As you all know, I love technology and social media. In many ways, I owe a lot to social media since it has allowed me to establish myself in my role as a professor while giving me the opportunity to meet some incredible people in the industry over the years. It’s been a fun journey and I know it will continue on for years to come.
However, there are still things that technology can’t replace.
Okay – you may be asking yourself – is Karen okay?!
Yes – I am perfectly fine. 🙂 I am a big believer of in person meetings. I approach this the same way as I do with my classes. Sure, email and DMs can answer quick questions and inquiries from students, but having the chance to meet in person, chat about the topic at hand, and meeting up with others is something that is so important to remember in the day of constant embedment of technologies.
I say this because I was able to experience this first hand this week. One of my fellow colleagues and friends in the industry, Chris Strub, was going to be in town to do a presentation for the #GiveforGoodLou Campaign.
If you are not following Chris on all of his platforms – you should!
Chris and I got connected a few years ago when he was working with Humana in Louisville.
Since then, Chris has been actively traveling and presenting around the USA, and will be going internationally this fall. He has done tremendous work with nonprofits and has been really successful in his work as a keynote speaker.
I was able to sit in on Chris’s presentation all about live steaming for nonprofits. It was very informative and provided some great insights. Plus, Chris was able to share what he was able to do for some of the campaigns he has been able to participate in (ex. Salvation Army last holiday season) and others. It was one of the best presentations I have seen on this topic, and I think Chris really exceeded everyone’s expectations. Well done, Chris!
Chris took the time to speak to my Advanced SM Strategy class this spring, and was a huge hit! When I realized he was going to be in town, I shared with my network that we should have a meet up. I have met Chris of course in person, but my students had not. So – we coordinated and arranged a meeting for all of us to gather to eat some great BBQ (thanks, Feast!) and chat all about social media.
The meet up was a huge success! We had three former students (Michael, Bell, and Abbie) and a fellow Louisville friend and colleague Jonathan, join us. In a span of almost three hours (yes, I said three!), we had the best conversation. We talked about IG stories, communities, branding, the job market, and Louisville.
As a professor, I was able to witness Chris not only take the time to chat with my former students and friends, but also mentor them by showing them some of his tricks when it comes to creating content. This spoke volumes to me – and this is again something that you do not get the chance to really do with virtual meet ups. I was very pleased to see this!
The power of meet ups is so important to integrate here, especially today, with social media since it covers so many different avenues and aspects of the industry. Why do I say this? Here are some of the reasons:
Community > Content. We have to bring back the social aspect of social media. We have to invest in the relationships, group dynamics, and human component of the industry. I think there has been such a heavy focus on pushing content and messages, we forget we are conversing with people. Communities are about more than just content – it has to be relevant content that resonates with the audience while sparking ideas and conversations to further the relationship development. If you have a community, you have a direct relevant connection with your audience.
Connections make experiences and memories happen. It was fun for me to see Chris get to meet up with my former students and Jonathan. All have followed and tweeted to Chris over the past few months, and to be able to see everyone come together in a way to create new memories and experiences was wonderful to see. This is why social media can be powerful – not just for connecting online – but connecting offline.
Meet ups shows we are all human and we are all on the same team. In this meet up, I saw collaboration, mentorship, and friendships form. We can’t just live our lives online – we have to have a balance in how we approach things and show others – yes, I am who I say I am online. We need more opportunities like this and meetups are a great way to do this. What is also good to know is the fact that keynote speakers who are established in the field like Chris are not only doing these types of meet ups, but initiating them. This is good to see here and this is one of many reasons why Chris stands out not just as a professional, but a person.
Overall, I was thrilled with having Chris in town and being able to have a meet up like this. Chris will be back in Louisville in September (I believe 9/13), and I am sure he would love to do another meet up. Thank you again Chris for taking the time to meet with all of us in person, and hope you had a safe trip back to NY!
Special thanks again to Michael, Bell, Abbie, and Jonathan for joining us! So good to see you all!
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
