I attend a lot of meetups/tweetups, networking events and conferences. With the rush of companies jumping onboard the social media bandwagon, I see a lot of advertisements and some companies trying really hard to be social and to be a part of this space. I see it when I go eat… I see it when I’m driving… I see it on business cards all the time…

Follow Us on Twitter!

“Like” Us on Facebook!

The problem is they don’t tell me WHERE to follow them on Twitter or WHERE to “Friend”/”Like” them on Facebook.

Social Media Advertising Fail #1: (Thanks to @Ramon_Deleon for the find)

I see restaurants do this all the time. They have a stack of business cards near the front by the register and they tell you to “Follow” them on Twitter and “Become a Fan on Facebook” yet they provide no address on where to do so. They say “yeah, we do social media. Take our card and look for us.”

Social Media Advertising Fail #2:

These guys are great. I met them at the recent Connect OC meetup in Orange County. They’re called The Rest Stop Massage and let me tell ya, they give a mighty damn good massage. They handed me their business card an apparently you get a free 20 minute massage after your first five paid massages but I was told you’re only eligible if you follow them on Twitter which sounds ok except their business card gives you NO INFORMATION WHATSOEVER on where to follow them.

Social Media Advertising Fail #3: (Photo Credit: Mykl Roventine)

This photo I pulled from Flickr but I’ve seen several deli’s and small mom-and-pop coffee houses do this. They have a nice big “Follow Us” sign, offer “Daily Specials” and yet provide no indication of WHERE precisely to follow them on Twitter.

Give Me A URL:

Now I don’t want you to think that I’m bashing on any of the above companies (or anyone who falls into this category). I applaud their effort and it’s great to see when the local coffee house is or the local restaurant is on Twitter. And I think it’s even better when they’re engaging with their followers! But when you’re advertising for people to connect with you on Social Networks, and you put no information in regards to where (a username or url), it’s a wasted opportunity. I shouldn’t have to chase you down and search endlessly to connect with you…you should make it easy for me to do so.

What do you think?

UPDATE: Here’s an excellent social media business card example from @MariSmith designed by the talented team at @VPG_Printing. Note all of the social networking icons and indication of url/username so people know precisely where to connect.