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I’ve invited Traci Hayner Vanover to share a post today.  I connected with her through social media and our mutual love of caffeine and animals.  A fantastic resource for all things related to social media – and small business in general.  Check out her sites at the end of this post, lots of resources to learn from.

My husband and I share our home and life with three spoiled rotten Yorkshire terriers.

Anyone that’s known me longer than five minutes will surely tell you that I love to share stories about my canine kids, and how there’s scarcely a dull moment at our house. I’m one of “those” dog owners that dresses her dogs — and photos of the furry trio often grace my Facebook page.

Yes, I’m crazy about my dogs. But, I was just as surprised as anyone when I realized how much they could teach me about social media. Dogs have a zest and appreciation for life that we could all do well to adopt. On any given day, they’d easily be social media icons (save for that pesky typing issue).

They’re Comfortable in Their own Skin

Dogs are content simply to be. They don’t feel the need to put on airs. You won’t catch a pound puppy purporting himself to be a pedigree — if he has someone to love, food to eat, and a place to sleep, chances are he’s a pretty contented canine.

Personalities are in plentiful supply on Facebook and Twitter – but, take a quick survey of users and you’ll soon determine that the folks that they enjoy reading the most are the ones that are genuine. They’re transparent — what you see is what you get. This makes them all at once entertaining, relatable and most importantly, real.

They’re Fiercely Loyal

Whether it’s been five minutes or five days, you’ll likely receive the same warm reception from your four-legged friends. There’s nothing like the sight of a wagging tail to make you feel loved and appreciated. Is it any wonder dogs are lauded as man’s best friend?

Do you take the time to say hello to your social media contacts when you see them come online? Do you follow up with them to ask them how specific projects turned out? Do you congratulate them on successful product launches, or their son’s homerun video on YouTube? A real friend would.

Genuine Curiosity

Dogs love to investigate their surroundings. With a keen ear and a sensitive nose, they can easily identify opportunities that others may simply overlook. Dogs can find an adventure in their own backyard as easily as they can at the local dog park. What a wonderful trait that we could all learn from!

Think about Seth Godin’s book, Everyone’s an Expert. Whether your social media contacts are in the same zip code or halfway around the world, they offer a wealth of knowledge to you. Get to know them. Can they teach you a new skill you’ve been dying to learn? Do they have a mouth-watering fudge recipe to share? You’ll never know until you get to know them better.

They Don’t Crap Where they Sleep

You’d expect this one to be common sense, but you’d be wrong. This is a lesson that a former employee of the Ketchum Agency found out the hard way after his tweet about Memphis was subsequently read (and responded to) by employees at FedEx. Incidentally, Mr. Andrews was giving a presentation at FedEx just a few hours later. Can you say uncomfortable?

The next time you log onto your favorite social media venue, take a moment and think like Lassie, Benji or your favorite four-legged friend. You may well be surprised by the results.

About the Author:

Traci Hayner Vanover, aka the Promo Diva®, is a freelance writer, coach and consultant that specializes in working with small businesses and startups. Drawing on over twenty years experience in the fields of marketing and promotion, Traci’s signature style blends helpful tips and resources with a healthy dose of humor. She is the author of Five Dollar Fortunes, an ebook that helps users successfully leverage their sales on Fiverr to generate leads, drive traffic and increase revenue.

Traci is also the founder and publisher of Entrepreneur & Self-Employed Business Journal, a digital business magazine that offers a wealth of information, tools and resources.