From Physical to Virtual. And Back Again.

So my son, 16 years old, says to me the other day: “I don’t like having a Facebook page. It keeps everyone at arm’s length. And you might say things you can’t take back…ever.”

Instead of allowing my imagination to run rampant with worry over what he could possibly be referencing in that latter part, I thought instead of that first part–being kept at arm’s length. The question that came up was:

Just what does social media do for our personal and business relationships? And what doesn’t it do?

In a nutshell, it helps us make great personal connections. We can find old friends we lost track of. Upload the pic of the “gourmet” food we made for dinner. Brag about our seriously gifted children. And secretly analyze pictures of our ex-boyfriend’s wives…or so I hear.

When it comes to our role as consumers, we can support our favorite brands by being their ambassadors with ardent ‘likes’ and passionate testimonials.

And as brands, we can reach our consumer base in a playful and interactive way. We can reward them with coupons and incent them with contests and give them more information and hard-driving content than their human hard drives can possibly hold.

But at the end of the day it will never replace a handshake from a business associate or a hug from a friend. And apparently this POV is crystallizing with some pretty savvy MIT inventors.

Say hello to the “Like-A-Hug” Facebook-connected vest. Yup–you can get a squeeze from anyone who likes something you’ve put on your page. Check it out:

http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/10/like-a-hug-facebook-connected-vest-lets-you-know-you-are-liked/

So in an age when everything is at once deeply social, yet completely bereft of a real human connection, there’s finally a way to bridge that virtual/physical gap.

My Phase 2 suggestion for these MIT kids? Hugs that differentiate between a good friend and creepy Facebook stalker guy.