Discussing social media with my business partner

Some important questions:

Do a survey of Lansing, East Lansing and the rest of mid-Michigan about the difference that social media has made in daily life and what would you find?

How has social media affected the Michigan Legislature? Members of the State House and State Senate?  Interest groups?  Voters?

Has it been a difference-maker for businesses in the state? Manufacturers?  Auto parts suppliers?  Insurance agents?  Retail stores?  Restaurants?  Lawyers?  Real estate agents?

Have local units of government been able to grab onto social media and get citizens involved and keep them informed about issues that affect people right where they live everyday?  City councils?  Mayors?  Township boards?  County government?

What about churches in the area? Do they use social media and how do they do it?  Have pastors embraced it, as well as members?

Why the questions?

I’ve been watching social media grow from just about nothing in this area when I started taking it seriously in late 2004.  When I met an old work crony after I retired, he asked me what I was doing.  When I told him that I was blogging and that I was helping others learn it, he laughed and suggested that I get serious about using my time.

That was more than six years ago and I’ve tried to stay with the changes in social media.  There were audio podcasts, video podcasts, Twitter, Ning, UStream, Tumblr, Skype, Facebook, along with many, many more.  The changes and the transitions just keep coming.

So what?

That’s the right question and it’s one that I want to take a look at in this blog in the weeks and months to come.

Is social media making a difference right here in the middle of the Great Lakes State, an area where communication and community-building has never been more important.

As I post about this, I invite your feedback.

Mid-Michigan businesses have been slow to adopt blogging as part of their communication strategy.

The latest to make the move that I’ve seen is Paramount Coffee, a local roaster which sells their own brand and others around the country.  We’ve bought Paramount ground coffee from the local Sam’s Club for several years.

By-the-way, my wife and I toured their operation this past Saturday when Lansing celebrated Be A Tourist in Your Home Town.  I really enjoyed learning about their business and its footprint around the country.

I invite you to check out their blog and feel free to leave comments about how they can make it stronger and more interactive.

I’ve talked to all kinds of business people, with small and medium sized operations, about business blogging. Real estate types seem to get it, but others are real slow to think seriously about it.

This set of slides from Debbie Weil, an early and major proponent of business blogging, helps explain this hesitancy from businesses to adopt blogging as a communications tool.