RSVP Etiquette – So much technology, so few responses.

Hello blogosphere,

I know that my entries are usually based on a specific company or happening, but I’m taking a different route today.  I’ll be using a personal experience and combining it with some vital information, that I think everyone in our technologically savvy world should consider.

I had a party this weekend for my college graduation … a momentous occasion, obviously!  I invited over 50 people,   my method of invitation: Facebook Invites.  Now, for those of you new to the social media frenzy, Facebook invites give you an area to describe the event (time, date, place, etc.) , it shows the people who have responded yes, no, and “maybe”, as well as areas for comments.  For those of you who are more  visual learners, here’s an example:

Of the 40 people I invited to this party, 23 responded yes, 10 responded no, and the rest responded “maybe”.  Understanding that sometimes things come up, I sent a message out 1) on facebook, and 2) through text message to my “maybe” guests that stated, “Those of you who are maybe’s, please do your best to let me know ahead of time whether or not you will be here because I need to have a good count for food preparation.”  I heard back from about half of them which brought my attendance count to over 30 people.  Party day arrived and 15 people attended. I didn’t hear from anyone letting me know they wouldn’t be there, or something came up.

Here’s my question:

With all of the technology that we have today, is it really that hard to let someone know you won’t be there?

We’ve got cell phones, and internet … we’ve got cell phones WITH internet, and yet we can’t respond accordingly.  It takes 2 seconds to shoot a text that says, “sorry, won’t be there”, and even less time to BBM someone.  We’ve got facebook which you can reply to a status, write on someone’s wall, or remove yourself from a guest list.  Twitter allows you 140 characters to say, “Not going to the party today, something came up”!  Our society claims to be so reliant on these “forms of  communication”,  and yet we’re, somehow, not connecting.

I guess the point of this entry is to open people’s eyes.  We have so many devices that allow us to expand our communication methods, and yet communication is disappearing in our world. I think we all need to sit back, take a good look at what we have around us, and use everything accordingly.

More social media workings to come, I just felt the need to throw this out there.