The decrease in commenting can be accredited to none other then social media. More and more people are opting to share posts they find interesting rather then comment. And guess what? It’s good for business! Think of it this way… having a client tell you they are happy with the work you provided them is great, but what’s even better is having that client tell 5 friends they are happy with the work YOU provided them.

Adding a sharing tool (a widget that allows your blog visitors to easily send your link out to their social networks) is a great way to get visibility and drive your brand values.  It’s also a great way to get a group of people talking about your brand who otherwise wouldn’t.  Be sure to look for sharing plugins that make it easy for you to track who is sharing your link. (AddThis is the industry standard, it’s easy to install and best of all free).

As nice as it is to hear all the positive feedback you also want to be able to track down any negative issues as well (remember social networking is a great opportunity for customer service . Add sharing tools to your blog today to open the conversation… to everyone.

Sealed with a K.I.S.S. – The look and feel of this site is very simple and clean.  The Keep It Stupid Simple principle is most certainly applied.  With social networking the content is driven by users whose content cannot be anticipated.  Keeping the site design simple allows the website to avoid looking cluttered.

Easy Catch – The usability of the site is also pretty intuitive. The different sections on the site all have catchy names that make it easy for you to associate them with their purpose.  All your updates and friends updates can be found on the Stream, Your friends can be found and grouped together in the Circles section, conversations happen over in the Huddle, and Spark is the section dedicated to showcasing and discovering things that interest you – a strategic repurposing of Google’s all powerful search.  Finally if you need some face time with a friend or two head on over to the Hangout section for video chatting.

Seamlessly Annoying – Since this is a Google product naturally the site seamlessly integrates all your Google accounts into your profile.  No need to upload pictures.  Your Picasa (soon to be Google photos) automatically feeds into your Google+ account.  As much as I enjoy having one less thing to do this ended up being even more of a hassle as I had to go into my Picasa account and change the visibility settings to a ton of my albums.

Out of Business – If you are wondering how and if your company should set up a Google+ account the only answer is no.  Google has yet to open up the new site to businesses and brands and in this early stage most users are just familiarizing themselves with the network and are more focused with building their personal circles.

Even though Google+ isn’t a place for brands just yet I think Google definitely has the clout to make this a top contender in the social networking scene which in the future could lead to a new venue for online advertising. I encourage you to bookmark the site and keep your eye on it for future marketing opportunities.. In the interim take note on Google’s simple, clean, and catchy approach to social networking which is a + in my book.

Right under your nose – The first place to look for social media followers is your client list.  Current or past clients are the ideal audience to build a foundation for your fan base because they (hopefully) have a good relationship with your company and will have no problems letting people in their network know how much they enjoy working with you.

If WE build it – We’ve all heard the saying ‘If you build it, they will come.”  Unfortunately it isn’t that easy with social media.  Including your audience in decisions and encouraging them to voice their opinions will make them root for you much harder. When WE build it instead of YOU not only will people come they will tell their friends about it.

Make it worth their while – The more brands realize the importance of social media, the more saturated social networking sites are becoming.  People have the option to follow hundreds upon hundreds of their favorite brands. In order to stand out you’ll need something exclusive to offer your followers. Whether it is exclusive information or special offers/discounts, show your online community you appreciate them.

Follow the leader – A great way to build a following is to tap into a community that already exists by building a relationship with its leaders. Look for popular bloggers in your field, follow them and engage in online conversations.  Their networks will soon notice your back and forth and their curiosity will most likely get you a few new followers.

Make friends, not enemies – Definitely  try different tactics for gaining new followers to see what works and what doesn’t however, there is one method that has proven to be a social networking no-no.  Do not bombard your followers’ networks with unsolicited messages/request to follow you.  Most social networking sites have strict rules on this practice; mainly it’s spam. Spamming is counterproductive to building your network since your account will most likely be suspended.

Taking these tips into consideration, your follower count should go up in no time.  Remember to provide valuable information and engage with your new found friends. Staying an active member of your own online community is just as important as seeing the numbers rise.

