Let’s Get Social

If you’ve already looked at the Ranch & Coast page on this site, you know that in 2004 I landed “the best job ever” in a really random way. I love writing the monthly travel feature for this beautiful magazine.

And I really enjoy adding articles to my sites Authentic Luxury Travel and La Jolla Travel Information.

And now, it seems, I have another way to connect with fellow travelers.

Kismet – again

“We’d like you to attend our Georgia O’Keeffe exhibit…” the email from an art museum in upstate New York began. My heart soared (I’m a huge fan of the artist) and then sank when I saw the dates.

“Thank you for the invitation,” I replied, “but I’m afraid that given the timeframe of the show and our magazine’s deadline, I won’t be able to write about it.”

“Oh,” the sender wrote, “you write for a magazine? We were just hoping you would cover our event on Authentic Luxury Travel and promote it within your social media network.”

Do what you love

At that moment, I couldn’t help thinking about our nephew – whose parents were concerned about the amount of time he spent playing video games – until the gaming skills he acquired enabled him to excel in the military strategy classes he took at the United States Military Academy at Annapolis.

When I made my first Facebook friends, I never dreamed how much fun I’d have connecting with other travelers. It is so much fun, in fact, that my reach has grown to more than 25,000 friends, followers, connections, and acquaintances across six social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, and Google+  (I’d love for you to follow me on Twitter @4Luxury_Travel)

More exposure for places I sincerely enjoy

Social media enables me to share places and events in real time and reach a broad spectrum of travelers. This improves the timeliness of the information I provide without compromising the quality. My opinion isn’t for sale in print or online.

Thanks to the connections I’ve made in social media, I’ve been able to provide guest posts on a broader scope of topics than I could provide working on my own. This guest post on rafting in Bhutan is a great example. I’ve also been able to learn from a variety of travel professionals outside the U.S. – such as Van Nguyen.

For the most part, social media connection remain online – but that wasn’t the case with Madhumita from Delhi who found me through La Jolla Travel Information. “I’m coming to La Jolla for a conference and I don’t want to sit in my hotel at night missing my kids. Can you suggest things I can do in the evenings?”

A week later, we were walking along the La Jolla coast together, chatting away like old friends.