I read an interesting quote on Twitter today stating that “social media is this years life coach” which seems to suggest to me the writer believes that social media and life coaching are passing fads. It would certainly suggest that life coaching had a popular year at some point and this is the popular year for social media.

There is no doubt that life coaching became very popular at some point and that social media is popular now but I would disagree with those who might suggest that either are passing fads.

The quote did make me stop and think for a while of what it is that connects the two? Having thought about what made them both so popular I wonder if it’s because they both demonstrate a shift in power and control? With social media it looks like a shift back to DIY marketing.

That shift in power and control is one of the elements that interest me so much where business is concerned. Everyone is twittering these days and Facebook is not solely the stomping ground of the under 25’s any more. I could probably never list all of the other social media sites and more seem to be springing up every day!

Businesses are starting to realise that they can reduce their marketing costs with a little DIY and are flocking to use “free” social media tools to spread their own particular word!

Social media “experts” like Life Coaches at one point, seem to be around every corner with a bit of free advice as a taster into the bought and paid for serious advice on how to use social media to improve your business.

That a bit of DIY marketing can work I have no doubt. That it is free is simply not true.

Developing an online presence through social media takes time and unless you work for free or your time is free, time equals money!

We could outline the options on social media for you here but that would take forever and would need a series of blogs like this one updated every week. What we will do most weeks however through Network 2012’s newsletter is bring you a series of articles and blogs on how best to use social media and even some debates or discussions on whether it’s worth using it at all.

At Network 2012 we promote ourselves and our members using social media, particularly Facebook and Twitter. In our view you have to be in it to win it and with Twitter in particular if you have something interesting to say there is a good chance it will be passed on and read by many other users. The possibility of reaching a far wider audience than one might otherwise is definitely there. It is very rarely as simple as that however.

One thing is for certain though. It may change its form and individual businesses need to find their own level of involvement and strive to use it efficiently but social media is here to stay!