What is Social Media?

What is Social Media Marketing?

Let’s take a look at both.

Let’s put them in terms that will be easy to understand.

Social Media is “internet real estate” that is a collection of internet sites that have social functions on the site that allow people to:

1) Communicate with each other.

2) Develop New Relationships and join communities like facebook, LinkedIn, twitter, and Myspace.

3) Connect with people with the same interests and discover many new ideas and possibilities.

4) Share their thoughts, pictures, videos and ideas.

5) Grow in a manner socially that they may have never had the chance to do before.

Social Media sites, or Web 2.0 as it is also known, is a powerful system of Connection that allows people to Connect, Construct, and Converse on many levels in the Social media-sphere.

There are many ways to do this.

CONNECT.

You can connect on just about any level with blogs, wikis, social
networking sites, micro blogging sites, news sites, social bookmarking
sites, and podcast and LIVE streaming video sites.

The list is endless.

You can CONNECT via personal emails, writing on social pages, and
even joining groups and commneting on blogs. It is truly amazing what
the Social Media arena offers the Professional as well as the person
that just like the idea of connecting with others.

CONSTRUCT.

You can Construct new friendships and new relationships with social
media. You can do this by “be-friending” people and joining their
“circle of Influence” which allows you to contact their friends as well
and ask permission to become their friends too. This gives you the
ability to Construct a solid online friendship that many times is tkakn
offline and what we call “localized.” You can meet them in your own
town if that is where they live.

CONVERSE.

Conversation is one of the main keys to Social Media. Talking to
people that you know- and people that you barely know- about what they
want to talk about as well as yourself. You do this with many different
tools- such as blogs, posts, direct messages, notes to people, audio
and videos posted, as well as plain old email through the social site
system- like what the social media site Facebook has.

Conversation is the key to contributing to the community. And there is a secret to the process:

TALK ABOUT THEM!

And share with your friends new ideas and possibilities that you think are of Value. You do this with “tweets” from twitter, “notes” from facebook, “vids” from Youtube, podcasts from mp3s, and emails from LinkedIn.

There are currently over 3,500 social sites- and growing. These
sites offer hundreds of millions of people that have joined them, and
thus hundreds of millions of possible new connections and conversations.

The 4 “Social Media Platforms” ™ for Social Media are:

1) Social Networking Sites: like facebook, Plaxo, Myspace, LinkedIn, Friendster, and Black planet.

2) Video and audio sites- like Youtube, Revver, Metacafe, and Godtube- plus podcasts sites like Podcast alley.

3) Blogging and Text sites- like Wordpress, Blogger, Typepad, Twitter, and Squarespace.

4) Social Bookmarking Sites- like Digg, Reddit, Mixx, and Stumbleupon.

And what new software developments are coming in the future?

Many are on the drawing board, and we will see new sites popping up daily.

The MAIN reason that I see that Social Sites are so popular is the CONNECTION factor to:

People.
New ideas.
Possibilities.
Entertainment.
Education.
Marketing.

What is Social Media Marketing?

It is the process of engaging Social Media sites for Branding, Messaging, Teaching, Exposing, and Connecting to possible new prospects for the product and business.

It is different though than traditional marketing, as traditional
marketing relies on linear communication and where the corporation
determines the market flow.

In social media, the communication is less linear, and the social
community determines much of the market flow. Right now, over 50% of
all Fortune 500 companies are using social media for their business.

Impressive.

And it is growing.

Social Media is perfect for Marketing in 3 ways:

1) Getting your Brand known and exposed to a whole new grouping of people.

2) Using it to Communicate with your prospects and current customers- for customer support and product info.

3) Building new Relationships with other businesses and
people to create a community that shares the enthusiasm for your
products and business that you do.

Social Media and Social Media Marketing is
in it’s infancy and will be for a few more years, as it morphs and
continues to transform into something that has yet to be seen. many are
saying that Social Media will take over traditional media. That has yet
to be seen, but the possibility is there for sure in the future for Social Media Marketing .

blessings…Doug Firebaugh
PassionFire Training
Follow Doug on Twitter

Editor’s note: this post was written by Doug Firebaugh of PassionFire International. If you’re passionate about social media, social media marketing and social networking lifestyle design, contact me about writing an article yourself.

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Social Media Leadership is an evolving process that really needs to be looked at by the social media community. It is critical.

Why?

It determines everything in any kind of social media change, growth, improvement, or marketing. Leadership is the elevator in all business. Esepcially in Social media. It will determine whether something goes UP or goes DOWN in the marketplace. It will determine Value or determine
Emptiness.

