Are Facebook and Twitter the best ways to announce your Engagement?

Social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter are fabulous for getting your message across en masse.  So when you're newly engaged should you use these online tools to announce it to the world?  I think not....and here's why:

1. - Think about who follows you on Facebook or Twitter.
Will they be invited to the wedding?  If not, then you could potentially hurt feelings.  Also, do you really know who your Twitter followers are?  Chances are your don't.  So, just like you wouldn't invite every Tom, Dick or Harry you meet on the street, you shouldn't send out an announcement about your engagement to people you don't know.  Besides, something this precious is meant to be shared with only those you intend to invite to the wedding.

2. - Both Facebook and Twitter were developed to create quick, informative messages to those that follow you.  Although quick, it's also very impersonal.  For example, a friend of mine recently made the mistake of telling a friend she was pregnant before she was able to connect with her parents.  The friend she told then posted on Facebook that she was so excited for her.... Can you guess how her parents found out the special news?  Although she took precautions, her loud mouthed friend didn't, and thus ruined the special moment between her and her parents that she can never get back.

3. - Should you mail an announcement or send one via email?
I tend do be an old fashioned guy and, if you ask most seasoned planners, we will all say the same thing...Mail it!  Plain and simple, it's proper etiquette.  I don't know about you, but personally I enjoy getting something other than a bill or solicitations in the mail.  It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy...And if you are worried about the expense of creating and mailing a wedding announcement, don't!  There are plenty of fabulous on line sites that have amazing finds such as FineStationery.com.  They have pages and pages of beautifully designed wedding announcements, wedding invitations, save the dates and much more.  They even have a fabulous team of people you can call and speak to if you get stumped.  So, before you say no to mailing an announcement, check them out.

4. - Should I blog about my wedding planning experience?
If you have the time to write, and you feel you are going to help others who are going through the same experience as you are, then I say yes.  If you are going to use that "forum" to complain, be a Bridezilla, or trash the wedding professionals, then I say no, you shouldn't.  There are plenty of amazing wedding blogs out there that were started by brides such as yourself and they have evolved into extremely informative tools.  But, there are also plenty of blogs out there that , honestly, I can't respect due to the lack of information, tone and content.  I say only write the blog if you can update it at least once a week.  You need to offer a take away; whether it be advice, great resources, or even mistakes you have made.  Also, you should write it only if you plan on phasing your newlywed experience into the blog after the wedding by posting your honeymoon experience, blogging about your first home together and even transitioning it when you're expecting your first child.

While the internet is quick and at our finger tips, you really need to stop and think before using it to announce those important moments in your life.

Until next time...

Cheers