I think you put this all very well: “I truly believe in the power of language and when the masses misuse or abuse certain expressions, meaning gets lost among the societal understanding.” I was going to say that expert is one of those words that is just getting all the color sucked from it — like when you suck the syrup out of a snowcone or something.

I agree with you that Chris Brogan brings something to the discussion every single day. But beyond that, the people I look up to are those — like you, suddenly — who make me consider the “tools” differently, or who help me just consider the world differently. That, it seems to me, accounts for why the people who use SM merely for marketing funnels (which is fine I suppose) leave me cold. I rarely will re-think my perspective on an issue just because I was invited to a VIDEO FOR A NEW WAY TO INCREASE MY TRAFFIC, or whatever.

The thoughtful comments on your post (and on mine, on a similar topic) give me pause and hope both; hope, because people in the community are really thinking about this. Pause, because will the people in the community be the ones pondering these questions?

But thanks for a great post, regardless.

Merredith’s last blog post..How to Save a Life: Humanizing Technology

@Hubert — I think many, if not all, of us still feel like n00bs sometimes. To people in my immediate meatspace, they “see” me as an “expert” simply because a) they know I’m a computer geek, and b) therefore, my familiarity with SM trumps their UNfamiliarity with it. In the same vein as @Bill’s point, everybody is an expert to someone. I’m an expert to the people I usually encounter offline, but when you put me in a room of OTHER SM-types, I will feel like the n00b, questioning how much I really know. I do that all the time, actually. Maybe it’s good that I do, maybe it keeps me grounded. I don’t know.

@Emma+Meghan I also studied communication and PR in school … technically my degree is in “organizational communication,” which I just tell people is a long word for PR, which it basically is. Why such an elusive title, I don’t know. Anyway, I’m not sure how I feel about the title of “practitioners” … it sounds too formal. I like “enthusiast” but that doesn’t quite capture it, either. And where do you work that has an actual “social networking team”? I need to get a job there!

The cool thing about social networking is that I found this article from Twitter, and we get to do this at work because we’re on the social networking team.

While I’ve been using forms of social media for ages, I still feel like a n00b. This is mainly because I have never used social media in any way that I take some qualitative analysis from it. I just used it as a social tool and – on occasion – as a promotional tool that I now realize made me look like a tool.

Anyway, I am glad there are so many people that think they are “experts,” because it help me see how to approach others that ask me about using social media to market themselves. I know NOT to act as if social media is the end-all device. Also, I know better than to get folks’ hopes up too. It takes work and everyone is not driven enough to do it. I feel sorry (well, not really) for all these experts that are selling individuals/companies magic beans to make a quick buck. I really hope they don’t ruin the power of social media before it really gets started.

I didn’t get to meet you guys (thatdamnredhead and Bill) formally at Podcamp, but I’m sorry I didn’t. I follow both of your blogs now and you guys provide great stuff to consider!

I don’t know exactly how I feel about your comment, @ Shannon, about “us” assigning people experts!

I’m not sure that is anyone’s place. It’s not like there is a governing body over social media like there is with doctors and lawyers. Why do we even have to assign titles. Can we just look up to people?

Everyone is an expert to someone!

I’ve seen people who are incredibly green with respect to their involvement in social media respond to this idea with ‘well, if there are no social media experts, I guess I’m a social media expert.’

It’s important that *we*, as members of a community, assign and acknowledge people like Chris Brogan and Brian Solis as social media experts… otherwise, people seem to think the title is up for grabs.

Love the “Your Mom is an Expert” title, and Bill’s idea for getting second and third opinions from people you trust. I think he’s pretty smart — and that goes for you, too, Stacy!

Glad to see you blogging on the regular. : )