Online vs offline
In SEO, there are two main categories of factors to consider. On-page, and off-page. On-page is what you say and how it’s organised. Off-page is more about the connections you have and how ‘popular’ your site is.
Recently, I’ve noticed similar patterns in my life. I have an online presence, similar to the on-page factors in SEO. This is my social media presence; my blog posts, tweets and Facebook updates. However, I also need to consider offline (or off-page) factors. You can only go so far online, and the idea of events like our social media cafe is to get people who live and interact online to meet and get to know each other offline.
To help me build these offline contacts I’ve made a good start by interacting with them online. I’ve also been to a couple of other local networking events (DigiTalks and #AddMe), specifically to get know my fellow Twits and Bloggers face to face. So far, the biggest headache has been remembering to call people by their real names rather than their Twitter IDs and it’s been great meeting new people with similar interests.
What amuses me is that our lifestyles seem to have gone full circle. Before the internet, all our communications were offline and our communities were always local. Now we interact online and build global communities through social media and even good old fashioned emails! The emerging trend is for communities formed online, to start meeting offline. I think it’s great!
Now we have groups like Cotswold Jelly – specifically aimed at freelancers who are fed up of always working on their own at home or in coffee shops. A couple of days before our own event there’s a Tweetup happening in Cheltenham for Creative types to get together and have a chat over a pint or two. Our own cafe should be a cosy affair, aimed at anybody with an interest in social media. You don’t have to be part of the existing Twitter and Facebook community to come along, because the emphasis will be on face to face socialising.
A while ago I posted this on Twitter…
“Hang on a minute! I can work offline? What’s that? What does that mean? Off-line?”
Some days, it really feels like you’ve been staring at the internet for far too long. Tweeting, IMing, Facebooking, blog-reading, Flickr and Youtube viewing, the list goes on. No wonder we’re moving offline!
Fancy joining us? Just come along on the night – full details of the event are in blog post format on the Cheltenham Social Media Cafe website. Or you can find the cafe on Twitter and Facebook.
