Social Media from a Business Perspective

As mentioned in my last BLOG, I have a business called Florals by Rhonda. I rely heavily on the Internet to provide my advertisement be it logo recognition, information, contact info or communication.
I use a web site to capture attention of potential brides. Because of a diligent effort to submit my site to various "local" and "business specific" search engines, I'm pretty assured of a bride finding my web site if she is searching for florist or wedding flowers in Loveland or Colorado. That's a first contact that I couldn't hope for in the traditional forms of telephone book, newspaper, or magazine ads. My web site is 24/7 , 365 a year and it has no monthly fees, which have become out of reach for a small business owner such as myself in more traditional marketing forms.
I also use a Facebook page as a secondary resource of presenting information. I can submit sites for brides to peruse, post flower specials or suggest events and vendors. It is far easier to submit information in this manner than changing my web page which is great, however, the nature of Facebook creates the expectation of change and thus I must be diligent at making new posts. I like Facebook because it links me with other vendors. When Ellis Ranch posts on their profile, it shows on mine, and vice versa. Such interaction not only produces more visibility, it creates logo association and affirms my professional image because of my relationship with other trusted businesses. The downside to this multi-faceted communication is the negative comment. In the past, a business could expect a dissatisfied customer to spread the word to 15 people. Social media has nearly tripled that effect. The average Facebook account has 40 friends!
I've not yet started using a BLOG to generate marketing, however it is to be seen in the floral industry, particularly with wedding services. It's a great media for displaying photos of ones work and more in depth discussions of floral options and designs. One of my associates has created a BLOG for her venue site and is doing a great job of promoting her venue as well as Loveland for brides. For now, I'll jump on her boat and become a "Follower".
In the last few weeks, I have had 5 brides contact me regarding their wedding flowers. One found me on a local search, a second from a web site's Preferred Vendors list, a third via a contact I made on Facebook and two from personal referals. I'm glad to see that social media/internet is working for me. 

Personal Space

In the last two months I have opened a Facebook account for my person as well as a Facebook page for my business, Florals by Rhonda, a web page for the business http://www.floralsbyrhonda.com/ , a Blog page, a Diigo account and a Delicious account. How many hours have I spent trying to assure these various accounts reflect my sense of privacy? I think Facebook was the most time consuming. I had to return to each Facebook presentation on several occassions to "tweek" the privacy settings. There were many settings that I simply stumbled upon, such as the one in regards to whether or not my "friend" can provide my data to other entities or whether entities dealing with my "friend" can upload info from her site which may contain my info!!! Was that sentence confusing? So was the process of securing my data and privacy. Seriously, there were some settings that required 3 or 4 clicks simply to find.
This brings to mind the topic of personal space and privacy. I am pleased to know that these settings exist. I have a great many friendships that are dear to me and these friendships are around the globe. Just today I emailed with friends whom I met while living in Barcelona, Spain. Via Facebook I was able to "chat" realtime on Saturday, the day of the 8.8 Chilean earthquake with a friend who lives in Temuco, Chile. Such technology helps me to maintain these friendships. There are few things I enjoy more than sitting with good friends here in Loveland over a good meal and a better glass of wine. Relationships are incredibly valuable to me. However, I choose my relationships. I choose what I share and with whom I share it. The idea that my life, my thoughts, my pursuits are splattered across this vast, nebulous existense called The Web does not sit well with me.
Is it my age, my personality, or my experiences that move me this way? Will my daughter and son feel differently and will that difference benefit them or not?

Welcome to My Assignment

As my fellow classmates know, it is a requirement for my iKnow class to create a personal blog. The intent of this task is to gain practice and experience using the "blog" format as a means to bring social networking into my classroom and into my professional development. In this class, we are exploring the various social networks and their potential use in education.
Myself, I teach Spanish in the elementary classroom and have found it difficult to see how I would utilize many of the social medias in a classroom. It is not as difficult for me to see the use of such medias for professional communication and development. The curriculum I teach is heavily dependent on play and personal interaction as oppose to the use of printed or written materials. However, in Loveland, there are three different Spanish programs taught at the elementary level. I have had very little contact with the teachers in the other schools. Social media could be a wonderful way for us to communicate and share ideas with one another as we don't have formal meeting opportunities. Likewise, the field of language acquisition is constantly building upon itself. Beings that my curriculum is experiential, new ideas and activities to introduce and practice concepts is welcome, a resource social media can provide.