@DR4WARD you’re right, some do manage to move theory forward while engaging in thoughtful practice, but I still think that’s a hard balance to maintain. One almost always wins out. I think that there are theorists who manage to practice and practitioners who theorize.

@Allen – Thank you! I appreciate that very much.

@michaelsavoni – Ooooh, please let me clarify, I didn’t mean to suggest that I think of anyone as a self-appointed egotist… and no, I don’t believe that social media “experts” are always self appointed. I wrote the two statements above to illustrate some of the discourse I have heard throughout social media and PR/marketing circles.

I believe those who are regarded as social media experts are people who first, put themselves out there to share their ideas and opinions. Second, those ideas and opinions must really resonate with others — making them more or less community appointed. The “experts” are merely leading discussions that can’t really take place without a community of participants.

Aren’t all social media “experts” self appointed?

I have to agree, though. A large portion of SM people out there are ego-driven, and simply out there to “brand” themselves and self promote. The best way to get involved in the industry is to listen, much like you learn in any other industry.

Thanks!

There is a lot of truth to what you write. Anyone who has had to try to negotiate the realities of creating and executing a Social Media Marketing initiative within the constructs of the Client/Agency relationship will likely agree with you whole-heartedly.

Talking about the ‘how to’s’ of SM is one thing.
Without the free exchange of ideas SM would… well it wouldn’t be SM! There is considerable truth in equating our SM discussions with that of an Academic discourse.

Engaging in ‘straight-forward’ SM can be tricky enough. But more often than not SM is an individual’s interaction within a community or communities.

The rift of which you speak becomes undeniable when you factor in educating a client about SM, ensuring that you are being true to the spirit of SM while recognizing the constraints of client messaging and ability, and then having to do all of that to a very specified budget with some specific measurement parameters. Suddenly the challenges are glaringly different – not harder or worse or anything subjective like that. Just different. And that’s o.k.! As long as it’s recognized.

There has always been and I think will continue to be, friction between academics and those in business.

in terms of traditional PR I think pubs like PR Week do talk about clients since that is the “body of evidence” that has been established. Social Media shakes these traditional communications channels/methodologies up.

In the past we explored new continents…now we are exploring new continents of communication!

@ShannonNelson I knew you and I would feel similarly about this. You gather your pearls wherever you can find them.

@Niko Your experiment sounds interesting, I’m just hoping you’re not a stalker and that your friend wouldn’t mind being found by you.

@Mike Thanks for the comment, although I’m not sure which points you don’t agree with.

@Stacy @ShannonSwenson I don’t really stand behind the “egotist” label, I’ve just heard the term tossed around and thought it would be better to talk about it openly with civility.

@Stacy you’re right that things are changing too quickly to be added to most college curricula, but they could have workshops and guest speakers address the class — a lot of students I’ve talked to have no idea what social media is — they have Facebook and MySpace profiles, but they don’t know that that’s social media. That’s really where organizations like PRSA should be filling in the gaps.

@allan you’ve brought something else to my attention — what kind of experience equals social media experience? Is it personal engagement in blogging, podcasting, social networks, etc., or is it the experience of implementing these things into marketing strategies? It seems like most people are doing one or the other, but rarely are they doing both… but, I could be wrong.

@ShannonSwenson I agree, case studies are especially helpful and I’m glad to hear that you’re sharing them on your site.

@Alan Large corporations do move very slowly — even with the most compelling data and case studies, but there is a recognition that things need to happen faster in business. I think this too will eventually change. Businesses have to adapt much more quickly to survive these days.

@Justin Yes! None of us wants this industry to become stale. It’s a privilege to do great work and I think we all really want to do great work!

Alan
http://www.twitter.com/ACEdge