decrease the amount of time we spend with loved ones either in person or on the phone, it is a great way to stay in touch with those you would only normally see at a family or class reunion.

4. Mobility - Now, with phones, digital cameras and even video cameras, we can all communicate no matter where we are in the country. I can take a photo of an Epcon Community in Tennessee and Tweet it right away so that my customers can see what I am seeing. In the same sense, I can feel like I'm a part of a seminar that may be occurring in another state.

One of these days, I want to have a Social Networking Class in our Clubhouse. We'll have Wi-Fi Access in the Clubhouse, so we can all get online and become each others "Fans," "Friends," and "Followers." It's just one more way we can all get connected and become a part of the community! In the meantime, click on one of the links to the right and become a Fan on Facebook or Follow my tweets on Twitter. Check it out and you'll see why I'm so hooked!