I think you would agree, many folks in social media are
entrepreneurs with their own business. But yet, many of these folks do not LEAD in social media.

They sell.

They market.

They converse.

They Spend time on social sites.

They buy all the latest “guru’s” CDs and DVDs.

They follow. They follow others in their efforts to find the golden rings of social Media.

Here is a novel idea:

TAKE YOUR OWN LEAD.

Step up to YOUR LEADERSHIP in socail media and get out the wake of people that are trying to leave you behind.

DECIDE to Connect and Embrace YOU – to Your own Leadership in Social Media. There is an INCREDIBLE Leaders inside of you-it’s time to RELEASE that Leader.

Start directing people to ideas and possibilities they never knew existed-from YOUR Suggestions and guidance. Start guiding people to what will TRANSFORM them as a person, not just what will create a
Transaction. Transform their perception of what is possible. Transform their thinking to a new level of Success. Transform their expectations-with YOU.

There are 4 Secrets to becoming Powerful Social Media Leader and if you operate with these components in mind, you can become social media royalty.

Here are those 4 components:

1) A PICTURE.

Some folks call it Vision. Some folks call it a Destination. In social media, you need to paint a vivid picture in what you can do for a person, as well as where you are going to take them. Picture pages are the most visited pages in social media. That is called a CLUE.

OK. Then using that as a measure, lets’ create s picture of where you are headed, and what that picture has to offer anyone who will follow. Does the picture have a name? Does the picture you paint of your message move people emotionally?

Create what I call a Picture of Promise, and then keep that picture in your Social Media Leadership front and center.

Lisa, a friend of mine, keeps a picture of what a person will look like if they learn about and use here skin care system FRONT AND CENTER on her social sites. She is not trying to sell anything except a possibility. It is a Powerful picture that leads to a powerful place.

2) A PATH.

Folks want a Path they can travel, and most want it in modules, or steps. What does your Leadership Path offer and what are the steps? Have you CLEARLY laid out the path so they can follow with no challenge to where you are leading them? Are the links and any other “doorways”to new ideas working? Are the videos you are doing compelling? Are the podcasts short and to the point and interesting? Are the blogs readable and well written? Are any notes or tweets easy to understand?

All a path is is a series of social media “doorways” that lead to where you want them to go. Call them bread crumbs. Call them arrows pointing to a place. But either way, they first lead a person to a place and activity to be taken.

What does your Path offer and what are the benefits of taking that path? People listen to radio station KIA-AM. Is your Social Media Leadership path tuned into that station?

KIA-AM stands for— Keep It All About ME. Make EVERYTHING about the prospect and what they will receive when they enter the “Promised Land” you are guiding them to.

Make the path they have to travel, click to, or learn about interesting and always point to something they will learn, enjoy, feel good about, and feel glad they took that path with you.

3) A PROMISE.

What as a leader, are you promising anyone that will follow you?

Gain? Increase? Education? Improvement? Answers? Solutions?

Or are you offering them something so of VALUE that not matter who it is, it is too Valuable to turn down?

Promises are a dime a dozen-unless you LEAD people to the promise and DELIVER, and set yourself apart from the crowd with REAL relationships in the social arena, as all leaders build connections and Value in all they do.

Make a Promise- and KEEP IT- no matter what. That is Leadership in Social Media.

4) A POWERFUL CONCLUSION.

Nothing will point to you as a Social Media Leader quicker than a Powerful Conclusion to the Promise. Give them what you siad you would. Take them where you said you would. Teach them what you said you would.

But give them MORE than the Picture Promises, and where they think the Path Leads. That is what Social Media Leadership is about.

Leading BEYOND all expectations.

Leading PAST the Promise to More Powerful Conclusions.

Leading In a Way that it is so Valuable, they will follow you anywhere, anytime, with any suggestion of a path.

THAT is one of the missing pieces in developing a social media marketing empire.

LEAD the folks to places they never thought they could visit or conceive, with Social Media Leadership.

blessings…Doug Firebaugh
PassionFire Training
Follow Doug on Twitter

Editor’s note: this post was written by Doug Firebaugh of PassionFire International. If you’re passionate about social media, social media marketing and social networking lifestyle design, contact me about writing an article yourself.

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Leadership.

The Core Energy of any Success and achievement.

And also the Core of any Social Media Success.

That is what  Social Media Leadership is about - an evolving Leadership that in a powerful manner, will redefine the web and social media in general n the future.

Why?

Everyone knows that Leadership is comprised of many things.

