Power of Social Media Connections by Elisa Schmitz

I talk a lot about the power of social media and how it’s an integral part of 30Second Mom. Having been in the online world since the early days, I’ve so enjoyed being part of the evolution of the Web, social media and now mobile media. It’s incredible to see the tools we use get better and better. We’ve gone from “online journals” to blogs; “chat rooms” and “message boards” to Twitter, Facebook and more; weekly online magazines to 24/7 streams. How amazing (and fun)!

I know many people are still nervous about jumping in to the fast-moving river of new media, but I’ll always encourage it – no matter your age or profession. I think social media has the power to create relationships unlike any other format, and you can meet people you may not otherwise have had the opportunity to meet.

I recently attended the SheStreams conference in Ft Lauderdale, FL, where I met many people with whom I already had connected with online, but had never met in person. This photo shows me with 30SM contributors Samantha Kemp-Jackson, Jennifer Pereyra, Joani Plenty, Amanda Heyser and Annette Jett. We had such a great time together! It was an incredible experience. From meeting 30Second Mom contributors (that felt like sisters) to a variety of powerful and amazing women business owners and other professionals who I’d been wanting to meet in “real life.”

One of those people is Ted Rubin. Here’s a photo of Ted and me at the 30Second Mom Twitter party (with SheStreams founder Maria Bailey in the background). Ted is a remarkable person in social media, who brings incredible insights to the table both online and offline. We sat down with him at SheStreams and learned even more about connecting, in just a few minutes. He gave us his top 30Second tip for connecting on social media. He described his process of looking someone in the eye – digitally – as a way to authentically connect with them. Here’s a link to his 30Second video. Hope you learn as much from him as we did.

What do you think about looking someone in the eye digitally? Do you do this already? Let us know your tips for social media connecting – we’d love to hear them!