Every once in awhile i hear someone make a comment about meeting someone in “Real Life” that they’ve already connected to on Social Media.

I understand.

I used to use that term too.

But it’s not accurate and I want to challenge you to change your words.

Tonight I will be having drinks and dinner with friends in Indianapolis that I met from my social media connections.

The man behind this monthly “Friend-Up” is Randy Clark who I met in “Real Life” in 2010 on Twitter.

Yet it wasn’t until January 2011 that I met Randy “Face to Face”.

Same goes with Ricky Potts.  Ricky and I communicated back and forth on Twitter and FourSquare for months before we met “Face to Face” last year.

Randy, Ricky, and hundreds of others I have communicated and conversed with in “Real Life” before ever being in the same room and talking “Face to Face”.

This “non-Face to Face” communication is possible due to the interactivity of social media platforms allow us to get to know someone before that “Face to Face” meeting occurs.

And there are several “Face to Face” meetings that I doubt I’ll ever have with people that I communicate with in “Real Life” due to distance.  Which is fine.

Just be careful that you don’t discount the “non-Face to Face” relationships as not being real.

On the other hand, it’s great to have those “Face to Face” meetings too.  Earlier this month Ashley Motia organized a Fort Wayne SpringUp TweetUp with dozens of folks in attendance. Next week the Social Media Breakfast Fort Wayne is scheduled for Tuesday morning.

Perhaps I’ll see you there.

We’ll call it “Face to Face”, okay?