Ok, so I admit it: I have a hard time getting into Twitter.
To be totally truthful, it is only when I came to Vault that I joined the social networking phenomenon at all. Like a lot of people, there was something about putting myself out there on the Internet that (quite frankly) freaked me out, but I realized its amazing capabilities for our clients and signed on to learn more about Facebook and later, Twitter.
While I have come to value Facebook personally for keeping in touch with relatives rarely seen and updating distant friends and former colleagues, Twitter has been another story. I have been hesitant to open my updates to the public and therefore, have only acquired, drumroll please…eight followers. Currently, most of these are my Vault colleagues who I “update” all day anyway. Thankfully, I hardly ever Tweet for myself so they are spared any duplication.
I happen to follow a lot of my colleagues on Twitter, however, and have really admired their willingness to open themselves up and regularly update their dozens--or even hundreds—of followers with all the wit and wisdom they bring to clients every day.
I knew this would never be me, though. I began to wonder. Would I always be a social media wallflower? Then came Pinterest and Svpply.
Back story -- I read a lot of design blogs. I love seeing all the cool clothes, housewares, art and unusual items some of my favorite bloggers find, much to the detriment of my bank account. Lately, a lot of the ones I follow have been talking about Pinterest and Svpply so I decided to check them out.
Well lock up my wallet and find a babysitter for my kid, I think I have finally found my social media home. I like to think of these recently-developed sites as “visual Twitter.” Finally, a place for me to share my thoughts publicly without revealing too much personally. In all actuality, I am just sharing other people’s good work and highlighting the things I love. After all, if a picture is worth a thousand words, couldn’t my participation in these sites be worth several hundred 140-character Tweets?
Even more, there is a world of potential here for some of our current and future clients. It just remains to be seen how much they catch on—and if they stand the test of time like the phenomenon that is Facebook and (sigh) Twitter.