But the definition of Social Media Leadership is critical to understand when you are looking at a culture and vehicle that has yet to fully develop and evolve as a mature entity. That is years away from happening.

What IS Social Media Leadership?

It is a Mobilizing Energy which mobilizes people- powered by Value, Influence and Directing them to new, more powerful possibilities - from online social networking efforts.

Bottom Line: Moving people to more powerful places and possibilities online.

Social Media Leadership requires the Leader to  create a magnetic energy filled with HOPE in their videos, podcasts, and writings - that will move people towards you and your products. You do this by Influencing them with Unexpected Value for their life from your message – and Directing to New, more powerful paths of results and Success for their own lives.

That is what social media is about-new worlds and new thinking.

That is also what Leadership is about.  Seeing new worlds of possibilities that others cannot, then leading them there - through a Value and Hope Driven path.

Are you doing that? Are you opening up doors of possibilities for folks and leading them through those doors?

Are you introducing - ”what could be”- to people that still live in “what used to be?”

You have a great chance to change a lot of lives through the power of Social Media Leadership.

Take the lead. Take the Initiative. Start something  New. End something old. Guide people to New Knowledge. Direct them to Powerful People. Embrace new thinking. Plan bigger networks. Engage more Value on the social sites. Reveal the little known to the many. Expose what most cannot believe to those who want to believe.

LEAD somewhere- anywhere. But lead to a powerful message and place – that will impact people powerfully and transition them to a new Hoe.

You be that Message. You be that value.

You be a Social Media GPS System- and guide people step by step, connection by connection, conversation by conversation, down a powerful path that will direct them to something larger than themselves.

With Social Media Leadership you can:

1 Lead folks to new ways of communicating, connecting, and interacting with people that even 4 years ago was not possible.

2 You can lead folks to powerful new teachings that others have posted, recorded, or archived that they never knew were available through blogs, articles, videos and podcasts.

3 You can connect with folks that you do not know that are looking for direction and solutions.  That is where you come in.

Either have a solution – or BE the solution.

4 You can cast a vision in social media about where you are going and invite people to go with you.

5 You can guide folks to new thought leaders in social media, like Chris Brogan, Brian Clark, Michelle Macphearson, Carrie Wilkerson, Robert Scoble, Scott Monty, Mari Smith, and many others.

6 You can empower and guide folks through the culture of social media and lead them to new ways of thinking, doing, and creating the results they are looking for in their life with your message.

7 You can also establish yourself as a Social Media Leader by simply taking the lead in an area that no one is leading, (and there are many places to do that) and start communicating hope and your thoughts of Value to folks that are a part of your social media circle.

Social Media Leadership draws people towards your message and then leads them to more powerful results that are available but most do not know exist. You want to lead folks to a message that can improve, enlarge, expand, and enhance their life and business.

Social Media Leadership is about Grouping Up and building a leading a large group of folks to a place that only YOU can take them with your message and leadership.

Become a personal Social Media GPS System — and GUIDE folks to greater heights and results.

And that is one of the biggest secrets to Social media marketing. Lead- don’t just persuade.

blessings…Doug Firebaugh
PassionFire Training
Follow Doug on Twitter

Editor’s note: this post was written by Doug Firebaugh of PassionFire International. If you’re passionate about social media, social media marketing and social networking lifestyle design, contact me about writing an article yourself.

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Social Media Authority.

Lots of words flying around in the social media arena about Authority.

I have been seeing lots of posts lately all over the place about people that are “johhny come latelies” and making a splash on the social media sphere and bringing a huge list with them and then labeling themselves an “expert” and an “authority”.

Some of these posts and tweets about these social media neophytes have been brutal, while some have been very honest. And to be realistic, some of the these social media neophytes have been blatantly in your face, ”look at me” self promotional, and obviously it’s all about who they are and the numbers they have accumulated as “followers” and “friends” from their list and their friend’s list.

Or is it?

Some of these new to the social media scene, self proclaimed ‘experts” have not even been in social media 6 months. We have been in for over 4 years, and the first year we spent learning, observing and gaining knowledge about this new phenomenon. Yes, you can do it quicker, but I am very deliberate person and want to KNOW that I know that I know what is going on. Then once we felt we were where we needed to be, we started doing some posting and videos.

I have been blessed to travel to over 40 countries and train over a million people in an 11 year span in a particular industry, but that took YEARS to develop before anyone ever took me seriously- if they even do now.  What seems to be the rub with folks, is that people that have been in social media and PROVEN they are an authority and an undeniable expert  (like Chris Brogan and Scott Monty) still today do not label themselves an “expert.” Check their Profiles.

