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.