Thank you Michelle...

Today I just wanted to thank Michelle Bomberger for allowing me to "guest post" on her blog, Equinox Business Law Group. She had asked me to put together a post talking about why having a STRATEGY is so important in this fast moving revolution we call Social Media.

The post I wrote, "Social Media Strategy: Where to Start" was a preview to what she has asked me to speak on at her Equinox Focus event: "Social Media: Strategy and Brand Identity", which happens on August 26th at the 0/8 Seafood Grill in Bellevue. If you can stop by, please let me know - would be great to see you.

This will be a great seminar to combine the discussion of strategy with that of brand identity and the legal aspects of social media - such as what rights you have as a contributor to social media sites. Should be an interesting discussion.

For those of you interested in discussing this ahead of time, I would love to get your comments on what you think about the legal issues surrounding First Amendment rights and Social Media - contributing and commenting. Please leave a comment if you have an opinion on this - one way or the other. Thanks.

Again, thank you Michelle for allowing me to contribute to your session and your discussion - I know the session will be very thought provoking.

In Social Media, STRATEGY rules...

Social Media is clearly the "darling" of conversation in many circles today. Why? Without getting into lots of stats and details, its really pretty simple. The tools are free, the press is looking for anything to write about that might keep them alive and traditional media is declining faster than the stock market did last fall. Enough reasons to get your attention? You bet.

But what this has caused is a huge tidal wave of interest in the "tools" of social media such as facebook, or myspace or even LinkedIn as people reach out to connect with friends and colleagues. And you can't ignore the most recent phenomenon to take over the airwaves, twitter. Whatever the "tool" is that's grabbing your attention, the key is that it is grabbing your attention.

PUT ON THE BRAKES! The gold is not in the "tools" - it is in the STRATEGY. And this was so eloquently described in a recent blog post by one of the most respected marketing minds of the day, Seth Godin. In his post, "When tactics drown out strategy," he shares why STRATEGY is the cornerstone of social media success. I have been trying to share this message for a very long time. So when I see a recognized expert such as Seth (and someone who has been at it even longer than I have) saying the same thing, it is worth sharing.

With all this attention in the media and everywhere else, people are worried about “getting left behind” so people and businesses are jumping in like lemmings off the top of the cliff. “If I don’t do something I am going to miss the revolution” is the battle cry of the day. My advice remains the same, do it RIGHT, be SMART and get yourself a STRATEGY before you play. If you follow this recipe, you will “enhance” your brand with these super powerful tools rather than embarrass yourself.