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4 Ways I “listen” for Hollowing out the Middle
October 26th, 2009 by Mike Knutson
Today, I stumbled on a Facebook page for Hollowing out the Middle. It appears to have been created by the book’s publishers, who intend to use it as a means of advertising the book.
This isn’t the publishing company’s first foray into using social media as a means of marketing the book. In fact, I first became aware of the book because of a YouTube video they produced months in advance of the book’s release — leading me to publish this post.
I’ve decided to become a fan of the Hollowing out the Middle Facebook page because I hope it will lead me to additional resources on the book’s focus - which is how rural communities can stem youth outmigration.
Online listening is a skill that all rural leaders need to improve. (FYI - we all need to improve our face-to-face listening skills as well.) With that in mind, I thought I’d share a few ways that I listen for “Hollowing out the Middle.”
4 Ways I listen for “Hollowing out the Middle”
- I subscribe to a Google Alert for “Hollowing out the Middle”. This helps me receive new on-line content that is indexed by Google. (Resource explaining Google Alerts)
- I subscribe to an RSS feed for updates to their “News” section on the Hollowing out the Middle website. This means I don’t have to return to their website looking for new content or changes. (Resource explaining RSS feeds)
- I follow the term “Hollowing out the Middle” on Twitter using Tweetdeck’ssearch function. Because Twitter is real time, I often get the latest comments and resources people share about the book. (Resources explaining the use of TweetDeck’s search function)
- I became a fan of Hollowing out the Middle’s Facebook Fan Page. Hopefully, I see updates on upcoming events in my Facebook stream so that I can participate live. (Resource explaining Facebook Fan Pages, Profiles, and Groups)
Some may think this may be listening overkill. But I know the list is not all inclusive. What it does, however, is makes sure that I am able to participate in any conversation occurring online on the subject. If you know of other ways that I should be listening, I hope you will share.
Note: Other posts about Hollowing out the Middle on ReImainge Rural can be found here.
Photo Credit: wonderferret - Flickr
Tags: brain drain, hollowing out the middle, people attraction strategy, social media
Posted in Community Development, In the News, Rural | Comments (
2 )
October 27th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Thanks for the suggestions here Mike. I’m a pretty savvy internet user and I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how people keep up on news from around the world on topics. This is awesome and will definitely help me find stuff to write about more often. Thanks again.
October 27th, 2009 at 3:52 pm
Caleb,
I think the greatest value offered by social media is that it helps me “listen” to what other people are talking about. Some may call that “data mining,” some just call it learning. Guess it’s probably a little of both, and its definitely better than using search engines.
If I remember correctly, I discovered your blog because I follow “rural America” on Twitter. After reading it a bit, I concluded that you are sincere in your desire to share what you believe– but also learn yourself. I think that’s incredibly important for all of us with passion for rural places.
Hopefully, I’m able to get some time to write a few comments on your blog again. When I do, it might seem like I’m challenging you a bit, but only because I think we can learn together. Keep it up.