While reading my morning feeds and reading posts from my favorite bloggers, I began to think about the technology and social media community in the Raleigh / Durham, North Carolina area. I love living and working in North Carolina. Being originally from Syracuse, New York, I have grown to truly love it here. How does this area stack up on social media radar in comparison to other metro areas like Atlanta, New York City, and Silicon Valley? On the surface, the Triangle area of North Carolina may not seem to command much importance. I continued to think... could the area become known for something better than it's penchant for fast-food breakfasts?
Social media and technology have allowed me to connect, befriend, and collaborate with people having similar interests that I would never have had been able to interact with otherwise. I consider myself to have an entrepreneurial spirit and have found that many of my social media connections locally have helped inspire and motivate me to continue working towards my personal goals.
As I became increasingly engaged in the local social media community, I had the pleasure of connecting with Damond Nollan. Damond is a local technology professional that is very active in the social media and blogging field. Earlier this summer, Damond launched a daily live audio program entitled "Room 3026 Live" on blogtalkradio.com. Each day, he and his team discuss current tech trends and pop culture topics. The format of the show is very well suited for collaboration via the live chat window. A core of dedicated regular listeners have continued to listen and interact with the show hosts and each other each day. Several friendships have blossomed as a result of Damond's show.
A couple of months ago, I had the pleasure of attending a Tweet-up with Damond at Bronto Software in Durham, NC where I had the pleasure of meeting Wayne Sutton. Wayne is very respected in the social media community and has spoken at South by Southwest and many industry conferences. He has worked tirelessly furthering the importance and functionality of social media platforms. Currently, he is the business development/marketing strategist for the location-based platform TriOut and a partner at OurHashtag.
Earlier today, Wayne was a special guest on Room 3026 Live. He discussed his story, some thoughts about the local technology and social community, as well as his opinions on the future of social media. It was also very inspirational and encouraging to hear his thoughts on the state of the local social media community.
After listening to today's program, I am convinced that the Raleigh / Durham area is becoming increasingly important in terms of social media. With social media players like Wayne and Damond working hard to further connections and local networking, I'm convinced that we are in a hot bed of technology and social media that will soon be recognized nationally.
Take a listen to today's program here: Room 3026 Live - Episode 73
~Tim
