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.

Prior to 2010 if I said ‘Hide your kids, hide your wife” most people would probably go into a panic and assume danger was lurking.  Now this phrase brings a smile to faces as they recall the viral “Bed Intruder” video.  Antoine Dodson became an internet sensation when believe it or not, his sister was attacked in her home and the local news came to interview the family.  Antoine was very upset and quite animated.  The folks over at  schmoyoho took his interview added a catchy beat and vocal effects which catapulted Dodson into the hottest thing on the internet.  Since the video has gone viral Antoine has appeared on countless talk shows.  The parody is actually sold on iTunes and with the profit Antoine and his family have plans to buy a home.

Most recently another unintentional celebrity has merged from the web.  Ted  William better known as “The man with the golden voice” is someone who had fallen on his luck.  Ted was once on air radio personality who gave into his addictions to drugs & alcohol.  Eventually his vices (which apparently he is still battling with) cost him his career and he has been homeless for quite some time.  A local newspaper filmed him for their YouTube channel and the video was such a hit that in the matter of 4 days Ted William got a haircut, a home, reunited with his mother, a slue of TV show appearances, and what he wanted the most a job.

Your business could become a hit on the net as well.  A flip camera, creative idea, and good marketing plan can result in an excellent web video. Although it is important to think outside the box don’t forget to stay relevant to your products and/or service.  Trying out new marketing techniques could have a great payoff.  Even if your video doesn’t quite reach viral status, your organization will be sure to have star power in the eyes of potential clients.

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.

From self taught makeup artist to comedians the popular video website has become a 15 minutes to fame express lane. You’re probably reading this wondering what in the heck this has to do with you and growing your business. Many companies have also been using video as another component to their marketing efforts. Video can help your company feel more relatable. By putting face to your organization people feel like you are down to earth and trustworthy. A short video on your website (when appropriate) can also add a dynamic element to help it stand out from the rest. If you are in a more creative field a more whimsical and kitschy approach can be taken. Go out and find yourself a camera, get strategically creative, and who knows your video could go viral and your company could be the next internet sensation.

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/.

Something that was less of a controversy yet I still managed to notice was the presence of social media at the awards show. Youtube sensation Ijustine was at the VMAs working as a correspondent for MTV. Twitter was also a big part of the evening. In fact Ijustine‘s sole duty on the show was to report on the VMA twitter converge. Many make-up artist and stylist where tweeting from the red carpet and giving us a sneak peek into who their clients for the evening were and what look they were going for. Celebrities also got into the Twitter fun. Singers like Pink and Katy Perry for example tweeted live from the show to express how disappointed in Kanye’s behavior they were.

It seems what was a big night in music was also a big night for social networking. There is no denying that social media is rapidly becoming a huge part of our daily lives. Considering a social media strategy for your organization is a great cost effect tool your business could benefit from. This type of marketing will show your potential and existing clients that your firm is current with the times and also gives your organization a sense of accessibility. From businesses to the red carpet social media is definitely the new it star in town.