Tumblr is a microblogging site that has been gaining popularity thanks to its super simple interface that allows users to post and more importantly share posts of interest easily.   Many media outlets  have started to use Tumblr as a tool to gain visibility and new traffic to their sites and blogs. Newsweek pioneered the way with many others such as NPR, Huffington Post, & the Economist jumping on the Tumblr band wagon. These companies have all been using the site to post condensed content that redirects readers to their main blogs and/or websites. This has helped them attract a newer audience almost daily.

If your blog or website views are coming to a lull you may want to look into signing up. Keep in mind as great as Tumblr is, it isn’t for everyone. Organizations that cater to mass audiences versus B2B may find more benefits to Tumblr. If you do decide to give Tumblr a whirl here are a few tips:

• Your Tumblr posts should be related to the content on your main site but not as intense.
• Try following Tumblr pages with similar content as yours.
• The more people you interact with on Tumblr the more people will interact with you (ensuring higher visibility to your brand and message.)

Following these simple guidelines and maybe Tumblr can have the blog views rolling in.

Customer Input Reinvented – Starbucks My Idea is a social community that lives on the Starbucks website. The concept is simple. Customers make suggestions on what they want to see in the stores. Sounds like any other forum right? Well the genius behind this is that Starbucks actually selects the ideas with the most buzz and makes them happen. It’s taking listening to its customers to a whole new level and paying off in a big way for the coffeehouse.

Adapting to Your Target – There is no doubt that social media had a huge part in the last presidential election. President Obama’s campaign truly embraced this new era of marketing. Not only did his campaign set up profiles on all the major social networking sites, they also used tools such as Ustream to broadcast speeches on the web and an IPhone app that encouraged people to spread the word and vote. Obama’s approach captivated younger voters and they came out in droves to the polls. His fresh approach to politics and marketing were a winning combination. Let’s see if he can use these techniques to bring up his approval ratings…

Interacting With Your Audience – When Old Spice wanted to sell more body wash they realized they had to take a new approach – they bypassed their customers and went straight to their girlfriends. Old Spice launched a comical commercial featuring a tall dark and handsome guy enticing women to buy Old Spice body wash for their boyfriends so that they could smell just like him. The commercial was a hit and Old Spice took it to the next level. Old Spice launched personalized YouTube video responses to people who tweeted the Old Spice guy. Fans of the commercial loved this unique interaction so much that the campaign gained nationwide recognition for its innovative use of social networking.

Building a Brand – Chicago-based T-shirt company Threadless lives, breathes, and eats social media. For those who aren’t familiar, Threadless is a company that allows people to submit t-shirt designs to their site. Threadless customers then vote on which shirt designs will be sold for that week and the winning designers not only get their shirts sold but also some cash. Basically the company’s website in itself is an online community. Threadless is known for using social networking to build their brand and secure brand buy in. Their customers love how accessible and interactive they are and they have the following to prove it.

As you see with the examples i mentioned social media marketing is not to different from traditional marketing efforts you are use to yet when done correctly the results speak for themselves. With a little research, time, and effort your brand could also see big results by implementing social media into your marketing plan.

Social networking sites have become the new soapbox for people’s rants and raves about a company, service, or product.  They say 1 lost customer will tell at least 3 of their friends about their experience. With social networking in the mix that number could be anywhere from ten to thousands of people hearing about how good or bad your company is doing.  This may seem frightening but it isn’t just negative experiences that make it to status updates.   For example just the other day our President Facebook’ed about an excellent customer service experience she had during a stop at a local Staples store.

Websites like Facebook and Twitter allow you to get feedback directly from your customers almost instantly.  It is important to monitor both the negative and positive buzz associated with your company online.  If you can help a customer with a problem via social media not only will they sing your praises again, but their whole network will witness how committed you are to customer service.  This morning I was surfing the Comcast website ready to switch and now I am holding off hopeful that AT&T will fix my connection problems.  Be sure to also interact and thank those loyal customers who are raving about you. This is a great opportunity to get free market research and better understand your organization’s strengths and weaknesses. Don’t fail to take advantage of this opportunity to stay connected.

