Just like Soylent Green, Social Media is People

Switchboard Operator 1916
Photographer: Rosenfeld and Sons

As our hero discovers, much to his dismay and disgust, the food being sold and rationed  is made from people.

“Listen to me! You’ve got to tell them, Soylent Green is people!”

Well, so is social media.

Yes, Soylent Green may be science fiction, but I want to echo his desperate cry.

“Listen to me! You’ve got to tell them, social media is people!”

Pressing a few buttons a couple times a day doesn’t necessarily mean that you have connected with people.  The connection usually results in a conversation. We call that engagement.

We’re not stupid. Our followers are not stupid, either.  We know that you’ve scheduled all of your tweets and we know you “don’t have time.”  But how do you think that makes us feel?

There are "real" people at the other end of the "line." Those people deserve to be treated with respect.—
Riggins Construction (@RigginsConst) April 16, 2012

Have you ever considered how your message is being perceived?

Scott Stratten, in “Mannequin Networking: Why Twitter Automation is Bad,” gives an analogy that rings true.

Absent tweeting is dictation, not engagement. Lecturing, not listening.

Automating tweets is like sending a mannequin to a networking event. Stick a post-it note on it, and roll it in, to multiple events around the world! Think of all the Chamber of Commerce mixers you could cover! Different time zones! Let the relationships winfall begin!!! Boooyaa!!!

Why am I so passionate about this? Why do I rant about people trying to automate their engagement? Why do I hate auto DMs? Why do I preach against treating Twitter like Sea Monkeys?

It’s simple.  I’ve put my heart and soul into this account.

I love technology and the fact that it breaks down the traditional barriers of time and geography that hinder people from meeting, connecting, and engaging with one another.

I love my job and the company I work for. I want you to fall in love with Riggins Construction as I have.  I want to learn from you and I want to laugh with you.

There are real people at the end of that social media connection.  A real person is looking at your tweets.  A human being is reading your Facebook update.

“It’s dehumanizing to have thousands of people passing through our computer screens.  So we do things we would never do if those people were sitting next to us.”  ~ Derek Sivers

Don’t your twitter followers deserve your best?  Let me put it another way:  If you met one of your followers in person, would you be proud of your Twitter stream?

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• KissMetrics:  An Open Letter to Marketers Who Abuse Social Media for Selfish Gain

Disclaimer:  I did a google search of my blog title.  It may have been overdone.  I apologize in advance.

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