So you’re LinkedIn, facebooking and tweeting. But are you moving those connections offline? That is, when you make solid, quality connections in any of the online platforms you’re in, are you moving your conversation into a one-on-one context? A phone call? Coffee? A mini-meetup or tweetup?

If not, then why not?

When I find myself talking about why I like spending time in the online socialsphere, I always like to make the point that, for me, it’s not about sitting in front of my computer for hours on end. It’s about meeting new people and building those relationships into a quality network.

Consider your ratio of social networking to social business.

I have to credit Peter Kim for raising my awareness of the term “social business,” and his point is not lost on me. If you’ve ever had to explain “social media” to a C-level executive, I’d highly recommend the “social business” positioning. Of course I’m not saying you need to be all business all the time, but the fact is many of us have integrated social media into our workdays. We learn here. We share here. We connect here. Sure, I’m entertained in and by the process, but I also have a job to do, clients to serve and projects to complete. So I take the time I spend on the socialwebs somewhat seriously.

What’s more personal than talking or meeting offline?

Time is money. So I do my very best to put my money (and my time) where my mouth is. (Literally.) That means I want to talk with you offline. Sometimes we’ll connect on a business level and sometimes on a personal level. I’m happy either way. This post is NOT about looking at everyone with “what-can-you-do-for-me?” eyes. It’s about further personalizing your engagement, your conversations and your network. Or, as Jacob Morgan puts it, “You ARE a social network.”

Call or meet a virtual contact today. If you enjoy your time talking with people online, imagine the reward of talking with those same people offline. Go ahead, do it.  I triple dog dare you.

And now the TRANSPARENCY DISCLAIMER: I’m behind on my calls, (for obvious reasons), but I look very forward to speaking with @JoshSmith12 @ariherzog @CharityHisle @bruceyang @ApothecaryJeri @peabodytweets @mrshadeed @cirqueldesign @JohnSheridan and @GusSent. Talk to you all soon. (Well, as soon as I can!)

Tags: LinkedIn, Networking, social business, Tweetup, Twitter for Business

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 26th, 2009 at 10:32 am and is filed under LinkedIn, MarketSmart, Networking, Small Business, Social Media, Time, TwitterSmart. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.