Have you ever been to a social media breakfast? It’s almost an oxymoron right? It could be on a list with bitter sweet, definitely maybe, jumbo shrimp or seriously funny. It sort of sounds like one of those virtual conferences where people synchronize their watches to tweet each other or all agree to post their status on Facebook from the comfort of their homes along with their coffee and toast.

Well, it’s a real thing where people gather together in an actual place and have breakfast and discuss social media. I’ve been involved with the Minnesota version of the breakfast, SMBMSP, and am part of a panel discussion on the use of social tools inside the firewall at SMBMSP #63 on Monday, March 3: http://smbmsp.org/2014/01/smbmsp-63-behind-the-firewall-social-networking-for-employee-collaboration/

There are SMB’s all over the country from Boston to Seattle. The event in Minnesota started in February 2008 and has been going strong ever since. I’m rather fond of their informal motto of “community + coffee with a side a bacon.” According to their web site,

“Since it’s founding, SMBMSP has been a regularly occurring event where like minded folks across the Twin Cities get together to share & learn about social media. Online membership has grown to over 2,300 professionals from all different disciplines, and many partnerships, jobs, career changes, and friendships have blossomed because of this group’s ability to connect people who enjoy sharing what they know!”

That kind of sounds like what social media was intended to do right? Bring people together? I know facebook started out being a way for college kids to rate their peers and find out if they were single. Now that almost everyone is out there, it seems like people share too much that is worth too little. Twitter was an ingenious innovation, limiting the length of communications! After working in corporate America for almost 20 years and creating lots of 70 page PowerPoint presentations and sitting through full day meetings, that’s a concept I really like. It’s much harder for people to understand though with the hash tags and the mini urls and the language all it’s own. LinkedIn is easy but it’s status as a meat market of sorts for talent and recruiters is a little hard to get past. Do you understand all the social tools like Pinterist, Snapchat, Instagram, Google+, Vine, and the hundreds of others? Some brands have like 9 icons on the bottom of their page so you can “connect” with them. I mean really? Are they bringing people together? Are they even doing a good job with their brand?

However you feel about social tools, find a local social media breakfast and connect with people, dress business casual, create a new tradition and be alone together.