"You are the Social Media You're Using"...yeah

Hey there,

Just another infographic of the day. I know, I haven't gotten in the habit of doing this daily. But nevertheless, I saw this and had to share.

Source: siliconrepublic.com via Your Social Media Company on Pinterest

What do you think? What does the social media you're using say about you? Was this pretty accurate, or completely off the mark? Is reality somewhere in the middle?

Let me know in the comments,

JR

Town is no longer accepting Foursquare

Hey there,

So this post is a bit belated but, yeah.  Town Danceboutique is no longer accepting Foursquare. I first noticed this a couple of weekends ago, but didn't really think anything of it until I went back for a SpeakeasyDC event earlier this month.

Now this might be old news for some of you, but if it's not, and if you don't even know what I'm talking about, Town used to give free admission to people who checked in on Foursquare before 11pm, and showed box office staff their phone.

I actually talked to a friend who didn't know about the change in policy, and we were talking about going to Town and getting there early specifically because of this, and now that they're not accepting it anymore he actually said he wasn't sure how motivated he'd be to go there anymore, not just early, but period.

But as with any business, this was obviously a carefully deliberated decision, profit and loss and all that.

Still curious to see how they have been and will deal with any negative feedback to this choice. I definitely can think to a handful of times where I've been in line myself right before 11pm and could see those in front and behind me checking their phones and checking in to Foursquare, hoping to make good on the deal.

Personally, I know it won't affect my own attendance at Town, as it really is circumstantial when I end up there. But I'd like to hear from anyone who does or doesn't care about this bit of news. Will this affect when you go to Town? Will you still go but just later? Will you not go because of this?

Curious mind wants to know,

JR

One Friday night, I turned to Foursquare

Hey there,

So, it happened. I mean I've done it before, I realize now. But I guess now it's becoming a regular part of figuring out where I'm going to go, when all I have are no plans and a spontaneous impulse.

Checking Foursquare.

There were two venues I was considering going to, this past Friday night. So I opened up Foursquare on my mobile device to see two things. First, how many people had checked in, in general. And, second, how many of my friends had checked in.

I do do something similar on Facebook, but it's Event specific. I'll see how many of my friends have RSVP'ed Yes or Maybe, and especially if it's the day of, if anybody's written on the wall talking about heading to it or being excited about it.

So yes, peer pressure works, we're all just sheep, and...wait a minute, social media can actually facilitate social activities in real life.

A survey whose results were shared just a couple of weeks ago from the Active Network, Research Reveals the Link Between Online Interaction and Offline Activities, speaks directly to this:

"According to the ‘Beyond the Click’ survey, the three most popular offline actions taken as a result of online engagement are to contact a person directly, attend an event and participate in an activity such as a sport or a class."

So, yeah. At least from personal experience, social media seems to be just another tool for communicating, informing, and organizing, and as with all tools, its up to the users to choose how to use it and let it affect their lives, for better or for worse.

Yes, I'm speaking to the many fears people have brought up about Social Media's adverse effects. Even just typing into Google "social media dest" the auto-fill results that come up are:

• social media destroying society
• social media destroys relationships
• social media destroying social skills

But again, ultimately I would argue that all this is up to each user to choose for him or herself.

In this case, I chose to use social media to figure out what I would do on a Friday night. And I ended up dancing until I and my friends (one of which was the deciding factor when I checked Foursquare) closed the club down.

Which I haven't done in a while.

Anyone else occasionally use social media to crowdsource their plans? Any particular stories that come to mind? Or do you not consider or check social media at all? Please share in the comments.

- JR