Forrester Research CEO, George Colony, writes a blog where he helps other CEOs understand how business and technology intersect. His most recent post compared social media to sex, a comparison that may have you giggling at first, but is actually a pretty apt way of describing what it’s like to delve into the social realm.
According to Colony, you can’t understand the hot new media tools and technologies like Twitter, Facebook, and blogging by merely reading articles or reports about them. You simply won’t be able to really and truly learn what they’re all about until you participate. That’s why social media is “like sex,” he says. “It’s fun to talk about and read about, but you can’t truly comprehend unless you do it.”
We suppose he could have used other comparisons, but none would have the impact of comparing the technology to sex. It’s true, though. In fact, we’ll even expand on that thought a bit. For example, at first, Twittering your thoughts may feel awkward and strange. It might even be a little uncomfortable. But give yourself time to get comfortable with the process and next thing you know, you’ll be Twittering away, enjoying yourself in the process. In fact, you might even get to the point of craving Twitter. How many Twitter addicts out there have seen or heard something interesting and their first thought was “Oh man, I have to Twitter that!” (Our hands are raised.)
But the overall point of Colony’s blog post was that you won’t and you can’t get social media unless you engage in it. That seems pretty straightforward to us, but you’d be surprised how many people think they’re experts in the matter, despite having an abandoned Twitter account…or worse, none at all. And then there are the companies rejecting social media because “it’s just not right for them” – a decision they’ve made without even so much as a few weeks of experimentation. How sad. Just remember Mr. or Ms. CEO, you may find social media a boring waste of time, but you’d better believe that your customers are out there using it everyday. Ignore it at your peril.
