June 2010
A Twist on Social Networking
by Keven Groenewold
When electric cooperatives began forming over 70 years ago, most people found out about it at the local general store, visiting with neighbors after church, or at a community social event. That was social networking in the 1930s and 1940s.
Today, social networking has a far different look. Many of today’s local cafes and coffee shops are Internet “hotspots.” Inside, you find people drinking coffee or having a bite to eat, much like our grandparents did. However, the conversations take place in a different way. Many tables have one or two people sitting in silence, focused on their laptop computer or smart phone in front of them.
They converse with friends from across town, across the state, across the country, or around the world. These conversations may be group discussions or one-on-one exchanges happening at the same time—all of it by the written word only. This is how many of our younger members choose to communicate. The only thing they require is the hotspot or wireless signal be recognized by their computer or smart phone.
The tools are Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, YouTube, and many others. The forms of communicating are postings, tweets, blogs, and instant messaging. And every element of our society is becoming part of this newest wave. From elected officials to candidates for office, to the local PTA—all are social networking through this new medium. Even the Pope is on Facebook.
This new form of contact is something we need to understand if we plan on “staying in touch” with the next generation of members, as well as each other. There are over 100 million Facebook users in this county. Thirty million are between the ages of 18 and 25. Twenty-three million are 26 to 34, and 19 million are 35 to 44 years of age.
It is human nature to want to be heard when you have an idea or a problem. Cooperative members have a right of ownership to be heard. Therefore, communication is critical for member-owned cooperatives. We must be able to field inquiries, answer questions, and address concerns in the many media forms that our members choose. In the past, it may have been as simple as having bilingual employees. In the future cooperatives may need to be plugged into these new and popular media outlets.
The down-side of not staying current with these new forums is miscommunications. The questions will be asked and if we are not there, the question could be answered by someone else.
There are also opportunities. These new media tools can be used to keep customers informed on emergency or planned power outages. After all, many of the devices used to stay connected do not need to be plugged into the wall. There may be ways to make operations more efficient. This may be a new way to get educational and safety information to more people.
However a cooperative decides to use these new tools, we must remember what has made us special through time is the personal touch. We can not forget that. But, there should be room to embrace and balance these new ideas.