Keep the dialog going

Scott Johnson is really getting serious. Check out his blog here. If you have comments, put them there or on mine. We need to know your thoughts, and hopefully in a positive way.

I agree with Scott, I do not want the perception of the Roche Social Media Summit as being nothing more than marketing or as one person said to me a public relations ploy. This does not appear to be the intention at this time. Are we right in being skeptical and being cautious? This appears to be a healthy attitude and I would not want to have it otherwise.

I also want to look at it another way, if Roche wants to bring the diabetes on line community (DOC) together with some of the leading diabetes groups and organizations for a face to face, this could be a giant leap forward in communications and exposure for both sides.

Looking on the positive side, we need all the help we can get to make these organizations recognize that we are writing about diabetes and looking for answers, places that the DOC can draw on for ideas and resources. We also need to communicate from our side the concerns and problems faced by the DOC and those of us living with diabetes. And this means those are lucky enough to attend and those not in attendance.

Could Roche interact more with us throughout the year? Definitely, and I think they are contemplating doing just that. Scott asks some very good questions at the end of his blog so I will quote them here:

- I am not exactly clear on what "Social Media" means. Is it possible that there is more to "Social Media" than blogging - which is where I come from? Who else needs to come to these things? Are we too heavy on bloggers, and not heavy enough on other "Social Media" channels? What are those other channels?
- I know nothing about how people get picked to be invited. I wish there was a little more transparency here. I think I have paid my dues in the Diabetes Online Community (and hope to continue doing so), but should that mean I'm automatically invited to stuff like this?

Please folks, let me know how you feel about this stuff. I need your input to help me know if I'm doing the right things or not. Unquote

I do know how I was invited – I was recommended by a prior year attendee. Have I paid my dues? Definitely not to the extent that Scott has. However, I do see an opportunity to assist others and help communicate their needs to people like Roche. I also see an obligation to Scott and others of the DOC to aid in make diabetes and the DOC a better place for all of us.

Even though I do not participate on Twitter and Facebook, I would consider them part of the “Social Media”

So both of us do want your thoughts, questions and opinions. Please!