Why Social Media Is Important

In celebration of Social Media Day, I wanted to take a few minutes to write briefly about why social media is so important and why I'm crazy about it.

If you are company or brand, you are being talked about on social media even if you are not on it. People are tweeting and talking on Facebook about where they are eating, shopping and vacationing. They are also complaining about their customer service at the local deli, bashing the train system which made them late for work and the hotel they stayed at with a stinky room. It's better to be able to see these comments and respond to them in the same public way they are writing about you.

Social media connects people, places and events. It also publicizes them. I am proof of that. I had never heard of BlogPaws, the first conference for pet writers and bloggers until someone retweeted a contest to win free registration to the event. I quickly looked it up on my Blackberry to see what the event was about, retweeted the information, and actually won the registration. BlogPaws changed my career and focus in life, and if it weren't for seeing the tweet about it, I would've missed out on a lot. And, from an event perspective, they would've missed out on a potential attendee.

Businesses can reach an unmeasurable amount of people. Taking out an ad in the local paper, or the New York Times is still a smart idea, but being on social media and promoting your product on a continuous basis is a must. You never know who will see your tweets!

I attended the Fancy Food Show in New York City yesterday and I tried to tweet about many of the booths we were visiting - those companies got a lot of free press from those tweets, especially when they were also on twitter, because I used their twitter handle in the tweet.

Social media can also connect people from around the world for a common cause. I've met amazing people who I not only consider "followers" but many have become friends because we share a common bond of wanting to make the world a better place for animals and their owners.

So, if you are not on any type of social media, today -- Social Media Day -- is the best time to do it. And, you can find me on Facebook, Twitter (@mmaskaly @toby_pup @theadkchick), LinkedIn and Foursquare.

Comments

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