I did it. I signed up for two more social media time sucks this week. First, after obsessively reading everything I could about SxSW so I could pretend I was actually there, I signed up for Gowalla. What is Gowalla? Well, it’s a location-based social network, where you “check-in” at actual locations. There are two major ones called Foursquare and Gowalla (plus other smaller ones) vying for the market, and it seems likely that eventually one will win. (Does anyone use Myspace anymore?) If you’re interested, try Googling “Gowalla vs. Foursquare”, and while you’re there, bone up on ways to protect your privacy when/if you choose to use this kind of media.
The reasons I chose Gowalla over Foursquareare two-fold: it’s an Austin-based business, and it seemed to be the bigger buzz this year at SxSW. Most people who attend SxSW Interactive are the early-adopter types, who will suss out all the bugs and tell the rest of us which direction we should go in. So I’m trying Gowalla and will fill you in on my thoughts.
The second thing I’ve signed up for is Twitter. Let me share something with you that if you are reading this blog you probably already know (because you are my mom or my sister or my sister-in-law). I leave very long, drawn out messages on your voicemail. I have to force myself to keep my blog posts from going into multiple pages, usually by going back and editing everything out. I’m what the old folks might call “long winded”, especially after a beer or two. So. Can I conform to the 140 character limits of Twitter? Will I want to? We shall see. It will be fun to find out. (I’m practicing brevity there. ha!)
I’m thinking about devoting one blog post a week to my adventures in social media. I will even create a whole category for it, just to remind myself to do it! I’m hoping to chronicle not only my personal experiences, but also a big upcoming project for work. I will be bringing our Foundation into the 21st century through Facebook and maybe even Twitter – exciting! Stay tuned.
Courtney Hoyt 
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