When I began writing this post I had the same attitude I always have on location based social networks: what’s the point? Well I went and checked out the mobile social network, Loopt, after reading about their new partnership with Verizon and I have to say that I’m pretty impressed.

Initially I figured location tracking services would be only useful for parents that want to keep track of their childrens’ activities. Loopt on the other hand enables you to mash together text messages with location. This is really useful for close friends because rather than texting somebody, you could simply walk on over and say “Hello!” For now Twitter has worked sufficiently for knowing what my friends are up to but perhaps my voyeuristic needs will grow over time.

While I think automatically being updated of my friends locations is weird on its own, combining location with messaging makes a lot of sense. If I was on a camping trip and lost in the woods, it would be helpful to see my location relative to my friends. Then again if I knew my location, I wouldn’t be lost! As we make the transition from desktops to mobile, I have a feeling that we will see in an increase in location based offerings. Do you think location based services are useful? Would you use them?

Like many of you I have been amazed by the news I read today of historians being able to reproduce a sound captured on paper from 1860. The play back was digitally made from sound waves that were etched onto paper reals using an analog recorder.

I downloaded the MP3 and listened to the grainy sound from over a 140 years ago. I was floored. The thought of hearing a voice from so long ago made my brain begin to swim with ideas about what legacy we will leave. I must admit the outcome looks grim.

Sure the technology used to capture sound waves was primitive, but the analog cylinders have an advantage to all our digital technology; they are visceral and lasting. Think about every time your grandmother shared letters written by your grandfather or showed you an old grainy photograph; will you be able to do the same?

Heck, even old analog radio and T.V. broadcasts are still bouncing around in space. What of all our tweets? What of all our blogs and messages posted on forums? Unlike more primitive forms of communications all our new social media tools all depend on someone else to host them.

What of all your great ideas you have have shared on twitter, in a flick of a switch they are gone. All your Facebook applications will not work when Facebook shuts down. All your debates on political message boards, gone when they switch to a new server.

In 200 years no one will resurrect Myspace to see what all the hoopla was about. All of your comments and will be lost to the ages. All of your toils and all of your ideas will have no way of enlightening future generations.

All of this is just something to remember when while you are blogging or posting on a message board somewhere. All I am suggesting is that you keep journal somewhere or maybe just print your blog posts and put them in a box somewhere.

Am I wrong to questions the ultimate finality of social media tools and the digital world? Do you think the world will find a way to preserve all our efforts? If so let me know how you think they will do it. I would hate to see all these ideas and dialogs be lost forever.

I’ve been working on designing and developing a platform for the Social Times that will embrace and support entrepreneurial communities. The more I think about the concept, the more I realize that the platform is ultimately open-source entrepreneurship. What do I mean by that? No single person can build an entrepreneurial community. Also, no single system can theoretically be designed by a group of two or three people that will effectively build the community.

For proof of that go read this PDF on “Building Entrepreneurial Communities: the Appropriate Role of Enterprise Development Activities.” This is a study that spanned twenty years, close to one thousand entrepreneurs and more than one hundred entrepreneurship assistance providers. I highly recommend taking the time to read it if you want to learn more about building these communities.

In the report, one paragraph stood out to me because I felt it most accurately described the flaw with having a centralized entrepreneurial platform.

We have repeatedly observed ambitious public entrepreneurs who take on these assignments with the primary goal of establishing model programs that would bring accolades to themselves and their sponsors. These initiatives then become competitions for attention, fueled by a talent for publicity, not performance. In these situations, such individuals act alone, under the belief that they can do it better than and without the help of anyone else in the community and under the need to do so in order to garner all the glory.

If anybody is concerned that this is what will result from the Social Times, I can assure you this won’t happen. The new tools that we will be adding to this site enables “the community” to build content that helps everybody. We will also be highlighting the community members and their content on a regular basis. It is our job to help find and support the superstars in the community and help them to leverage social technology to achieve success beyond our own.

We will also be creating programs that help to support those enterprising individuals that want to host events or create other programs that support the community. We want to help the community, not compete with it. We will start by adding a community directory as well as a business directory organized by metropolitan area. The first area will of course be D.C. but we will be expanding rapidly.

I hope to have these two directories up within a week but as you probably know, estimating when a project will be complete is more of an art then science. Is there anything that you would like to see us add to the site? Any other thoughts?

After getting over 75 percent of new users being spam, social bookmarking service Ma.gnolia decided to stop using standard email registration and use OpenID. It appears that the service now also supports Facebook, Yahoo, Clickpass, AOL and a number of other standard identification programs to register.

It’s great that the Ma.gnolia team has made the switch but I wonder why they decided to support all the login methods that they do. For instance, what is the value of using that someone is Facebook user 91232352 but not knowing their email address? Currently Facebook doesn’t release email information whereas with OpenID, the email address is released during the registration process.

