Social media can both create and solve crises, and the incredibly fluid nature of social conversations requires brands to be on a constant state of readiness.

In April, two Domino’s employees created a foolish and disgusting video, and posted it to YouTube, setting off a firestorm of coverage on Twitter. It was quickly picked up by the mainstream press, which increasingly uses trending Twitter topics for story ideas like some sort of crowd-sourced, zeitgeist-obsessed, robo-editor.

After being alerted to the crises by their ad agency (who evidently were the only ones in the organization using social media listening tools), Domino’s set the crisis plan in motion, and with great swiftness issued an entirely credible press release.

But it didn’t work.

Why? Because the maxim of social media crisis relations is that you have to fight fire with fire. Communities in social media do not intersect as much as many corporate officers believe. It’s not like all the social media “types” are hanging out together in one place. It’s more like ancient Greece, with Sparta (the true believers of Twitter) and Athens (the larger, more rational Facebook) and other city states like MySpace, Linkedin, Ning, Flickr, YouTube, and dozens more.

When was the last time you read an actual press release via a link on Twitter? Blogger or traditional media coverage of a story that began with a press release, sure. But an actual release from a company? I’m not sure I’ve EVER read one on Twitter.

Domino’s big mistake wasn’t necessarily speed – they got the initial release out pretty fast. It was not understanding that you must react at the flashpoint, not around it. The Domino’s imbroglio ended only when the company created their own YouTube video response, accompanied with a new corporate Twitter account.

4 Lessons Social Media Crisis Management

In my social media consulting and training, I’ve been talking a lot about Domino’s and crisis management, and I’ve pulled out these 4 lessons that apply to all brands.

1. It’s Risky Business

Social media firestorms can cause real damage. A study by BrandIndex in the days following the Domino’s crisis found that overall, national perceptions of the chain’s quality fell from +5 positive to -2.8 positive. A huge drop in positive perception in 48 hours? For a multi-billion dollar company, that’s serious consequences.

2. You Never Know

One thing I can guarantee about Domino’s is that they didn’t wake up on April 15 thinking “You know, I wonder if a crazy employee will stick cheese in their nose today, and put it on YouTube?” You never see a crisis coming. That’s why it’s a crisis. Even if you choose to not engage proactively in social media at this time (although increasingly, your silence is deafening), you must at least be listening. Set up alerts and RSS feeds, subscribe to Radian6 or Spiral16 or some other listening software. Make it someone’s job to pay attention.

You do NOT want to be the last to know when the social media masses are trashing your brand.

3. Do Fire Drills

A major area where social media crises differ from “real world” crises (although one often begets the other now), is that most companies have not yet identified their communication protocols. If something unfortunate happens to your brand in social media, who in your company is in charge of identifying the problem? Who do they call? Who needs to be alerted?

The same way most companies have call lists and alert procedures determined for offline crises, you must develop similar processes for social media. Commit to having that plan in place by the end of this quarter.

4. Prepare to Create

Because the best way to mitigate social media crises is to respond at the flashpoint, you must be prepared to make and launch content in a variety of formats and circumstances. If a YouTube video breaks, who in your company can create a YouTube video? How quickly? Can you get an emergency Twitter account set up? Who would do that? Can you make a blog post? A podcast? A photo gallery?

Unlike traditional crisis management, which typically requires procedures for press conferences and written releases, in social media you have to be ready to make multi-media content. And if you have to go through your Web design company or IT Department to make that happen, you’re dead. Maybe you should be training corporate officers on how to use a Flip camera and upload video, and to use Wordpress?

Of course, you’ll probably never need a social media crisis plan. But, maybe you will. And if you can’t get a video from your CEO on YouTube within 3 hours, anytime of the day or night, you’re not fully prepared. Are you?

(photo by indi.ca)

Part of the annual Arizona Governor’s Conference on Tourism, I was joined on the panel by the excellent Angela Berardino from Turner Public Relations in Denver (she’s @cotravelgirl on Twitter). Excellent moderation by Kristen Jarnagin from the Arizona Hotel and Lodging Association.

