The Anti-Social Aspect of Social Media

The great benefit of cellphones and e-mail, is that if we don't want to talk to people, we have the options of cutting off our phones or turning of the Internet. In terms of social media, you are always "on." There is no voicemail or "temporary disruption in service." Even if you can't (or don't want to) access your various social networks, people will continue to expect you to.

For a PR professional, it may seem cynical to not want to be in constant communication with your target audience, but everyone wants a little time away. Initially, it was okay for a slight delay in an e-mail response, maybe one to two days. Now, if a customer tweets a company they expect a response that is as detailed as you can be with 140 characters.

But what if you really do need a break from the constant flow of communication? It's different than the traditional model of PR of answering phones and talking to reporters. Now we are in a world where anyone is accessible at any time.

Perhaps a key to keeping sanity in social media is to have the Twitter/Facebook accounts run by multiple people. That way, communication can be kept constant and if someone would just like a moment of silence and solitude they can have it without fear of a fan revolt on the horizon.