Traditional networking sites are a great venue for social media marketing but there are also other sites that are a bit more dynamic and can enhance your organization’s social media strategy. For example using Youtube can really enhance your social media plan. Youtube allows you to upload short videos and share them with your network and the web. Making a little video update and incorporating it into your company’s e-newsletter will make it stand out from the text-only newsletters in everyone’s inbox. Another social media tool that businesses often overlook is Flickr. Flickr is a photo hosting and social networking website. This approach seems the trickiest for businesses but it is very simple. Think of your organization’s products and/or services. Than go out take and upload pictures that showcase or directly apply to those products and/or services. The trick here is to take advantage of the tag options. Tagging your pictures with relevant keywords will make them pop up in search engines. Be sure to make your Flickr name your company’s URL so when these pictures do come up in web searches people’s curiosity will lead them to your website.

The beauty of these alternative social media options is both of them are easily integrated into your current social networking sites or official website. These creative approaches to social media will set you apart from other organizations and give your target audience yet another opportunity to get to know you.

Shortly after the news about the earthquake hit, the American Red Cross sent out a tweet letting their followers know they could help by donating $10 and all they had to do was simply text “Haiti” to 90999. By the same time the following day the Red Cross had already raised 800k. Red Cross efforts continue to be re-tweeted everyday and currently have raised nearly $20 million (and counting!) The Red Cross has also used other social media platforms to help generate awareness such as their Flickr photo stream and YouTube channel that both aid in showcasing just how crucial donations and volunteering are at this time.

Social media can be an effective tool for non-profits to bring awareness to their mission and help generate donations for their causes. For more information on the earthquake and how you can help Haiti visit http://www.redcross.org/.

Take for example Groupon, a social networking site where members living in the same area come together for group purchasing in search of discounts. The way it works is once a day Groupon announces a local deal that members can choose to purchase. If enough members purchase the offer it becomes valid (if not the offer is void and people who have already purchased do not get charged.) People interested in certain offers will reach out to their personal networks and try to get more people to buy in on the deal. Another site Foursquare is also all about your location and great discounts. On Foursquare you “check in” at certain locations in your area such as bars, restaurants, stores, etc and you receive points. Once your points exceed a certain amount you than are granted honors such as becoming “the mayor” of a location. This title comes with perks as mayors often get discounts to their favorite places in the city. Naturally this sparks a sense of competition and pride in members who will continue to support their favorite local businesses in an attempt to hold on to their title (or in some cases attempt to dethrone the current top dog.). Both sites are examples of how all over the internet people are coming together for the sake of a good deal.

You can apply the same motto to your social networking as well. Do you want to increase your twitter following? Run a promotion where if you reach X amount of followers you will issue a discount code. People interested in receiving the deal will surely promote the offer to people in their network helping generate awareness of your organization. The only thing people like more than a discount is a freebie. Host a giveaway on any of your social platforms and just watch how your network increases. Cutting your target audience a deal every now and then is something they will appreciate. In turn they are more likely to stay loyal and even spread the word about you. Happy clients and increased awareness is a deal you should never pass up.

The doubt lies in the fact that people do not know the difference between social media and social networking. Social media, as defined by Anvil Media Inc. a SEM company, is an umbrella term that defines the various activities that integrate technology, social interaction, and the construction of words and pictures. Social networking however is simply a form of social media.  Still confused well think of it this way.   Here at Blue Daring’s Eat Mo’ ‘Fo, we like to think of your organization as a person and as such lets liken social media to a wardrobe. Things such as your website, a blog, or message boards/forums are mostly staple pieces. Social networking initiatives are the trendy items you purchase to spice up your staples from time to time.

Just like a real wardrobe you can’t rely only on fads and what is trendy. We all know that social networking sites are subject to waves of popularity. (Remember how big MySpace was a few years ago?) Your ability to capitalize on these waves, however, can be a real opportunity for visibility. The key is using strategy to integrate your staples (i.e. social media outlets) with your trendy accessories (i.e. social networking). Further, like accessories, social networking is meant to draw attention to your main pieces, that said never reveal too much and always draw people back to your site.  So to answer the skeptics out there, no I don’t think Facebook will be around forever however, while sites may indeed come and go; a dynamic web marketing strategy never goes out of style.