The issue was that this kind of thing could lead to inappropriate or worse interactions between students and teachers. Furthermore, the host was lamenting the fact that people have not considered the ramifications of putting all their personal information on sites like Facebook. After all, the Internet is forever.

All of those things are true. Kids can and have gotten into trouble by posting too much on Facebook. And I also agree that people may not yet fully understand how the social Web will affect them down the road.

But I have two problems with the idea of a blanket rule banning Facebook relationships between students and teachers.

The first is that it assumes teachers are not responsible adults, capable of making decisions about when to and not to “friend” their students on Facebook. I am troubled by individual judgement and responsibility continually being usurped by rules. But that’s another discussion.

The other problem I have is the mentality of resisting (futilely, I might add) the advance of technology and the social Web instead of embracing it. Facebook and the rest are here, for better or worse. We might as well embrace it and use it to our advantage.

There are some really innovative teachers out there. Why not give them all the tools they want to come up with new ways to teach the next generation and engage them?

The thing I’ve noticed about sites like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and others is their potential in business, education, culture and more is nearly boundless. But you don’t know what the possibilities are unless you dive in, embrace technology and start using it. New ideas will present themselves to those who look for them.

But the larger issue is that these kids are growing up in a world we never could have imagined. We do them a disservice by pretending it doesn’t exist.

Here are some snippets:

So, here are some reasons why you should dive into the world of Social Media:

• You’re curious. I didn’t know what Twitter was or how it could help me until I started using it.
• It’s a great idea-generator. You never know when your next great idea will hit you, but spending a few minutes a day on Twitter could spark something.
• Get some perspective. You have the chance to see the world through many other people’s eyes – including your customers’.  Having that perspective can be invaluable.

[...]

There are many more reasons to participate in Social Media.  But what about the reasons you shouldn’t?  Here they are:

• You want someone to do it for you. Forming connections with people and representing your personal and professional brand is something you have to do yourself.  If you can’t commit the time, don’t bother.
• You want to use it to “advertise”. Social Media is not conventional media, so using it to do conventional marketing just won’t work.
• You want to do it just to do it. It’s fine if you want jump in and test the waters, but don’t spend significant dollars on your Social Media presence until you have goals and a strategy for meeting them.

Read the whole thing. What did I miss?

Photo credit: jurvetson

The good part about that is the Internet has made it easier – and cheaper – to keep trying things until you find what works.  No need for expensive, time-consuming research and budget-draining ad production.

Your marketing is a perpetual work in progress.

It is in that spirit that I introduce this blog.  My old blog, www.Ideas2Chew.com, was a nice idea, but there was a disconnect from it and the Build Communications brand.  The old Build Communications Web site was stale and needed more dynamic content.

So I combined them.

Keep this in mind as you endeavor to build your brand.  There are so many exciting, new ways to do things, and little or no “right” or “wrong” ways to do it.  There is no reliable research or best practices.  There is only trying new things, tweaking, changing, revising, reworking, and fine-tuning until you find what works.

As for this blog, I sure hope you like it.  I hope you find some of the posts interesting and informative, maybe leave a comment or two, and even subscribe to the e-mail feed.  Just don’t be surprised if you notice changes over time.

It’s a work in progress.