Social media isn’t always as social as its name would imply. For example, you can have conversations with people online and really not know them at all personally.

It’s possible that you’ve had a really deep and meaningful conversation on Twitter or Facebook with someone in your niche that you greatly respect, but if you passed them on the street you wouldn’t even recognize them, let alone stop and chat.

WebProNews spoke with IZEA CEO Ted Murphy recently about how sometimes, it just helps to pull back from the social media and really get social. It also helps to pull back if you want to create original content. That doesn’t mean stop using social media. It means don’t be strapped down by it.

“The Blogosphere and social media have become a bit of an echo chamber,” says Murphy. “The likes and the shares and the retweets and all that stuff – it’s great for spreading a message, but it’s like everybody now becomes programmed in the same way, doing the same thing.”

“So if we can teach people to pull back from that and say, ‘Ok, if I want to come up with a really original blog…a really original idea, I don’t want to know about all that other stuff. I need to unplug myself, and I need to just ideate,’” he adds.

In other words, get out there in the world and experience things first hand, and maybe you can find some inspiration for original content. Then, maybe the echo chamber will echo you, instead of vice versa. What are some problems, concerns, issues, or observations you’ve made running your own business? What are some you’ve seen with other businesses? Maybe you can use these things to bring something new to the table, or at least start a fresh conversation.

Even simply talking to the same kinds of people you would be conversing with online, in an offline setting can spark inspiration that may not have occurred from a conversation on Twitter or Facebook. Industry conferences are obviously a great place to meet people and to meet people that you have already had a professional relationship with online. Great ideas can come from these conversations, and they’re not online for the world to see (and echo) yet, so you can take those with you and create that content.

Chances are that if a subject was worth talking about offline, it was probably worth talking about online as well (as long as its topical).

“The reason that we come to conferences…is that it’s one thing to engage with somebody through Twitter or to do a chat with them or leave a comment on their blog,” says Murphy. “It’s another thing to shake their hand and look them in the eye and share a beer with them.”

“So I think the people that are going to get the most out of an experience like this are the people that spend the entire time trying to meet as many people as they possibly can, and not just coming here and staying with the people that you came here with,” he says.

“You should be coming home with stacks of…not just business cards and contacts, but experiences with those people,” he adds.

You don’t have to limit offline professional socializing to conferences though. You can do lunches or arrange other get-togethers. Don’t forget “tweetups”.

2010 has been a huge year for Facebook – arguably the company’s biggest yet. CEO Mark Zuckerberg was named Person of the Year by Time magazine, a Hollywood movie about the founding of the company was released in theaters, and attracted a great deal of critical buzz. The company launched the “open graph”, possibly the most important feature the company has ever implemented, as it connects nearly the entire web to Facebook itself. Then there was the messaging product, the privacy fiascoes, and much more.

January

It was a good year for Facebook right from the get go, starting when Facebook beat Google (in terms of traffic) on New Year’s Day, according to Hitwise. Also in January, the company launched a Fellowship Program for Ph.D. students, became a sponsor of the Apache Software Foundation, partnered with McAfee, got into customized data centers, and expressed the desire to be users’ news source.

Mark Zuckerberg made some comments related to privacy that raised a few eyebrows, though this was nothing compared to the privacy firestorm he would set off a few short month later.

Facebook added a feature that lets users reply to comments from their email, added a retweet-like share button, started letting app users get notifications through email, and started giving Facebook Page admins more stats.

Also, rival MySpace started integrating Facebook Connect into its site.

February

In February, Microsoft and Facebook adjusted their partnership, and Facebook celebrated its sixth birthday. The company announced it was approaching 400 million users, and redesigned the homepage.

During the Super Bowl, more people visited Facebook than any other site. Facebook was added to AOL Instant Messenger, Facebook passed 100 million mobile users, got a patent on news feeds, and was coaxed into opening a new office by the governor of Texas. Facebook announced people could pay for Facebook Credits using PayPal.

