It’s been quite a few weeks for social networks. First, the uproar over Ning’s decision to eliminate free accounts. The ongoing Facebook-privacy controversy. Then, the Twitter “glitch” that saw everyone’s followers disappear … and then reappear.
Taking your network beyond 140 characters — or one social platform — makes sense. But, are we practicing what we preach? For many of us, we’ve invested a lot of time connecting with new people, building meaningful personal and professional relationships. What would happen if [insert your favorite social network here] disappeared? Or, if there really was a bug that wiped out all our connections? Are you prepared to rebuild your network, or pick up where you left off on another site? If not, what steps do you need to take to right that wrong?
With that in mind, if we’re connected in some shape or another — which I assume we are if you’re reading my blog — let’s make sure those connections are built to last. You can find me on Facebook, Skype (I’m prTini there, too) or LinkedIn. And, don’t forget about good, old-fashioned email. I’d love to hear from you — especially if you’re working on interesting projects, using social media for good, a new PR person, a fellow entrepreneur, etc. And, I always love connecting with sports fans! 
Drop me a note — my email address is heather[at]gebencommunication.com. What’s yours?
I totally agree with Tom's comment but if this were to happen, we'd clearly have less followers/fans/etc, but with that would come a more refined network of friends/colleagues/peers that we've grown accustomed to and know in this space. So things would be a lot less crowded for us, but the caveat would be are we losing the opportunity to learn from those people with 'smaller' voices or less of a footprint that we wouldn't normally remember to stay connect with? Interesting thoughts, for sure.
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