Social media gets a ton of attention these days but many people don't understand that having the right mindset with the new tools and technology is actually more important than simply knowing how to use the tools. This is my presentation about how to think about the social media the right way.

1. How to Use A Chainsaw Without Cutting Off Your Leg (and other social media marketing help) Bill Seaver MicroExplosion Media

3. January 2005 – 6 million

4. January 2006 – 24 million

5. July 2006 – 50 million

6. March 2007 – 70 million

7. February 2008 – 112 million

8. September 2008 – 133 million Source: Technorati

10. March, 2008: 11.5 billion views

11. November, 2008: 12.7 billion

12. March, 2009: 14.5 billion

13. (and the average viewer is watching almost six hours of online video per month now) Source: comScore

15. 84% - 25-34 years old

16. 76% - 35-44 years old

17. 72% - 45-54 years old

18. 62% - 55+ Source: Forrester Research

20. 31% of Americans believe companies should not only be present in social media, but should interact with them as well.

21. 20% of Americans feel a stronger connection and better served by companies when they can interact with them in a social media environment. Source: Cone Business in Social Media Study, 2008

22. So how do you keep from cutting off your leg?

24. Distant

25. Corporate

27. Informal

28. Collaborative

29. Conversational

31. Ads are about the advertiser. Content is about the consumer.

32. "Who" verses "How Many"

33. Speaking the language of smart

34. Get prosonal

36. assume consumers care.

37. don’t mind interrupting people’s lives.

38. promote their product or service as “the best” even when they know it isn’t.

40. Speak the language of smart.

41. Seek to add value to the people they want to reach.

42. Know that interruptions become annoyances and annoying companies don’t succeed.

43. Are interested in protecting the interests of the people they want to reach and the interests of their company or client.

44. Mindset and the Technology

45. Bill Seaver MicroExplosion.com Twitter: billseaver