March

In March, Facebook began testing a “promote your post” feature, partnered with Omniture on ad data, expanded its Preferred Developer Program, made its Texas expansion official, and unseated Google as the most-visited site. Yahoo brought Facebook into its own inbox. Facebook tweaked its privacy policy and its search suggestions.

April

In April, Hitwise dubbed Facebook the most searched on brand in the US, Facebook acquired photo service Divvyshot, and the company clarified its stance on third-party partnerships. The Winklevoss twins (founders of ConnectU) said they would be filing more lawsuits against Facebook.

Facebook redesigned its safety center, announced its first batch of Fellows, and entered the stickers-for-businesses game. A report came out claiming that more business Internet traffic was going to Facebook than to any other website.

Then, Facebook dropped the bomb at f8 – the Open Graph and social plugins that would tie the web to Facebook via like-buttons and various other ways for content publishers to draw traffic and encouage engagement from their users.

May

In May, Facebook was exciting publishers with increased referrals (courtesy of those social plugins). The company announced expansion in Seattle and hired a former FTC chairman. Facebook also announced that the social plugins had already appeared on 100,000 sites since launch. Facebook introduced new login security features and overtook Yahoo in Display ads.

As privacy concerns reached an all-time high (courtesy of the Open Graph), Diaspora started to gain a great deal of buzz as a possible alternative to Facebook. Yeah. Meanwhile, Microsoft previewed its hotmail upgrade with Facebook integration.

Facebook reached a fiver year deal with Zynga, and launched a new mobile site. The company gave people a way to turn off third-party service and scheduled a privacy briefing for Congress. Then it acquired Sharegrove and introduced new privacy settings.

The official Facebook SDK for Android was released, and Demand Media made a move which would greatly expand Facebook’s open graph. Facebook began calling for beta testers of a Q&A product.

June

After so many privacy stories about Facebook and discussion of account deleting permeating the media, it was looking like people were not so eager to delete their accounts after all. It was also revealed that Facebook had seen a 400% rise in advertisers since early the previous year.

Social media has long been touted as the latest and greatest Internet marketing tool that will bring new people to any online business seeking new customers.

For most online marketers, the social media environment appears over-hyped and ineffective. Between Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, StumbleUpon, and Delicious, online marketers waste plenty of time trying to tap revenue from these social platforms.

Why Auto-Following Will Always Fail

John Reese is one of those people who has become famous for his marketing prowess, with a variety of product launches. Even with his genius for marketing online, John Reese failed to make the Twitter platform work for his business. In June of 2008, Reese realized that the auto-follow strategy of gaining Twitter followers was not working.

The auto-follow Twitter marketing strategy is doomed to failure. I actually lost a little bit of respect for John Reese because he had to learn the hard way that the Twitter auto-follow strategy would not work. A man with his genius should have known before he started that the technique was doomed to fail miserably.

It will fail because it works in the same manner as a safe list or traffic exchange system, where a bunch of people will gather together to send advertising to each other. The problem is that people only agree to join such systems so that they can send their advertising to others, not so that they can read a ton of advertising from other people.

People do not join safe lists because they want 10,000 people to send them advertising in their email. They only agree to let 10,000 people send them commercial e-mail, because they want to send their commercial e-mail to 10,000 people. Everybody involved is so caught up in the hope that someone will read their advertising and purchase what they are selling, without giving much concern or thought to the idea that even they are not reading the email that other people send to them.

In June of 2008, John Reese gave up on the auto-follow strategy for gaining Twitter followers. He un-followed everybody in a single day and started again from scratch.

Is Twitter Dead?

Nearly 2 years later, in March of 2010, John Reese declared in an e-mail to his mailing list that he had deleted his Twitter account. He cited the same reasons that he did 21 months previously — too much noise.

John Reese is not the only online guru to abandon the Twitter platform. Frank Kern, and a few of Reese’s other online associates, also bid Twitter farewell. Kern said that Twitter was a “time suck” that was eating into his productivity.

