Once again, I had a fantastic time at tonight’s panel hosted by Razorfish. The panelists included myself, Jon Swartz – USA Today (Moderator), Megan O’Connor, Director of Digital Marketing at Levi’s, Sam Faillace – Senior Director of Brand Marketing at Shutterfly and Marissa Gallagher – Vice President, User Experience at Razorfish.

Garrick Schmitt kicked off the discussion and emphasized that we were all there to learn how social media has impacted the way companies can interact with people. He even showed a funny illustration by Hugh Macleod – “You’re a Social Media Specialist? WOW, I am a Social Media Specialist too”. I think Garrick’s point was that social media is still new and we are all on this quest to try and figure it out.

This concept really hit home for me and I was hoping that I could share my point of view on this topic but it never came up; and since this is my blog, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to do just that.

I consider myself a student; a student of the “Social Media Expert” because I learn new things everyday.

This article in the Examiner written by Eric Elkins inspired me to write this short but to the point paragraph or two about social media experts. It’s been brewing in my mind for a while now; and I even wrote about this very subject a few months ago, undoubtedly irritated about a few things. I am over it and decided to share my thoughts in a more diplomatic fashion.

Social Media Experts don’t exist quite yet; and I am not sure they ever will. Here is why I feel this way:

Social media tools change everyday. People change everyday. And the way people use these tools change everyday. Being an expert in human behavior is not something you can accomplish from blogging and using twitter all day long. One form of an expert is a sociologist; and they spend many years researching, creating surveys, acquiring and analyzing the data and then using the information to base logical predictions and conclusions. And, they usually have patients too. Not followers, but real life patients. A two-minute video on how to increase your twitter followers and use Bit.ly links is probably not as sufficient.

Additionally, branding one’s self with social media is much different than helping a brand connect with people online. Every company has a different culture, business processes, policies & procedures, web infrastructure, perspectives on customers & marketing, human capital, etc. And then let us not forget that every company has a different value proposition (i.e. products & services). Unless you work in the enterprise, you can only imagine the chaos that can ensue when trying to find the right opportunity to begin using social media and doing it the right way. It’s a learning process and yes, there are times when you fail. I’ve been there.

A true “expert” in mind is someone who is always learning how consumers behave and interact in this space; and then figuring out how to leverage that movement in a meaningful way for everyone’s benefit (i.e. the brand and consumer). And even then, they are still probably not an expert.

OK, back to tonight’s panel – here are some pics from the event. It was really great to meet some really awesome new people (who I am sure will be attending my next tweetup) and also catching up with some old friends too. Highlight of the night was that I finally meet Scobleizer in person.  He’s definitely a superb dude.

Next stop in a few hours is San Mateo at this free panel hosted by buddy Frosty from HP. You should check it out; and if not, I will be posting some video and pictures tomorrow night.