Our Thinking

Your Daily Social Media Routine

How do you spend the first 20 minutes at the office each day?

If you were in the 1970′s, you would spend the time reading the newspaper, then organizing your inbox (the box on your desk), and finally looking at your calendar before “starting” your day.

In the 1980′s, you would be doing the same, but with less time on the newspaper, and more time on voicemail.

In the 1990′s, the newspaper went away, but email made it’s (un)welcome debut.

In the 2000′s, there’s no need to check email because you already did this before arriving on your BlackBerry.

So, in today’s post-BlackBerry “Social” world, how do you spend the first 20 minutes of your office day? And more particularly, how should Social Media fit into it? Here’s a sampler:

  1. Check your network’s updates via email: Set up Nutshell Mail so all of your LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter updates are emailed to you (www.nutshellmail.com). Then send a few congratulatory emails, tweets, or posts.
  2. Read through your Google Alerts: Go to www.google.com/alerts to set up a “watch list” of key terms. Then each morning, review the email that Google sends you listing every web page that was added to Google containing those terms.
  3. Scan your Twitter watch list: Set up a watch list of key terms using hootsuite.com. Then each morning, scan for tweets (and other status messages) that match.
  4. Review your day’s meetings: For each person you are scheduled to meet, check out who you know in common…and then give them a call. Not only does this phone call strengthen your relationship, but it often yields valuable information about the person you will be meeting, which results in a better relationship with this person too.
  5. Satisfy your curiosity: On LinkedIn, check out who has been checking you out by clicking theWho’s Viewed Your Profile link on your LinkedIn homepage. If you’re feeling a bit more extroverted, reach out to these people and introduce yourself more formally.

This week’s action plan: Reconsider how you spend those first 20 minutes each day. While you might not add all five of these items to your morning routine, each adds specific value by connecting you more tightly – and building relationships.

President of 108 ideaspace, Randall Craig is a leading Social Media & Web Strategist.  We share Randall Craig’s blog here on 108 ideaspace. However, the Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.RandallCraig.com to register.

This post has been written by 108’s Senior advisor and former CEO Randall Craig.