Please don’t get the idea that my reporting on the marketing gurus leaving Twitter like rats from a sinking ship is a signal to you that you should do the same.

In fact, I am not leaving Twitter and I see no reason that you should either.

By mentioning Reese and Kern leaving Twitter behind, I am only pointing out that some of the sharpest minds involved in online marketing have yet to understand the true art and science of social media marketing.

Both of these guys are smart. Few people will argue against that. But, both have failed to understand how to turn a profit from the Twitter social media platform.

Social Media Marketing Is Not Mass Marketing

If you were to ask me… these two guys, smart as they are, missed the most elemental foundation of social media marketing… say, after me, S–O–C–I–A–L… SOCIAL media marketing.

John Reese and Frank Kern are masters of mass marketing. Mass marketing does not work on social media websites.

Social media is described as such, because it invites individuals to socialize with one another. Those individuals who have mastered the social media platform are those who have understood how to create relationships, develop relationships, and maintain relationships. They have understood that social media websites are there to help you nurture social relationships with other people.

The mass marketer is focused on himself, above and beyond all other people. The social marketer is focused on building relationships with the people with whom they would like to do business.

If you understand how to attract people and maintain personal relationships with those people, then you may master social media marketing in a way that John Reese and Frank Kern were unable to do.

Stumbling In The Dark

The first step to mastering social media marketing is to learn how to attract people. Auto-follow will not ever work towards that end. In order to attract people who want to follow you, you must inspire them to want to follow you.

It is funny when I watch the people who are trying to market themselves on Twitter.

Some of those people will send out an endless supply of quotes, trying to convince you of their value, because they have said something clever through the words of another person.

Others will send out sales message after sales message hoping to attract your business.

Still others will try to win your support by focusing on key words. They want to treat Twitter as if it were search engine driving traffic to their website.

Some Twitter users will make certain to include a link with every tweet. The smarter of the lot will only link to information. The more shallow of the group will only link to sales pages.

And finally, there are those who are probably smarter than all of us put together. They are the ones who provide a mix of content. Sometimes, they will give us a link to information. Sometimes, they will link us to the sales page. At other times, they will share quotes and news headlines. And in all cases, they will socialize with their followers, asking about things important to their followers and sharing their personal lives with those who ask.

The Lesson To Take From This Article

Social media marketing works best, when the marketer who is attempting to use it, remembers that first and foremost it is a platform to socialize with other people.

Why do people follow YOU on Twitter?

They follow you, because there is something about you and what you say that appeals to them at a very human level.

If you want to win in the Social Media element, be human and don’t be afraid to socialize with your friends and acquaintances.

Innovation doesn’t wait for anybody. It’s a constant, vital force, thriving on new ideas, new interpretations of old ideas, and a deep desire to understand the next important step. This generation has been defined by its technological advances, and the creation of a global society on the Web. This society is as complex and dynamic as any physical city or province, and has become the important battleground of ideas for the foreseeable future.

YouTube has played a vital part in this process virtually since its inception. In less than a decade it has grown into a tool for political discourse, a venue for amateur filmmakers and artists to showcase their talents, and a means by which the common citizen opposes tyranny by posting film of those abusing their station and authority. Without a doubt, it is one of the major forces in modern innovation.

Part of innovation is of course the combination of ideas. The telephone wasn’t strictly a new concept; electrical transmission of messages existed in the telegraph, and the transmission of recorded sound existed in the phonograph. Combining these two technologies is what led to the telephone. This is also the path much of the Web seems bent on taking, combining and integrating services, and YouTube seems to be no exception.

YouTube’s designers have, for example, pledged to implement more Social Networking functionality in future versions of the site. They also set up a new interface that focuses on Playlist content rather than individual videos. What other ideas may be unveiled is a mystery, but while the Web is waiting for more concrete information there are a few steps that can be taken to integrate YouTube into an existing social media program.

