Take your social media offline.

I have a dirty little secret.

Ok, so it's not so dirty, but it's kinda sad: my best friend is my computer. 

My computer is

1) With me all the time.

2) Provides all the advice I need.

3) My entertainment.

The worse part? I miss it when I leave the house. I feel "empty." (Don't take me seriously, folks.)

If you've found that your computer is your best friend lately, I'm here to tell you that you're not alone: with the explosion of social media sites and pressure small business owners feel to keep up with the craze, it's no surprise that computers are "man's" new best friend. We're spending more hours than ever networking, socializing, and doing business online.

I don't know about you, but I think it's time we take a break from our computers. Let's take our businesses offline (sort of) by combining the best social media has to offer with real-world experiences.

Here are three ways merge social networking with offline marketing:

1. Promote your business around town with posters or fliers. Offer a prize to the first person who poses with your promotional piece and posts to Twitter.

2. Create a video contest for the best home-made commercial for your business on YouTube.

3. Join Biznik: the site offers online networking with real-world events. (Yes, real human to human interaction.)

Of course, this is just a short-list of ideas and the possibilities are endless. I hope, though, these are enough to get your wheels turning and get you away from the computer for at least a little while.

I'm interested to hear about any of your efforts to blend new technology with offline marketing efforts--how'd they work?