Most of these concepts apply to all businesses and organizations, not just travel and tourism.

My presentation was called “5 Ways to Create Cross-Media Synergies with Social Media.” Because my friends (and clients) at Off Madison Ave are in charge of digital marketing for the Arizona Office of Tourism, this presentation was created under their banner.

Ideas and Advice about Social Media Synergies

• You can’t be everywhere. Social media is too broad. You have to do less, but do more with what you commit to – hence the need for cross-media synergies.
• activate your fans, not just collect them like baseball cards.
• The future of the Web is distributed. It’s a push world now, not a pull world. Take the best 2% of your Web site and insert it into the places where your fans and prospects are spending their time.
• The best social media programs, like the Phoenix Suns and Fiskateers, combine offline with online. Three dimensions trumps two dimensions. Always.
• Social media isn’t going to kill email. They are complementary. But, smart marketers are combining the two by using social forwarding tools to grow email distribution and segment lists.
• You should also be thinking about exploring the social graphs of the people in your database, using technology from Unbound Technology or Rapleaf.
• Should companies of all types be varying their offers based on the social connectivity of their fans? Should a customer with 300 Facebook friends get a better coupon than a customer with 100 friends? The technology to make that identification, and automatically change the offer accordingly is available today. Is it right or wrong?

Named by Fast Company Magazine as one of the most influential women in technology, Beth participated in a live Twitter interview on July 14, 2009, covering a wide range of ideas and best practices for harnessing social media for social good.

1. @jaybaer: Does social media represent an evolution for non-profits, or a revolution? Does it change the game?

• @kanter: In some ways, a revolution because it requires a change of culture to adopt in some cases.
• Many non-profits are used to the “tower model” of working, not the cloud – that’s the game changer

2. @jaybaer: Is social media better used to humanize non-profits to create understanding of their services, or better used to mobilize?

• @kanter: I think both and that order, humanize first, mobilize second. You have to develop relationships first.

3. @jaybaer: Does social media work better as a campaign for non-profits, or as an ongoing program?

• @kanter: It needs to be an ongoing relationship building effort – versus campaign. To be effective you build your network.
• You need to avoid treating supporters/donors like ATM machines.
• Here’s a post on organizational relationship models my colleague @peterdeitz has great thinking on this

4. @jaybaer: Is the messenger as important as the message? Seems like the asker is a critical component in social media for social good.

• @kanter:  Yes, but I would not use word “messenger” — perhaps network weaver, community builder, evangelist, fan is more accurate.

5. @jaybaer: To that end, many people struggle with blending of personal/professional. Isn’t that blend required for personal appeals?

• @kanter: Yes, a blend is important, that’s why it necessary to have a social media philosophy – see Red Cross http://bit.ly/XObe7
• @redcross strategy is brilliant – encouraging people to be ambassadors, provides personal guidelines.

6. @jaybaer: Social media levels playing field, but w/ so many NPOs jumping in, does it create dissonance for donors? How do they parse?

• @kanter: You’re describing “issue fatigue” a hot topic @socialedge a few months back. http://bit.ly/15PTlt
• And the cure is to get back to relationship building, and building the network before it is needed.

7. @jaybaer: Similar to what’s happening w/ Social CRM, do you encourage NPOs to add social media interactions to their database? How?

• @kanter: Social CRM for nonprofits – it’s in the early adopter stage – those that have their CRM in good shape have a leg up.
• There is a nonprofit version of salesforce, I suspect that will be a solution for some.

8. @jaybaer: Do you see local NPOs generating more out-of-market connections & donors due to social media outreach? Is that a benefit?

• @kanter: Yes, local NPOs generate new donors, connections via social media – a key benefit.
• Here’s an example from @staceymonk tweetsgiving last year – 90% new donors

9. @jaybaer: How do you feel about Facebook? Seems a natural for many NPOs. Concerns about too many eggs in that basket?