Step 1 – Familiarize

Whoever said ‘familiarity breeds contempt’ only had part of the story. Yes, being exposed to something consistently can cause someone to gloss over or underestimate its value. On the other hand, being intensely and exceptionally familiar with a process or a tool can open up many varied ways to understanding it.

Consider the humble knife. On the surface it’s made to cut, either as a tool or as a weapon. However, if the blade is heated up it can sterilize a wound. Knives with a strong enough blade and enough surface can be used as screwdrivers, or to pry open containers. Or think of a car engine. The average user can probably learn enough on their own to keep it running in reasonable condition, but someone familiar with the specific model type in front of them can get exceptional performance out of the machine.

To this end, become familiar with YouTube’s new layout. Learn how to put together a playlist, and look at how the rating and comments systems display themselves. Examine the interface aesthetically; does your channel warrant a flashy, playful background, or does it need something more conservative? Spending time with the site on a regular basis will begin to fill in your understanding, and allow you to innovate when it’s really needed.

Step 2 – Observe

There is a saying that, “All good ideas having already been discovered, what remains for the innovator is to borrow judiciously.” No one has all the best people, and no one has the strongest notions under monopoly. Select YouTube channels that are performing well, and try to discern why. Consider the quality of comments available, and the presentation of videos.

Note, however, that this admonition is to observe, not to imitate. Yes, feel free to borrow a good idea or a presentational technique that will work with your gróup. However, your gróup is not the same as any other. Don’t try to slavishly duplicate another organization’s technique or content. You will be called on it, and despite its penchant for hyperactivity, the Web tends to have an incredibly long memory for failure.

Step 3 – Discourse

As mentioned, YouTube’s designers intend to implement greater social networking functionality. What’s interesting is that there is already a limited sort of social networking present on the site, in several forms.

The first is in the comments section for each video, and for channels. People can leave the feedback they feel is relevant, and they do so in staggering numbers. It’s not uncommon for even unremarkable videos to garner thousands of views and comments, some of them profitable and others drivel. The trick is to use the social media techniques that work elsewhere to cultivate the image you wish. Converse with them, share ideas and give hints about upcoming projects, and do what is needed to gather their interest in your channel.

Second is the ‘reply to’ style of video. In short, one party will make a video, and another party who sees it will create a second video and flag it as a response. This can be done for any number of reasons, ranging from tribute and commentary to rebuttal and confrontation.

This is an excellent social marketing tool, as it creates a ‘link back’ friendliness. Respond to a video you found interesting, and you will send at least some of your audience to that video, increasing their numbers. They may return the favor, or the site may simply link your video in the search function as a related topic. Either way, your traffic increases, and your message gets out.

How do you deliver a marketing message to a Web-audience that hates advertising? A few years back I proposed a solution based on short-form television-style programs: the “120 Second Solution,” two minute brand-story commercials formatted in a mini three act Web-video presentation. Today this concept is called Branded Entertainment: a two to seven minute commercial that combines content, advertising, and entertainment in a brand story format designed to attract and hold an audience’s attention while delivering a memorable core marketing message.

The concept has been a hard sell as it flies in the face of a lot of conventional wisdom about advertising formats, attention spans, and content credibility. Like most good ideas it seems that branded entertainment’s time has finally come. Various marketing blogs are all a twitter about Orbit Gum’s new campaign called “Dirty Shorts” featuring its first branded entertainment effort, a 5:17 minute branded video from Jason Bateman and Will Arnett. It seems these well-known actors have enough faith in this advertising format that they’ve formed DumbDumb, a branded video production company. Their first effort, “The Prom Date” was viewed 110,000 times in just three days.

Commitment To A Core Message

Of course not everybody has the deep pockets required to hire Jason Bateman, but with proper planning and implementation a branded entertainment video campaign is within reach of most successful small and medium sized companies.

