Much has been said and written about social media. What is it, what is the point of it, and should a company invest the time and effort in it, and which sites are worthwhile.

I remember wondering if I should create a social media profile and participate in every one. At one point, I counted over 50 that were “hot” and people were talking about. Then got excited because I found a service called namechk that lets you register your brands at over 100 social media sites. Over 100 sites!!! How could anyone keep track and manage profiles on all these sites, and why. What value does each one bring, and how does one sort this out. Is this just a fad? Are all these sites going to disappear after I spent time and energy on them?

Many eCommerce merchants and solution providers have leveraged social media very well. Zappos, for example, has done an exceptional job on Twitter, Buy.com has a Facebook fan page. TigerDirect.com has both, and the list goes on. Many retailers however, are still on the side lines and have not fully participated.

If you are starting out and want to give social media a shot, I can offer a few tips.

1) Start small and focus on a few key sites. Facebook and Twiter are a good place to start.
Start a company blog.
3) Start by listening to what people are saying about your industry, products and company.
4) Engage with bloggers and be helpful.

Developing a social media strategy is not hard, but like everything else requires a bit of planning and effort.

What are your plans for social media? Are you getting started? Have you started and are seeing results? How do you measure success?

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All the best for 2010,
@sforzley
Samer.Forzley@eBillme.com

http://blog.ebillme.com/