Having been involved with social media for more than 5 years I’ve notices trends and ideas popping up. Through out this time I’ve developed a number of theories about social media and how a company or their social media representative can better utilize the avenues given to them by these social networks.

Here are some of the basic tenants

6. Social media takes time – If you don’t have the time and don’t want to hire someone to do social media for you then don’t bother getting into it. You won’t get anything out of it

5. Social media isn’t about broadcasting a message. Social media is about building a community around your ideas and brand. Start a discussion and interact one on one with people directly so that believe they matter.

4. Social media doesn’t have to take hours a day to work. There are plenty of methods and techniques that can help you better manage your time on social networks.

3. Giveaways are always good. It don’t have to be physical things, it can be tips, ebooks, consultations, advise. These are all giveaways in their own right.

2. Customer service. If you don’t monitor your brand through social media you’re missing out on a whole lot. If you don’t keep an eye out to see if people are having problems with your produces, you’re losing valuable time to counteract the negative persona that is being conveyed. By monitoring your brand and interacting with your customers and clients you’re able to help them solve problems and make them feel that their voices are heard.

1. Social media doesn’t have to be a giant task. Come up with goal that you want to reach with social media and address one or two at a time. Doing too much at once will dilute the quality of each task and you’re liable to burn out fast.

What would you add to these ideas in my theory? Do you have other techniques that have helped you?

This was also posted on Linkedin. Be sure to check out the discussion there too.