Posted on May 8, 2013

Written by Natalia Diaz-Weissman

As a frequent traveler it’s nearly impossible to stay in touch with everyone I know; heck, sometimes I don’t have time to deal with myself. I wanted to try making new friends over social media, but wasn’t sure how to do it without looking like a stalker and/or creeper.

I wanted to see if it was possible to meet people – and actually form a relationship – solely via the social media platforms I use (Twitter, Instagram and Facebook). But I was nervous; how should I even start the conversation? And what happens if my new friend doesn’t match up to their 140 character description?

So I started out by commenting on a tweet I thought was funny. She was a girl I followed and I liked her style. Soon we were tweeting back and forth. We had short one sentence conversations for a couple of weeks, which then turned to direct messages, finally text messaging and a few months later we were having a few drinks at a bar like old friends. Today, I would count her as one of my best friends.

Social media can also be a great way to connect with fans and network for a business. I asked two of my close friends, Loren Ridinger and Lala Anthony, for their take on making new friends, finding new customers and keeping up with fans. Loren is the Senior Vice President of Internet retailing giants marketamerica.com  and SHOP.COM and Lala is an actress and creator of Motives for Lala cosmetics.

Loren uses social media to collect information on what her customers like and don’t like. “Making sure you’re keeping up with your customers needs and wants is very important and social media is an open space that allows for you to interact with them at any time worldwide,” she explains.

On the other hand, Lala uses social media to engage with her fans on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. She has about 5 million followers and so social media helps her keep up with her fans and friends.  Because of her large number of fans, social media is the best medium to keep her fans up to date on her daily activities.

Here are some tips on managing your social media presence and connecting with others online:

1) Make sure to follow other people with similar interests, locations, likes and status updates. Once you have a community of people you follow, you can decide who you would like to get to know in person.

2) Don’t become a spammer! One or two messages is fine. Wait until the person you have contacted responds to you before messaging him/her again.

3) Do some research on the person you are reaching out to. Just because you’re in the same city doesn’t mean you’ll get along.

4) Use #hashtags to connect with others with similar interests. For example if you’re into makeup or looking for a makeup artist use the #makeup hashtag or search by location on Facebook to connect with others. If you hashtag, others will see you when they search as well.

5) Ask questions. People love interactions and will feel important if you ask them questions about their career or lifestyle.

6) Don’t be overly aggressive. Act as if you’re talking to someone in person. Never use profanity and always be polite.

Meet Natalia: 

Natalia Diaz-Weissman is Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Greenroks, a multi-media kid-themed entertainment company. A passionate soul and talented multi-tasker, Natalia specializes in the creation of web development, design, content management and social media strategies. Natalia also serves as a digital analyst and contributor to LorensWorld.com and advisor to select number of tech start-ups.

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