• @kanter: Facebook is a friend raising tool, not a fundraising tool
• Facebook colleague @brianreich wrote a guest blog post on Facebook for nonprofits

10. @jaybaer: I’m seeing some NPOs neglect their Web presence due to excitement about social media. Do you agree? Remedy?

• @kanter: remedy to neglected web site – rule of 1/3s – web, social outposts, and email see Nancy Schwartz guest post

11. @jaybaer: Most NPOs are resource constrained. Yet, social media requires a lot of blocking and tackling. How do you make it work?

• @kanter: Suggest starting slowly, incrementally with listening 5 hours per week. I suggest don’t do it if you don’t have time.
• About the time issue, here’s a post I wrote a while back re: time – it is still relevant.

12. @jaybaer: You write a lot about matching social media tools to the audience. How can NPOs best do that research? Donor surveys?

• @kanter: Matching strategy to audience – research should be surveys, focus groups, secondary, and monitoring
• One good thing for nonprofits, there’s lots of free research available.

13. @jaybaer: Social media is inextricably linked with inbound marketing. How important is search engine savvy for NPOs today?

• @kanter: SEO is very important for nonprofit marketing plans – part of the rule of thirds (Web site, social media, SEO).
• My colleague @jcolman who has worked with non-profits on SEO – has a wonderful deck on that topic. http://bit.ly/qAmvd

14. @jaybaer: NPOs have a lot of interactions w/donors & customers. It’s not perfect. Should NPOs have a social media crisis plan?

• @kanter: hmm .. social media crisis plan for nonprofits, good question — important for those with communications mission (@redcross, for example)

15. @jaybaer: You’ve done a lot of work and contributed to a lot of wikis. How can orgs use wikis and crowd-sourcing more effectively?

• @kanter: the Smithsonian has an excellent example of using a wiki for its strategic planning
• Better use of wikis with nonprofits – the big thing is that wikis need facilitation, a wiki gardener or 6 core people.
• Here’s my best advice re: being a wiki gardener.

16. @jaybaer: Much of your wiki is great stuff from your head. Some consultants fear giving away the “secret sauce” for free. Not you?

• @kanter: I’ve found that openness and giving away knowledge leads to more opportunities.
• I’m a Creative Commons advocate – some more thoughts on setting ideas free.

17. @jaybaer: You wrote for the upcoming book Psychology of Facebook. What’s the key takeaway? (We’ll still buy it)

• @kanter: Still waiting for the publication! Key takeaways = a critique of the interaction design and better strategy for NPOs.
• This post sparked the chapter I contributed.

18. @jaybaer: You speak at a lot of conferences. What makes a great event these days?

• @kanter: Great speakers, lots of interaction, creative use of tech (e.g. backchannels), and networking opportunities.

And about backchannels at conferences http://bit.ly/127FaR (read this, it’s an amazing post) – jb

19. @jaybaer: Congrats on being named 1 of the most influential women in tech by Fast Company. Richly deserved. How does that feel?

• @kanter: Re: Fast Company – felt great to get kudos, but also wanted to give kudos to others.

20. @jaybaer: You’re now the visiting scholar for the Packard Foundation. What does that entail? Will we see less of you?

• @kanter: Been working as scholar since March – here’s a blog post about it. It’s been an amazing learning experience.

Wow. By FAR, the most links to other amazing resources of any Twitter 20 interview to-date. It’s like an interview and wiki mash-up. Great job by Beth Kanter. Thanks to all who tuned in.

What was your favorite answer by Beth? Mine was “Facebook is a friend raising tool, not a fundraising tool.” I’ll be using that one again. You?

(photo of Beth by JD Lasica)

A few years ago, Arizona (and many other states) began to allow vote by mail. In Arizona, you can now cast your ballot in any state-wide election as much as 8 weeks before election day. Thus, almost every day is election day, and as many as 50% of votes are now cast early.

This of course has fundamentally changed the nature of campaigning in the state. Messaging must be earlier and more consistent, and you can’t keep your powder dry for the end. You have to run hard from day one.

Social media has changed the game for public relations in exactly the same way.