I have a feeling that we are going to see an increasing trend of login standardization but don’t expect all of the big players to adopt the standards anytime soon. While Yahoo! has accepted OpenID as a standard for logging in, not all of the other players like Facebook have accepted this format. Ma.gnolia is making a statement with this decision to support OpenID and I applaud it.

If you wanted me to give you a one word summary of newspapers in the future I would say: dead.   That’s not really the truth though and it’s not an accurate global picture.  The reality is that these companies, while slow to adopt new technologies for the most part are catching on and with cash in hand they are going to start snapping up those companies that understand new media most. So what is the consistency of an ex-newspaper company, future “new media” company?

• Researchers - Researchers may be one of the most important members of the new media company. These are the people that are constantly sifting through information and determining which articles to write about. They also don’t just find information through their filtering system but they also inquire to individuals to get commentary on issues in addition to getting more information about stories. Frequently the line between researchers and writers can be blurred.
• Producers - The producers are creating content that will be displayed and promoted. They are the writers, podcasters and video production teams. The average visitor comes to the new media company’s site to consume the content created by the producers. While the producers are frequently looking for content, just as the researchers do, these individuals’ specialty is in the art of creating unique and intriguing content.
• Editors - The editors are simply experienced producers. They have learned the lessons that new media has to offer and now they are teaching this to others. The editor also produces content on occasion but their job is more about teaching rather than doing.
• Designers - If you are building a new media company from the ground up, it better look good. You could argue about this until the cows come home. To the naysayers, I know that the Drudge Report doesn’t look great but then again they have a proven track record of breaking news stories time and time again. All I will say is that it is much easier to sell something when it looks good. In addition to designing your own site they will be providing design services to all your advertisers. Remember those people? Yeah, they are the ones that help keep you in business. If you make them look good, they will reward you generously.
• Developers - The developers make everything happen. You need to have developers to help you say on the leading edge of new media. This requires constant innovation and keeping a pulse on emerging technologies. In turn, you can provide your advertisers with more unique advertising solutions.
• Community Managers - The community managers loves your community. Every new participant in the community needs to be welcomed and supported. Without these guys your company is going to lack product evangelists and it will also lack transparency. You want anybody to be able to contact you and you want to respond to most inquiries. Each organization has a different ratio for number of active members to each individual community member. If you need to start calculating this, you are headed in the right direction.
• Events Coordinators - New media companies are master connectors. They help connect the community. While the connecting is done by the executives, the event coordinators help to organize “real world” events which enables people to connect on a personal level. If your company is the center of connecting people, you are going to be insanely valuable.
• Business Developers - This is straightforward and it’s the same way it has always been. You need a business development team to make money! This team helps you generate revenue and revenue is always a good thing. Hire people that have built a solid network with big advertisers and you are destined for success.
• Executives - Executives are the super-connectors and managers. While the management is more important, being able to connect people to generate partnerships is critical. The executives also set the vision for the organization so they better know what’s going on.

The new media company doesn’t simply write about the community, they are now forced to connect with the community. While there are more roles that could be added to this theoretical organization that I’ve written about, the main point is that while there are still similar roles and tiles, the roles have changed and the system has been transformed. While not the majority, a large percentage of content consumers also want to be engaged with the organization that is providing them with information.

Is there anything that I’m missing from this?

I used to think building a social media profile was like building a house. First you started with a strong foundation that is your real world identity and then began to upon build it using social tools. I saw the social media world like an urban development project with homes springing up everywhere.

Now however my perception has changed. I see the social projects more like a home renovation project; with large bearded men looking for ways to improve what is already there. The tools used in social media can help revitalizes your current life style, but they can never be used to create a new one for you.

Think about it like this. What happens if you create a brand new profile of yourself using social media? You make your profile look great and fill it with nonsense that is not true in essence making a fake profile that is easily spotted as a fake.

I have seen enough 80’s movies to know this method will not work. People will soon see your profile as the fake it is and abandon you to net alone and cold crying in your new pink dress (sorry).

Now think about yourself as a renovation project. Using social media tools you can enhance your existing life by connecting with real people and highlighting your real attributes. By using social media to showcase your real life characteristic you can be assured that you will make some strong connections.

Sure it isn’t as exciting as telling the world you are a super model from Papa New Guinea, but it is better than having to lie constantly. The same is true for businesses and their use of social media.

Don’t expect social media to change your business’ identity or be a quick fix solution to all your marketing problems. Instead try to use social media to enhance your business’ identity or online presence. Be honest with the media you create and allow the public to form its own opinion.

