Quote from a blog I like

"It's impossible to explain a wave to someone standing on the shore." -- GwenBell.com

This summarizes some of the problems I had when first trying to understand why the company I work for would want to engage with people on/via Twitter, and now, come full circle, clearly illustrates the problem I have expressing to people above me why we should do more than try to engage via one medium only.

I'm certain that my situation is unique because I'm not in PR, not a PIO, or web-designer, or in any field that is commonly thought of as one that spreads the message, but I am one of the many people with the authority & accountability to solve problems for our Customers, and have a decade of experience in that field.  Now my labor is to try to convince others, who are completely foreign to the concepts of Social Media, to work step-by-step, instead of just focusing on scouting for the One Big Wave.

So far, I have only suceedly slightly, but I have seen that I'm not alone, as multiple discussions and new programs have shot up, triggered by the vaules of direct relationships with each of our Customer, and user-generated content. 

Maybe they're not on the shore anymore, maybe they're just boogie-boarding.