This Daily Axioms post is courtesy of Nicholas G. Porter, a young and upcoming PR pro and social media junkie.Today for lunch, I had a cheese sandwich, celery sticks and a bottle of Dasani water. Did I just commit a twitter faux pas?
According to Shel Israel, author of Twitterville: How Businesses Can Thrive in the New Global Neighborhoods,” I did not. Israel explains:
“…Twitter lets people behave online more closely to how we behave in real life than anything that ever preceded it in history. It's kind of past now, but there was this whole wave of admonition of nobody cares what you had for lunch, and to be honest that's absolutely false. If I said that I was in a restaurant in Atlanta, [Georgia,] you'd say, "Oh, where did you go? You didn't by chance try the..." and we have a conversation that way. We care about the details of life. When you bring this into business, I don't think many members of your audience ever bought or sold anything from a conversation that starts with, "Are you going to buy something?" It begins with small talk."
While I agree that Twitter allows a new kind of conversation in business, I disagree with the notion that the Social Media Elite is done holding the “what I just had for lunch” tweet in disdain. This is because like many, they would like to see more people using Twitter to spread useful information instead of pointless babble. However, you have to admit that Israel makes an excellent point about consumer relations and that acting natural is key. So maybe sharing what you had for lunch shouldn’t automatically delegate you to the 9th ring of social media hell?
After all, the social media experts all say the same thing; Twitter and social media does not work unless you are honest, friendly and let your personality shine through. The details of our lives do matter. So is it possible that the SM Elite have been talking out of both sides of their mouths?
What do you think? In the meantime, here is what I’m having for dinner…