While I am no Bob Villa, I am certain that with the right guidance anyone can renovate their current identity using the tools of social media. Am I wrong, do you think that trying to fix up your personal appearance using social media is impossible? Let me know.

Yesterday I spent a large portion of the day at the Boomer Business Summit. While on a panel, I asked the crowd how many people were on Facebook and how many people were on a social network in general. Over half the crowd was on a social network and close to 50 percent were on Facebook. It was pretty surprising. This was also a biased sample because they had come to the panel on social networking for Boomers.

The main lesson that I learned was that this crowd was a highly active group of people that may be wiser but don’t feel older. They are young at heart and still exploring what the world has to offer. I told one person that it’s unfortunate that curiosity is now a unique trait and that I’m pleasantly surprised when I meet a group of inquisitive individuals. This group of people for the most part were involved in leveraging these new technologies to create buzz for their businesses.

There was only one person that I met that was still resisting the changing going on around him but even he wanted to know how to find the most influential blogs in his market (even though he knowingly only read one blog, Perez Hilton). While I often think of early adopters as young individuals, I met a number of early adopters while at the conference including one Boomer who was highly active on Twitter.

The lesson learned is don’t ignore this group of individuals. They are a massive market and you may be surprised just how youthful they still are (I hope this doesn’t sound too much like a young person’s analysis). Also, this group won’t be retiring anytime soon. So don’t forget about this crowd when developing your product or service even if it is on the web.

Everyday, I get messages from a number of people telling me about the great content that they’ve been reading on this site. This is not meant to brag. The point is that often times that great content is not mine. At least once a day, Anthony LaFauce (who likes to be called Tony) posts an extremely insightful article that sparks discussion. Comments pour in an often times that comment is “Great article Nick!”

While I have plenty of good articles, all too often I am credited for work that is not mine. Perhaps that’s because my photo is on the sidebar of this blog (that’s something I will soon take care of), but the reality is that Anthony takes the cake when it comes to writing on social media. So if you want to thank the writer of the article, first read who the author is. Take a look at the image below:

When you write a comment about the author of the post from now on, first look at who wrote it. Increasingly you are going to see that I’m not the author of the article. While I think my articles may be God’s gift to the earth, the reality is that they aren’t and there are other people that deserve recognition. I will continue to write but so will others so take a look at the author and recognize who wrote the magnificent work of art that is on display

One other thing, Anthony would absolutely love for you to follow him on twitter. Also, while Anthony writes for me on occasion he also manages all my P.R. He can do the same for you! So if you are looking for a master of communications and social media, get in touch with Anthony. He’s the man!

When trying to determine what to do for your online community, ask yourself what you would do if the same thing happened off-line. Today while speaking at the Boomer Business Summit, we listened to a lot of people ask about managing their online communities. Some were large and others were small but they all had similar questions about how to handle various things happening in their community. One individual asked about highlighting individuals in the community and the rules about reposting their articles on the site.

To the person who asked about highlighting community members and their articles, the solution was simple: ask them for permission. After a series of questions I finally realized that if these people only asked themselves how they would handle a similar issue off of the internet they could easily find a solution. Those that explore online communication as some sort of foreign territory will fail at communicating effectively.

The reality is that the rules for success that apply online are the same ones that exist offline. The only difference is that online, things have become more transparent and your intentions will become more obvious. As Gary Vaynerchuk emphasized yesterday, good people will succeed in this digital world.

So to reiterate my point, when you come across an issue that you need a solution for, first ask yourself how you would handle this issue off line. The same rules apply. That’s the golden rule.  Do you agree? Do you think things should be handled differently online?

I have a great life, I am in a profession I love and I get to help people do their best. I help people navigate the world of social media and communications. My job allows me freedom of expression and the chance to guide people into an exciting world.

The reason I bring this up is that anyone can do what I do. Think of the social media hold outs you have as friends or family. Think about how much easier your life would be if they would join a social network.

I am suggesting that you become a Social Media Sherpa. Take it upon yourself to guide a friend or loved one up the path of social networking. Use the knowledge you have to help them steer clear of pitfalls that you fell into (20 songs that opened up automatically on Myspace?).

By helping someone else with social media you are solving two problems. One, your friend or loved one will be easier to stay in touch with. I would talk to my mom and dad every day if they could use twitter or even email with some confidence.

Two, you will actually will become a better user of social media. By talking out the finer points of social media with a friend you will become more aware of how best to use social media and in turn become a more active user.

Becoming a Social Media Sherpa is easy and rewarding. I suggest everyone take it upon themselves to find one person who needs guidance and help them out. Do you have it in you to be a Social Media Sherpa?If so let me know.

Tell me how you have helped someone enjoy social media and we can help others together. If you have any tips for our readers on how to get friends more involved in social media share them here.