So you don’t think social media is such a big deal?  Watch this:

And then check this out from the “Shift Happens” series:

Now what’s that again?  Social media is a fad?  It’s for kids?  It’s a waste of time?

Recently I attended a brainstorming session sponsored by a local business to help the decision maker decide how to move forward with the organization’s implementation of Social Media.  The decision maker had little more that a conversational grasp of Twitter, Facebook, etc, and there he was at the table with the local SM literati. A conversation like that can quickly get esoterically out of hand, especially for those decision makers who are at the “you know something is happening but you don’t know what it is, do you Mr. Jones?” stage.

This video will first have you ROTFL;  but you will go back and listen to the words and message again. Caution: Strong Language!

It seems that everyone who can figure out how to open a Facebook account or do a few Tweets is a social media expert these days, and if they want to bill at a higher rate, they are gurus.  Almost everyone  seems to be jumping on the bandwagon that’s running down the yellow brick road to a gold mine. It’s easy to jump on the bandwagon, but it takes a little more effort to book passage on the Cluetrain.

I am not criticizing Social Media consulting – I really believe that the Integration of Social Media into PR , Marketing and Advertising is vital to business. The question is which thought leader do you follow? I oftenre-read and  link to Geoff Livingston and Beth Harte’s Top 25 ways to tell if your social media expert is a carpetbagger.

There has been an interesting conversation on the RE.net about the “most influential” social media users in the real estate business. Wow, the “gurus” make lists of top Tweeters. The analysts make lists based on statistical data, and now Inman News is having a popularity contest (Oh please vote for me so my ego won’t be bruised any more than it has already been by not being included on the other lists). The big question is Who Cares?  Are there really no better ways of measuring credibility and competence than inclusion on a list?  If I were hiring a SM guru, or reading his/her posts, or considering buying his/her books, or advising a client on how to make the choice, I would refer back to Livingston and Harte’s 25 ways and other posts along the same theme, like this one from Terry Ellwood or this one I wrote a while back.

Now, write me a check for 5000 Euros and I will say adios.