Bloggers and Reporters Aren’t the Same

The decline of media has been well-chronicled. That cow isn’t going back in the barn. Traditional journalists are being “replaced” as information disseminators by bloggers, who have different expectations and norms.

Incidentally, I distinguish reporters from bloggers in two ways. First, reporters have editors, bloggers don’t. Second, the readership for reporters is driven primarily by the reputation of the media outlet for which they write. Bloggers’ readership and reputation is self-made.

Another oft-true delineation is that reporters have journalism degrees and have been trained in the PR firm >< journalist tango. Many bloggers have not.

Because of these important differences, PR firms have to work with bloggers in a much different way than they work with reporters. Most notably, bloggers do not like press releases, and do not like to be pitched. Dave Fleet has exceptional content on his site about this.

Relationships Trump Releases

The key to successful blogger relations is just that – having a relationship. Sure, traditional public relations practitioners benefitted from relationships with reporters, but it wasn’t required. A great press release, a killer story angle, and an amazing pitch could still get placement even if you’d never met the reporter. Much tougher to do that with bloggers.

The best practice is to identify the bloggers you want to work with at least three months before you need them, and begin developing relationships with them. Read their blog. Comment on the blog. Interact on Twitter. Connect on Linkedin. Not in a disingenuous, machiavellian way, but in a genuine, meaningful way.

This of course requires a complete rework of the traditional relationship between the client and PR firm, wherein the firm gets told about the new product two weeks in advance and is expected to get coverage. In a blog-dominated world, that will not work. You have to build relationships before you need them, not when you need them.

(relationships model from Charlene Li’s Tapping the Power of the Groundswell presentation)

Even the most basic email program should provide you with this data about each of your recipients:

• Whether they routinely open email from you, and if so, when (for today, let’s set aside the fact that open rate is an unreliable metric)
• Whether they routinely click links in emails from you, and if so, when.
• What types of links they click, images or text
• What types of links they click, by content type
• Whether they keep your email in their inbox and open and click over and over

If you add some simple subject line testing, from line testing, time of day testing, and day of week testing to that data, you could (and should) create a robust, scientific email program that geometrically improves your results.

• The right subject line
• The right from line
• The right time to send
• The right layout
• The right type of content

Sound Email Marketing Isn’t Hard

I recognize that this may sound complicated, and impossible to lasso with declining budgets and marketing staffs. But it’s not. If you’re using any sort of legitimate Email Service Provider (ESP), the tools necessary to test and optimize your email programs are built right into the software. You have to be mildly comfortable with math of course, but the same is true of Fantasy Football.

With the economy stumbling along like Lindsay Lohan leaving the Viper Room, shouldn’t all marketers do more with less? And to me, the easiest way to do that is to take the time to learn how to improve the emails that you’re already sending.

A Call to Action

But perhaps the ESP industry has done a bad job explaining and demystifying email testing and optimization, because often when I talk about taking email programs to the next level scientifically, people get all skittish and worried – like Luke and Han and Leia in the trash compactor.

So, I’m going on the record to ask for two things. First, I want the ESP community to spend less time rolling out features that customers are scared of, and more time making features approachable. And second, I want you to commit to just trying one email test between now and the end of the quarter. Start with subject line. Split your list into 4 even pieces and create 4 subject lines. See what happens. A little spreadsheet action won’t kill you, and you might be very surprised to see how much you can improve your results.

(disclosure: the largest ESP in the world, ExactTarget, is a client)

(photo by Willie Lunchmeat – seriously)

Second, was a conversation I had with Valeria Maltoni (whom I interviewed live on Twitter last week), at the MarketingProfs B2B Forum in Boston. She mentioned that she researches each commenter on her blog, and tries to connect them to other people in the community at her Conversation Agent site.

Well, don’t I feel inadequate.

In social media, we’re all teachers. And we’re all students. But that really only works if you have a community, and I’m realizing that I’m doing a pretty poor job of living that principle here at Convince & Convert. I want to build a community, but I’m not putting in the time necessary to make that a reality.

