Just today, actually, I had a follower on Twitter, @Sullivan_Smith tweet at me, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRIEND I ONLY KNOW ON TWITTER!” (Yes, today is my birthday.)

So what if you want to move those connections into the ::gasp:: REAL WORLD? Well there are tools for that too, and they’re fantastic for strengthening friendships, networking, and even meeting new people you might not have ever found through the mass that is online social networks. Check below for some examples of sites to use, as well as a list of D.C. networking and meetup groups that I’m involved in (and you should be too!).

As a student, I’m already discovering the incredible benefits these IRL social media services provide. Just browsing sites like meetup.com, for example, yielded tons of opportunities to connect and network with other professionals and like-minded individuals in the D.C. metro area. I even found a book group that is discussing my very own sister‘s newest book this Thursday at Politics & Prose.

Of the more light-hearted nature are sites like Tablesurfing, which promises that “you’ll never eat alone again.” Although not particularly active (sadly, it actually seems very inactive right now), it still provides a good glimpse of the possibilities of using online social media for making IRL connections.

Finally, there are some services that, in my humble opinion, take themselves far too seriously in their goal of making real-life connections. Take By/Association, for example. Their introduction proudly proclaims the following:

By/Association is a private service for personal introductions to remarkable people.

We hand select our members for their exceptional creativitiy, vision, and cross-disciplinary networks.

We then introduce them to each other. Because when two amazing people get together, their potential impact grows and the world changes shape.

We know someone you should meet.

For them, there is an application process and, if selected, they contact you to hook up the meetup. Interesting, if a bit too hardcore for my personal liking.

Of course, all this is without even mentioning the myriad of third-party services that add-on to Twitter, Facebook, etc. for managing IRL meetups. Plan.fm is a new service that caught my eye recently, for example, and it aggregates event data from Facebook, Twitter, Eventbrite, Meetup.com, and even an iCal feed to put all your IRL events in the same place. Still a little iffy on quality and usefulness due to the limited manipulation you can do with your events there, but it shows some promise.

For me, there’s several groups right here in the District that I’ve discovered via some of these tools. I try to participate in as often as possible, as I’m already reaping some major dividends in terms of the friendships and networking connections that I’ve gained. Here’s a list of some of those groups and their upcoming events–hope to see you there.