Have you ever taken some clients out for golf? Do you periodically send your customers and prospects newsletters that offer tips on safety, ways to save on premiums or information on new products? Well, that's all social networking. You may think, "That can't be; it's too easy and I've been doing it for years. Where are all the gadgets and gizmos?"

The truth is, it's not about the tools–it's about building relationships and demonstrating unique value. I recently attended a conference in Chicago on social networking–Brand Camp 2009–during which a panelist equated social networking with those lazy summer afternoons where your grandmother might have been sitting on the porch watching the day go by along with her neighbors–choosing to talk, or not, about the weather or the latest canned peaches she finished making.

Back then, communication was all about person-to-person relationships; networking happened down at the barbershop or local five-and-dime store. Then technology came along and conversations began to spread, with news and information traveling farther and faster. With the advent of radio and television, broadcast became a "one-to-many" stream–announcer to audience. Then the computer and Internet came along, and all of a sudden communications became a dialogue again and e-mail brought back networking. But it was still missing something.