A few months back, Paul McGirt a Realtor in the Virginia Beach area wrote an interesting article in the Hampton Roads Association of Realtors Magazine called Social Media – Because We are Social People.  While going through my archives, I found that mag and it got me to thinking about the social media scene and the ‘experts’ and ‘gurus’ that populate it.

When we see The Social Network and shows like The Facebook Obsession, we get a glimpse of Mark Zuckerberg and get the impression that had he not create a multi-billion dollar, universe altering company, he would be stereotypical computer guy: anti-social.  On top of that, that most computer professionals like IT managers and web developers are stereotyped with similar personality traits, which further distorts the view of what trait a social media consultant should possess.

Before we get into that trait, you must first understand that social media is the fusion of sociology and technology.  Masterful usage of tools like Facebook and Twitter is essential to the art, but the ability to understand and interpret people’s behavior and translating that into how they will make decisions is the magic behind making social media work for business.  And regardless of how many books you read, it is virtually impossible to get to know behavior unless you socialize.

The explosion of social media as a truly organic business marketing tool, has sparked a rise of consultants and so called experts to meet the demand. But when was the last time you saw your social media ‘expert’ at a networking function?

To be successful at consulting in social media, you must be social.  Nationally known experts like PR Sarah Evans and Jeff Turner understand people.  They interact masterfully online, but can also work a room like nobody’s business and naturally attract people.  The social media manager’s job is to convert that knowledge and charisma into online social capital.

What do you think?  Is it possible to manage and teach people social media effectively without being social?