Comments on: Dinosaurs Do Dance on the Social Networking Stage

By: CYTaylor

CYTaylor — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 17:45:55 +0000

@Joanna: Glad to see you’re coming around. I know YOUR STORY about — and reluctance to embrace — wireless devices all too well but I am happy to hear you are giving it some consideration. However, my advice to you is similar to what I am proposing to dinosaur #2: embrace only those social networking tools that make sense for you and help to manage your online presence.

As for Blackberry vs. iPhone: I’m partial to the iPhone but then you also know MY STORY about my experience with what I call ‘the ultimate (for now), in handheld computers.’ LOL!

Thanks for the comment.

By: Joanna Jenkins

Joanna Jenkins — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 23:40:18 +0000

My name is Joanna and I am a Dinosaur. But I’m getting close….

When I retired 2+ years ago I was so darn happy to disconnect from all my wireless devices that I swore I would never have a Blackberry again– Of course that was before Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin users were in the zillions. I’m surprised at how out of the loop I’ve become and how often I’m asked “why???” I don’t utilize them.

So now I’m comparison shopping Blackberry vs iPhone and will get back in the game soon. Your article gave me an extra nudge.

Thanks,
jj

By: CYTaylor

CYTaylor — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 01:14:34 +0000

You are absolutely right J. Paul. Even with all the evidence that keeps surfacing about the successes of social media, it still cannot alleviate the fear that some people (dinosaurs) have about it.

It reminds me a lot of the stories I heard about the emergence of television and radio many years ago. Neither were respected as a viable source of communications. The Internet went through similar growing pains. And now social media has to ‘grow up’ in order to gain wider acceptance.

Timing is everything.

By: J. Paul Duplantis

J. Paul Duplantis — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 23:36:27 +0000

I see it every day Cathy. It is still amazingly difficult to get people to see the value of having a website, much less with updated content, much less to use social media. But I will say that I am seeing an increased awareness of social media. The standard argument is “Looks fun but I don’t have the time”. Which is a great argument nonetheless irrelevant when their competitor is finding the time.

The behavior of the consumer is changing. Business owners who choose to not change with them will ultimately pay the price. Those who use social media as a crutch or escape will reap what they sow. Those who use social media as a dynamic tool to build on their existing skills and tools can only benefit.