The single biggest obstacle in implementing this kind of campaign is not the cost, but rather, the commitment to a style and format most business owners find hard to swallow: the need to focus on a single core reason why customers should purchase your product or service and to deliver that message in some bold or offbeat manner.

All too often entrepreneurs think of advertising in conventional terms like display, banner, and classified (e.g. Adwords). Even Web video has been pushed, prodded and crammed into pre-roll and post-roll television style spots. The Web isn’t television; it requires a whole new way of thinking when it comes to marketing presentations.

The Web is by nature an unconventional arena that demands bold content. You can say and do a lot of things on the Web, but the one thing that won’t be tolerated is boring your audience. Add to that the fact that we live in a product placement world where the line between advertising and content has been permanently erased and you have an advertising environment that demands something different.

You must stop thinking of your website as a digital brochure and start thinking of it as a total immersive multimedia advertising environment that connects to a target audience using standout, break-through communication techniques. The goal is quality engagements not shotgun traffic.

The Goal Is Quality Engagement NOT Traffic

For the average Web business it is important to remember that huge viral numbers don’t come from clever campaigns alone, but rather, are the result of great campaigns plus advertising support, extensive PR, and paid-blog placement. That is not to say that small and medium-sized companies shouldn’t pursue this approach but rather, the goal of these campaigns should be quality engagement not quantity traffic – a far more affordable and productive objective.

How To Deliver Break-Through Advertising

There are various ways to achieve what ad agencies call break-through advertising, but in every case those methods call for content that stands out from the crowd, be it humorous, offbeat, alarming or just plain entertaining, if it doesn’t standout it won’t make a connection, and your website presentation will be instantly forgotten.

The best and most complete example of branded entertainment that I have seen was the brilliant Shredded Wheat “The Palace of Light” campaign. It was very funny while delivering a powerful marketing message. Unfortunately the campaign is no longer running, but if you can find some of the videos on the Web, they are definitely worth seeing. They are great examples of how to turn advertising into content, and content into a memorable experience.

In a speech about break-through advertising, Chuck Porter, co-founder of Crispin Porter + Bogusky states the average person sees conservatively 1600 to 3000 marketing messages a day. That’s a lot of advertising. If your marketing communication doesn’t standout in some way, you are probably wasting your advertising budget.

Two Kinds of Advertising

In response to a question asking whether advertising was technology and data driven, or creatively driven, Porter explained that there are basically two types of advertising.

The tech-data driven ad is all about finding that person who needs what you sell at a time when he or she wants to purchase it and then delivering the message to them. This is the reason why so much of what you see, hear, and read in marketing journals and blogs is filled with statistics and analysis of who is doing what and where. All of which is perfectly fine if the only customer you want is the one that needs what you sell instantly or who is motivated by impulse.

This kind of advertising is all about immediacy; the customer needs or impulsively wants what you provide right now. The key is immediate access. If customers don’t have instant accéss, chances are the impulse to purchase will fade, or the prospect will find it more convenient to get the product elsewhere. In this type of advertising, timing and immediacy is paramount. The downside is no long-term relationship is established.

Digital products that can be downloaded instantly seem to be most appropriate for this approach, however that must be qualified by the level of cost and sophistication associated with the product or service: the higher the cost and the more complex or advanced the offering, the less impulsive the decision, and the more a client must be wooed. Advertising theory commonly suggests it takes seven engagements in order to win over a client.

The other kind of advertising is creative-based; it’s advertising built around brand awareness and identity. This is the kind of advertising that creates customers, and establishes long-term loyalty. This is the kind of advertising that can benefit from implementing a branded entertainment campaign.

Why Branded Entertainment Works

If branded entertainment is done right, it engages an audience, it informs and enlightens, it entertains and amuses, it’s meaningful and memorable and potentially viral. Branded entertainment is more than advertising, it’s marketing, and it is designed to influence attitudes, change perceptions, and prompt action.