Social media allows communities to form online and share information peer-to-peer on a large scale. This new environment empowers communities and gives them influence over others. Companies need to understand social media and engage communities that discuss their products, as opinion leaders can impact market share. Social networking sites, blogs, bookmarks, microblogs, videos, and widgets are some common social media tools discussed.

1. Social Media CSO Breakfast Club April 9, 2008

2. AGENDA Discuss and understand social networking behavior (how people make decisions) Understand how a new set of behaviors has emerged over the Web Scale and efficiency Empowered communities Limitless storage Engagement (buying engine not selling engine) “ Database of intentions” - John Battelle Review of social media tools and how they are best used Why your companies need to do this

3. SOCIAL MEDIA DEFINED Social media can be defined as the platforms and tools that make social networking behavior scalable and efficient Information and advice about what products to buy is now being given, peer to peer, on a huge scale That’s a little scary if you don’t understand it

4. HOW DID SOCIAL MEDIA CHANGE THE GAME? Allowed for communities to form - forums, message boards Access to opinion leaders/experts – open comments Social behavior subverts hierarchy Gave enormous scale and efficiency- distribution Search (anonymous researcher) The Web is a buying engine and not a selling engine

5. TOOL FAMILY: SOCIAL NETWORKING Social Networking Related Tools : Description: Web sites where friends (or colleagues) can build profiles, share information, and post updates “ Facebook helps you connect and share with the people in your life.” This is an entirely new way to connect and will eventually replace email if it hasn’t already

6. TOOL FAMILY: BLOGS Blogs Related Tools : Description: Articles are published in reverse chronological order. Posts are organized by categories and tags allow for greater context. The ability to comment gives blogs their social character.

7. TOOL FAMILY: SOCIAL BOOKMARKING Social Bookmarking Related Tools : Description: Social Bookmarking is the practice of storing, searching and managing bookmarks on the Web. Instead or saving bookmarks using folders, we use tags to organize them and share them out in the open.

8. TOOL FAMILY: MICROBLOGS Microblogs Related Tools : Description: Microblogging is a form of publishing that allows people to write short posts, i.e, Twitter’s 140 characters.

9. TOOL FAMILY: VIDEO SHARING Video Sharing Related Tools : Description: There are several types of online video . Time shifted videos that are found on YouTube and live streaming video that we see on Ustream.TV and QIK. These services allow you to broadcast live from anywhere that has an Internet connection.

10. TOOL FAMILY: WIDGETS Widgets Related Tools : Description: Widgets are chunks of code that are embedded into Web sites allowing for Live and interactive content such as polls and slideshows. They are popular with blogs and social networking Web sites because they are portable, social, and easily shared throughout the network.

11. Why Should We Care? Why should you care about Social Media? Communities have formed on the Web where your products and services are discussed. The outcome of this is that opinion leaders have emerged who hold influence over the community 3. Their thoughts and opinions are amplified over the Web, where They are easily indexed by search engines *and* act as source material for the main stream media. Companies that do not embrace this concept will lose market share.

12. What Are You Going To Do About It? What Are You Going To Do About It? Your marketing team has asked for this They have goals that you have been asked to enable These are long term initiatives that are not going away Work with them on these goals

13. QUESTIONS Questions?

14. THANK YOU Page Sands Director of Social Media [email_address] 410-327-0007 x 1240