Virtually Connecting to Reality

Everywhere we go and everywhere we look, it seems everyone has a cell phone, an iPad, or some other gadget that allows them to stay connected with friends and family. Even younger kids who are in grade school have a cell phone with them in class.

Technology consumes us in our daily lives. We welcome it with open arms, and we are so attached to it, we wouldn’t know what to do if it was suddenly taken away from us. Various forms of technology are used all over the world to communicate, whether it’s by sending an email, making a phone call, or doing Face Time on their Apple device. The Business section of huffingtonpost.com talks about social media trends and why people and businesses alike should both be using it for business and personal use. Mediabistro.com has an article showing their readers what media trends are shaping 2014.

Social Media is defined by Wikipedia as “the interaction among people in which they create share or exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks.” Social media apps and websites can be accessed virtually through devices such as laptops, smart phones, and iPads, as long as that device has Wi-Fi capabilities.

Connecting With People Online

Facebook allows us to create windows into our lives through a virtual community. People post pictures of themselves, their families, their friends, their pets, and yes, even their food. Instead of mailing out invites to parties, people can create and customize an invitation for any number of events, and then send invites to others on their friends list.

Twitter allows friends to stay in touch by sending and reading short text messages referred to as tweets. They can then re-tweet their friend’s messages. Twitter also allows you to create circles of friends by means of the “follow” option. Anyone following you can see your tweet, and respond back and/or re-tweet so people following them can also read it.

[p2p type=”slug” value=”step-step-guide-creating-linkedin-page-business”]LinkedIn[/p2p] is a more professional use of Social Media. Companies can create a profile explaining what their business is and where they are located. They can post job openings and list criteria, and also list specific skill sets in potential employees they are looking for. Job seekers can also create profiles and list their job history, upload resumes and also list their skills and accomplishments. Companies can then search profiles and outreach to a specific people they feel would be a great fit for their companies goals.

Get With the Times and Stay Connected

[p2p type=”slug” value=”tips-on-how-social-media-can-help-your-business”]Social media[/p2p] sites are becoming more and more popular among businesses. Posting a job opening online, rather than in a newspaper on the radio is cheaper for businesses. They can post exactly what they want you to read, and edit that post whenever they want. They aren’t restricted to having it run for a fixed length of time. An online posting also reaches a much larger target area. It’s not limited to the local population. This also makes it easier for job seekers to search for jobs in other states.

I’m sure at one time we have all wanted to reconnect with an old high school friend, or a former co-worker that we lost touch with over the years. After high school, people graduate and move away to go to college and their addresses change. Employees come and go from jobs on a daily basis. Sometimes when people get married, they change their last names. Social Media sites provide us with the necessary tools to search out and reconnect with old friends and loved ones so we can start to rebuild those lost relationships, and also allow us to meet new people from around the world and build new friendships.