I cherish every comment you leave, truly. And I want to do more of what Valeria does, in terms of connecting with each of you in a deeper and more productive way. Because seriously, my job is to help you.

Just the W FACTS

So, I put together a little cheat sheet of ways to foster improved blog community, inspired by Brogan’s post, Valeria’s comments, some recent work by Mack Collier, and a bunch of my own head-scratching. I call it W FACT. I’ve incorporated it into my recent social media training seminars (although with a “do as I say, not as I do” disclaimer, because implementing W FACT here is a work in progress).

W = Welcome
When new visitors comment on your site for the first time, click on their names and visit their Web sites. Send them a personal email to welcome them to the community.

F = Facilitate
If visitors to the blog demonstrate an interest in a particular type of content, or topic, direct them to other posts or resources in a similar vein.

A = Answer
Within reason, answer every blog comment personally.

C= Connect
If you’re taking the time to learn more about your commenters in the Welcome phase, use that knowledge to create community segments. You can do this mentally at first, but it may require a simple spreadsheet eventually. Create yourself a list of people in the community who are consultants. PR professionals. Family members. Werewolves. Using that “birds of a feather” concept, connect new commenters to others in the same segment. This can be done via email or in answers to blog comments.

T = Thank
Don’t forget that there are millions and millions of blogs. Not to mention TV, radio, print, direct mail, ipod, movies, family, and (I’m told) a whole host of other activities that require you to stand and move around. Every second somebody spends on your blog is a second they could EASILY have spent doing something else. In the 21st century, the greatest gift of all is time, in every respect. Make sure you take the time to appreciate readers that spend theirs with you.

So, thank you. I’m going to try to do better. And I’d really appreciate any thoughts you have on this.

A primary element of your social media activation strategy should be at least quarterly surveys of your fans. That should just be routine. But sometimes, you can use your brand community for specific, targeted research and product development efforts.

As I describe in the video post below, Del Monte developed a successful new product (Snausages Bacon and Eggs dog snacks) based almost entirely on feedback from their brand community. (NOTE: I eat snausages in this video. Not a great idea, as it turns out.)

(Video got messed up on this, but for obvious reasons, this was a one take situation)

Here’s another good piece on the subject of using customers for research, from John Kembel on MarketingProfs.

Are you thinking of your online fans as a source for product or service feedback BEFORE you create the product, not just after it launches? Maybe you should.

Valeria was also an integral nucleus of the Fast Company Company of Friends, a business intelligence and relationship development organization that in many ways presaged today’s social networking craze.

Her blog, Conversation Agent, is an absolute must-read. (Seriously, I read a ton of blogs, and hers is top 5 on the planet, in my estimation). She’s not afraid to go in-depth, challenge your thinking, and strike the match of true conversation – as you’ll see in this eye-popping, live Twitter 20 interview from July 1, 2009.

(Valeria asked in the interview for reader feedback on how blogging has changed – question 17. What do you think?)

1. @jaybaer: Your umbrella premise is that marketing & business are a long conversation. What do you mean by that?

• @conversationage: Conversation is the most natural, effective, yet most complex mode of human connection.
• The goal of conversation is understanding between participants. Turns out that’s the same goal of marketing and business.

2. @jaybaer: What’s the hardest part for companies to switch from talking AT customers, to talking WITH them?

• @conversationage: Companies should let go of assumptions when listening. There’s such a thing as thinking you’re too smart.
• It’s a challenge we have as individuals as well. Unlearning is harder than learning….

3. @jaybaer: (h/t @michaeljbarber) Do companies have to actively engage to foster conversation, or can they just listen?

• @conversationage: Participation is content and fulfillment of intent – you’ve got to put skin in the game.

4. @jaybaer: How do you see the impact of conversation on corporate marketing operations and staffing?

• @conversationage: Hire those who lean forward, who are curious and interested, who listen before they answer, who love learning.
• Watch out for language like “spin” and look for honesty and ability to connect- put on hold the shiny objects/jargon-driven.

5. @jaybaer: Interesting. Do you think social media & social networking can be taught or do you have to have a passion for it?

