Recently, however, I began to notice that I was getting what I deemed to be superfluous amounts of company updates sent directly to my inbox. Some examples:

In response to this, I gently suggested that the company reserve this type of information for venues such as company blog/webpage, subscription based newsletters, or even the Fan Page/Group wall. I reasoned that such company-specific news is something that people want to have the choice to read, and not sent directly to their Facebook inbox for them to almost have to read. After all, I’m going on Facebook to see what’s new with the people I want to know about (and to do a quick scan of the people who just show up on my feed).

My friend reasons that, if someone friends a business, they should expect to hear about that business. I agree, but only insofar as to the extent that I described above. Maybe it’s just me, but if I were to send everyone who is a fan/group member a message on Facebook about listings, recruits, etc., I would do so with the fear that I was being a tad offensive, and that I’d risk losing members.

For retailers, I can see getting messages about upcoming sales or specials- if I signed up to receive them.

What do you think… does joining a company group constitute consent to receive messages in your Facebook inbox? Are the examples above the type of information that should be getting sent out? I’d love some feedback.

The advent of Social Media, alongside its subsequent utility in the professional arena, has  been the topic of much conversation over the last 18 months. As a matter of fact, no Real Estate conference this side of Mars hasn’t had a panel discussion or outright speaker’s session on how agents can use Social Media to their advantage.

Somewhere between 18 months ago and today, I began to feel a lurid anticipation towards these types of events. From locally organized get-togethers to those held on the national (and international level), there wasn’t a program to be found that didn’t have at least 45 minutes dedicated to the topic of, you guessed it: Social Media.

As my eyes scanned any given agenda, I would become excited at what I might learn that day… “New Websites That Provide Powerful Tools for Your Company and Agents” at 10:00 AM. “Latest Technology Created Specifically for the Real Estate Industry” at 12:30 PM, “NYU Economist Predicts How Long We Will Face Recession” at 3:00 PM. “Networking Hour. Open Bar.” at 6:30 PM. All of these things flooded me with a certain expectation that promised to fulfill the itch for knowledge I had woken up with that very morning.

Then, out of nowhere, my darting eyes would abruptly stop. The momentum that was picking up in my brain would smack into a solid brick wall that was built around the pillars of Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin. Without fail, a bead of sweat would slowly roll down into the corner of my eye as I looked about aimlessly, confused and afraid. Will this be the one? I’d ask myself. Will this be the one where I learn something? Will this be the one that is somehow different than all of the other ones?

The answer, as we all know by now, is a very resounding “No”. You know it, I know it, we all know it. The only thing new about the Social Media panels we’ve been attending for the last 18 months are the Social Media Gurus who have been speaking at them. They tell us things we already know, and we go back to our Company and tell our agents a lot of the same things that they already know.

It’s time to make a stand. I’m a Social Media Guru, and there’s a very large possibility that you are, too. So as Gurus, it’s time to step up to the plate and change the game a little bit. After all, if we say the same thing for another 18 months, my Luddite friend from college will cash in on becoming a Social Media Guru, too. Kind of like how he waited in line to get his Real Estate License back in ’05.

So, we’ve all been to the SocMed101 class. Some of us have taught it (time and time again). And, undoubtedly, SocMed101 still has its place. But it’s time to start enrolling people in SocMed102. How? It’s simple, and here is the course outline:

• Bebo, Hi5, and QZone: why it’s time to know what these are, too
• Social Media Aggregates and Apps (plaxo, ping.fm, tweetdeck, seesmic, etc.)
• Strategic Social Media Content Placement (understanding the fundamentals of Passive vs. Active Marketing)
• Social News and Bookmarking- how it’s shaping what you know (Mixx, Digg, Reddit, Delicious, etc.)
• Targeted Ad Marketing on Facebook (why hasn’t anyone talked about this yet??)
• Controlling Your Google Page 1
• Blogging (ok, so we’re starting to skim the surface with this one, but not effectively)
• Peer-review sites (yelp, epinion, etc.)

These are just a few of the things one could discuss, and there are plenty more. The samples above, by themselves, are more than enough to fill 45 minutes of discussion.

(cue pipe organ) And so, my fellow colleagues, tech enthusiasts, brokers, managers, and gurus: the time is upon us to TEACH the people what they need to know! Long are the days that face us when we have to toil over our spiral notebooks, coming up with new ideas and content to present at our next social media panel, but short be the nights that are filled with people who don’t already know the same things we’ve been talking about for almost two years! I say to you now: you shall rue the day that a fellow guru comes up with new and exciting topics of discussion as it relates to social media before you! I say to you now: the time has come to educate and empower our agents with newer, better, and bigger tools and ideas! I SAY TO YOU NOW: go forth and renew the people’s interest in social media so that we may once again shine in the eyes of our peers as what we were always meant to be… SOCIAL MEDIA GURUS!!!!

<ahem> I may have gotten a little carried away there (the soapbox in my head was made of pearl encrusted gold, in case you were wondering), but I think you get the point. One of two things is going to happen the next time you get up to speak about social media:

1. 2 people are going to take notes, and everyone else is going to say I already know this in their heads (there’s a look people give now that says that exact thing to someone else from across the room… I’ve become an expert at interpreting it)
2. They are going to take notes and right down all of these things that they’ve never heard of at a social media panel and try at least one of them when they get home. They might work, they might not.

I’d rather be known for the guy who talked about new potential ways to enhance our career via social media than the guy who said the same thing the last 50 guys did…. wouldn’t you?