Social media is about enabling conversations between companies and customers to generate revenue. It allows sharing information fast through words, pictures, video and audio. Companies should use social media to inform, inspire, educate and ignite their brand while influencing conversations and reputation to help their bottom line. While not having complete control, social media can be used to diffuse issues and represent brands positively. Regular, high-quality posting on blogs and social networks like Twitter and Facebook is important, as is branding across all online presences.

1. Social MediaThe Budding Stages Creating a strong social media presence is the foundation of success for today’s marketers. We will discuss the dos and don’ts of social media. How to effectively enable conversation while effectively managing your brand online.

3. Social media can be used in a variety of ways

4. Words

5. Pictures

6. Video

8. Inform

9. Inspire

10. Educate

12. Information should be informative and interesting without being preachy

14. Customers become your greatest marketing tool using the age old technique of word of mouth

16. People are most likely already communicating about your business

17. By having a blog you can actually influence the conversation

19. Having a positive image online compliments your brick and mortar reputation

21. A Starbucks Barista was fired for trying organize a union after a few blogs which you would not mistake for Starbucks promotion…he was rehired and the blog was dropped

23. Social media can be considered a nontraditional way of marketing to the masses with a smaller budget and a bigger impact

25. Is your blog branded?

26. How do you share you blog with the world?

28. Js-Kit is a tool that integrates trackbacks into your blogger blog

29. Android Blogger and Wordpress apps allow you to post blogs from your mobile device

30. Facebook Badges allow you to promote your Facebook page on your blog

32. “Connect with us” buttons are useful tools to help readers find your social media in its embryonic stages

34. Create an account on Twitter

35. Create a Facebook account

36. Create a Blogger account

37. Use your new Gmail account to import all of your email addresses from Outlook

39. Post at least one blog a week

40. 1-2 Twitter updates per week

42. Develop an online brand standards manual

43. Maintain one personality online for your organization

45. Blogging and how to use it in a competitive business environment – Learn how blogging within your organization can improve process managements and employee innovation. Learn how to build and create customer relationships through enabling conversations.