• @conversationage: I’m a fan of “and/and”. They need to be experienced. Unless you’re engaged (wrote it recently) you will not get engagement.

6. @jaybaer: You’re a fan of storytelling. Great conversations don’t stem from bullet points. How can brands find their story?

• @conversationage: In the same way that money can’t buy you performance, it can’t buy you your story.
• Need to emerge when a company looks inside and owns its own brand. Brand is not the logo, it needs to permeate every aspect of business… and take into account the feedback it receives.
• Owning your brand also means being passionately in love with what you do.

7. @jaybaer: Little difference between media & customer. Doesn’t that put emphasis on cust service? Will it blend w/ marketing?

• @conversationage: Customer service is marketing. Your processes are marketing. So is your receptionist, your building, your people…
• More than blending I would say connect with it. Also, medium = context and dynamics so pay attention to who is in the room.

8. @jaybaer: Will all brands eventually have a Community Manager? Does it help the conversation to put a face on it?

• @conversationage: How about a community facilitator, a content curator, and a team of conversationalists for product development/innovation?
• It’s a team effort to help the organization own its brand. Think about the words: organization, company->organism, together.

9. @jaybaer: I’m glad you mentioned curation. There is SOOO much great content online now (especially in marketing), how do you curate?

• @conversationage: Do you have a goal? What do you want reader to do? How are you going to relate to her? How will your content make him feel?
• And of course also where are you going to fit in? How do you weave in your experience as a proof point or qualifier?

10. @jaybaer: 10 You are simply the best at building “community” on your Conversation Agent blog. Can you describe your approach?

• @conversationage: Love to connect people – where they are. Many ways: “About You” page, comments, email intros, participating to their project.
• Offering researched and curated content based upon their feedback also builds community – of learners (me among them)

11. @jaybaer: I don’t want to overstate this, but you’re Italian (and proud of it) Does that change how you view community?

• @conversationage: Made in Italy. So genetics + culture. I grew up in conversation and with community in the land of passion. Context again.

12. @jaybaer: You mentioned conversationalists for product dev. Should all companies crowd-source it? Are crowds really wise?

• @conversationage: Hold on! Community facilitator, content curator and team of conversationalists work together. + Accountability rests with you.
• You’ve got to know (experience) how to read the tea leaves, how to negotiate the conversation and extract useful meaning.

13. @jaybaer: Some companies are using Facebook as a primary hub to foster conversation, rather than corporate site. Thoughts?

• @conversationage: Maybe it works for them. And when search+lifestream converge and FB opens up, then the rest of us will join in
• My point is be where your customers/prospects are and be coherent. Does the Web site reflect the company’s availability?

14. @jaybaer: Will social graph portability – our friends & likes following us around the Web – be good or bad for conversation?

• @conversationage: It’ll be good for those with great memory! Integration is important to experience. 140 characters don’t make a person, only a view.
• Seriously- conversation is the art of thinking together to find something new. It’s good to have new people/ideas in it + mix it up.

15. @jaybaer: Proliferation of social outposts is causing fatigue among people that aren’t freaks for it like you & me. Advice?

• @conversationage: Pick your tools based on your “flow” – where do you feel energy? What suits you? Leave room to explore new places every week.
• Explore, experiment, test, fail – within your abilities to stretch but not to the point of fatigue. Manage your attention.

16. @jaybaer: You’ve always been active in many groups and organizations. Is there a future for offline, in-person connections?

• @conversationage: Of course! We may think we live online, but we’re very much social animals. We need to be with others in the physical space .
• We did 98 events with the Fast Company network – in person, in the room access to great people and speakers. Best energy ever.

17. @jaybaer: Your blog is ~ 3 years old – congrats – & you wrote for Fast Company for 7 years prior. How has blogging changed?

• @conversationage: If you count the listserv, yes 7 yrs. For the expert blog about 2 yrs.
• Good content writing has not changed – we’ve changed.

18. @jaybaer: You’ve always been on the client side. What’s the agency’s role in conversation marketing and social media?

