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Social Threads

Even in the tech-savvy CEDIA channel, it can be hard to keep up with all of the technology changes going on around us. A new social media application seems to crop up every day, yet most of us don’t have the time to keep up with “old” standbys like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Even in the tech-savvy CEDIA channel, it can be hard to keep up with all of the technology changes going on around us. A new social media application seems to crop up every day, yet most of us don’t have the time to keep up with “old” standbys like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Our so-called new economic reality has left most us doing jobs once held by several people, and yet we also are expected to be more “connected” than ever before. Our colleagues, staff, clients, and family expect us to be digitally accessible practically 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If we happen to miss what Tiger said during his press conference or how John Mayer put his foot in his mouth (again), then we are considered out of touch.

Like most things trendy, I initially took the stance that social media was like the modern equivalent of the CB Radio. I wondered if it might just be a fad that would briefly take the country by storm, only to die off later when the novelty had worn off. Or maybe it would be like the telegraph systems in early 1900s that were such a craze at first that ocean liner passengers paid to send knock-knock jokes just so they could show off for their family and friends back on shore.

In the accelerated timeline of modern technology, however, I evolved from a social media naysayer to one of its advocates in only a few short months. While I now see Facebook as a great way to keep up with mostly family and friends, I consider both Twitter and LinkedIn to be better business communication tools.

Both applications help me stay connected with Residential Systems readers in a more direct, everyday way. While we use Twitter to announce when our daily news headlines are live at the website, but that’s just the beginning. We also point to cool industry stuff around the web, give you up-to-the-second news reports from events like CEDIA Management Conference and manufacturer events, and tell you about stories that we are developing.

Especially via LinkedIn, we also seek potential interviewees for articles (if you want to get into the pages of Resi, then this is a great “in,” no pun intended), chat a bit about trends in the business, and even share the occasional joke.

For instance, as I was editing one of this month’s magazine columns (from new contributor Dave Chace) I couldn’t wait to share one of his observations about the over-use of jargon in technology industries like ours. I posted his quote on our Residential Systems LinkedIn group and we got a nice little conversation going about it over the span of a few days. Within the pages of this month’s issue, there also are articles in which I encourage readers to post comments or ideas for us via LinkedIn.

So if you haven’t already done so, please join us via Twitter (search for resisys) and LinkedIn (search for my name and I’ll add you to the RS group). I think you will find that social media can serve as an effective communication tool in your already busy lives, even if you’re still using an old CB radio in your 1979 Camaro.

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