The Art of Being Social

When I was asked to be a part of an exciting, new adventure which would be called Connect360 MultiMedia and that said new adventure would give all of its valued employees the chance and freedom to contribute freely and to always practice creativity, I jumped at the opportunity.

As an industry, we are learning to color outside of the lines in order to expand our ways of thinking which will ultimately lead to more creativity for our clients and their campaigns. I remember the days when even internally it was viewed as scary by some to put our companies out there on social media. Should we have a Facebook page? And if we do, do we only post pre-approved content? And what about Twitter? Is this safe?

As part of a marketing team launching Connect360 one of the first things we were asked to do was to set up Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin channels. Why? Because that is what one does nowadays when he or she is launching a new company. Of course! I cannot tell you how happy this made me feel. Not because setting up social media accounts for your firm is something that is new, it is not a new concept in the least, but because I reflected back to 6 or so years ago when this concept was something most companies would have meetings upon meetings weighing the pros and cons and convincing upper management about. And now here we are: This practice is within the top 5 bullets of launching a new company 101. The days of debating whether or not to integrate social media marketing into your launch plans are long gone and if your company is anything like ours we find ourselves obsessively checking to see who is saying hi, liking a picture, or commenting on an article we post.

And this includes everybody! Even our president!

One of the things I love about C360 is the different generations we span across. Each generation has something to teach the other – whether we have been in the industry for over 20 years or for 3 years. We teach and blend our thoughts and ideas together to create magic. The “many generations of social” as I like to think of it teaches each of us how to interact. Are you more comfortable with in-person or phone interactions, or do you feel a bit more safe behind that social media account? The goal is for everyone to feel comfortable with every way of communication – in person, on the phone, in email and through social media. Each generation has their own comfort levels and over the years of being in this industry I have seen us all teach one another the art of being social across each avenue from traditional ways to the newer and digital ways of communication. Through it all the one important communication style that spans every generation and every communication avenue at C360 boils down to one, simple word: Respect. As long as you practice respect, nothing is scary.

As Bob Dylan sings, “You better start swimmin’ or you’ll sink like a stone. For the times they are a-changin.”

How have you seen your company’s social media presence evolve over the years? Are you finding upper management has become more accepting and letting your freedom fly in this regard? We’d love to hear how you have seen this practice change.

And please say hi to us on Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin. Show us new (but not so new) kids some love.