• @conversationage: Coaches, sounding boards, partners, and specialists to help create the environment and context around the conversation.
• I feature agencies in a series at my blog.

19. @jaybaer: The “Conversation Agent” brand isn’t associated much w/ your company, Sungard (unlike @scottmonty). Thoughts?

• @conversationage: It’s a pre-existing condition Conversation Agent comes to work every day with the full passion and knowledge/experience.
• I believe that it’s a team and not one person that defines a company and owns a brand, so here I’m part of a team.
• Personal brand needs to be balanced with stewardship, too. Our customer community is also part of the company’s brand.

20. @jaybaer: I’m a consultant, & I give away content & interact w/ people. But you’re not. Why do you do it? What drives you?

• @conversationage: Love of learning, passion for helping people achieve their full potential, desire to meet different people/ideas to meet change.
• I also view career as much broader than job. Want to meet mentors and peers and continue to grow and give growth to others.

It’s a very tough call, but I think my favorite answer from Valeria was: “Customer service is marketing. Your processes are marketing. So is your receptionist, your building, your people…” How about you?

That was the theme of my day-long workshop for the Association of Management Consulting Firms last week in New York. My friend and client Elizabeth Sosnow of BlissPR co-presented with me.

Titled “You’re a Rock Star: Building Thought Leadership Through Social Networking” the seminar covered the business case for building your social graph, how to build thought leadership through content, blogging and blog commenting advice, Linkedin and Twitter tips, and more.

Key social media thought leadership takeaways:

• IBM has quantified the value of social relationships at $948 in annualized new revenue for EVERY new contact.
• Buyers of B2B products and services are twice as involved in social media as the overall US online population.
• Inbound marketing is more efficient and effective than traditional targeting and interruption-based tactics, because inbound focuses on hand raisers, and solves their problems.
• You have to set social media limits, or you’ll drive yourself crazy trying to be everywhere at once.
• The most sure-fire way to be a social networking smash is to focus on adding value and being helpful.
• Atomized, distributed content works much better than siloed, “big” content like white papers.
• Social media and social networks close the gap, enabling business and personal connections that would otherwise be unattainable.

Slides are below. As always, comments are welcomed and appreciated.

Also, check out BlissPR’s new study on social media adoption by professional services firms. Good stuff.

I’m a proponent of social media. In fact, I’m a proponent that gets paid to convince others that social media is valuable. But, like in the early days of Web design, SEO, PPC, email, and banners before it, there’s too much swooning and not enough thinking about social media right now.

The good news is that social media is something special. It’s not just a marketing tactic (although social media marketing can be effective). It’s more of a movement. A philosophy that brings brands and customers closer together through humanization of the brand and mutual respect.

The subsidiary good news is that many companies and their agencies have changed the question in 2009 to “how do we incorporate social media?” rather than “why should we incorporate social media?”

The bad news is that many in the social media arena would lead you to believe that social media is ready for prime time and that you should forsake all other forms of marketing. That’s just crazy. While consumers clearly want to engage with brands in social media, the number of social media users – while growing fast – is not yet overwhelmingly large.

If You Think You Can Use Social Media Only, You Can’t

You simply cannot ignore the percentage of your customer and prospective customer base that isn’t involved in social media. And it’s easy to overlook them. The convenience, immediacy, and conviviality (for now) of social media gives it a strong gravitational pull. I probably spend more time on Twitter than can be justified from a business perspective, but it’s so much fun and I learn so much, that it’s hard to stay away.

And to some degree, full reliance on social media is a marketing cop out. This fallacy of “we’ll engage with our customers and let them do our marketing for us by telling their friends” reads well in a marketing plan, but is exceptionally difficult to execute unless your brand is compelling in a way that most simply aren’t.

The time will come when social media will start to take budget dollars away from entrenched marketing programs the way that banners and search have taken budget from TV. That time isn’t here yet. But it’s coming.

Until then, I encourage you to embrace social media, but leave one arm free to execute smart marketing programs for the 50% (or more) of the world that doesn’t know Yelp from kelp.