Scott appeared on Fox news and talked about Ford and Social media. THAT is social proof of Scott’s powerful reach in the national and worldwide social media arena.

That is where the debate has centered, and after watching this debate go on for a few weeks, I was compelled to write a post about what I feel is going on here and why. But this is just my opinion- and I do NOT call myself an Authority or an Expert in social media as I am not. Our company just helps folks and corporations with their strategic planning and execution of social media in the marketplace as many others do with their clients, among all the other things we do.

And the debate seems to all revolve around the evolving power of Social Media Leadership today and many trying to short circuit the leadership path.

It is interesting to note what the dictionary calls an “expert:”

“possessing special skill or knowledge; trained by practice; skillful or skilled (often fol. by in or at): an expert driver; to be expert at driving a car.”

Trained by PRACTICE. This means that it actually takes a while to become an ‘expert” at anything.

Hmmmmm….

In the mid and late 90s; and even early 2001 and 2002, it was all about Internet marketing, and it was HOT. Our companies have been doing Internet marketing for 11 years, and are blessed to bring in a lot of business marketing on the Internet every year. But around 2003 or so, a new Internet vehicle showed up that has actually eclipsed the Internet marketing world, and it is called social media. And because of the newness of it and the unique landscape of it, it eclipsed Internet marketing as far as numbers and being the “hot new thing.”

Many people have joined the social media zone, and for the marketers out there, it seems to have become a literal “feeding frenzy” for new business. And all you have to do is see all the new direct messages, ads, posts, emails, articles, the endless list of events, and giveaways to see that this it truly is an active marketplace.  But that somewhat goes against totally the culture and meaning of social media.

Social media is about GIVING, and then maybe marketing. It is about SOWING and then maybe reaping after a time. It is about TRANSFORMING and then maybe a transaction after that has occurred.

THAT is what the process and culture is about I believe.  And there is NOTHING WRONG at all profiting for your efforts. We do everyday. BUT in social media, following the cultural Leadership process that has been evolving of giving and making a difference is critical I believe. You CANNOT short circuit that path and be a Leader in social Media.

But there is a REAL challenge with that with some folks in the marketplace, as it goes totally against the grain with internet and traditional marketing. Yes, social media is still in diapers, but it is growing and becoming larger everyday attracting many different types of people.

Rule # 1 In Marketing:

To be paid attention to, be noticed, and even listened to online, you need to establish yourself as somewhat of an ‘authority.” Marketers know this. And they are very good at it.  ( FULL Disclosure: I am a marketer and have been for over 20 years.) So knowing that in order for anyone to take you seriously, you must establish some type of an authority and so called “expertise.”

That is where the real debate is-WHAT is happening and what is REAL Authority in social media?

Here is my take:

There are 4 Levels of Authority in Social Media Leadership. But there are 2 main ones:

1) PERCEIVED authority.

2) TRUE Authority.

And it is all about VOLUME vs VALUE.

There are those who follow PERCEIVED Authority -based on the VOLUME of followers that person has. But that person has yet to prove themselves with any social proof of results with their clients or corporations.

Then there are those who follow TRUE Authority – based on the VALUE that person offers to the social media arena, and thus has a lot of followers (i.e Chris Brogan ) and it took time to establish that authority and expertise.

Perceived Authority appears to have more of  a  SELF FOCUSED agenda (just watch their videos and read their profile) while True authority appears to have a more of  SELFLESS focus and is based on GIVING not taking, Helping not hyping.

Many folks that have made a quick name for themselves as they KNOW how to market, have what is called PERCEIVED Authority which even could be considered a False Authority. Nothing wrong with making a
quick name –just know their REAL Authority level.

One person looks for what they can GET OUT of social media. The other looks for what they can PUT INTO social media and grow it and help people do the same.

REAL and TRUE Authority -or-  Perceived and False Authority–that debate rages.

What are the 4 Levels of Authority in Social Media Leadership?

Level 1) (Lowest)  Perceived Authority.

This Authority comes from the image that you market to lists — and is a pure result of marketing which can create a large numbers of followers quickly. Results and Proof are lacking as well as personal connection.

Level 2)  Promotional Authority.

This authority comes from what you promote out into the marketplace about you and your message- and brand into the social media zone. This can come from many arenas, including ads, videos, and personal connections. Some results may be starting to show along the way.

Level 3)  Knowledge Authority.

This Authority comes from having the Knowledge and education about social media and folks realize it and acknowledge it with comments on blogs, videos, and other talking about you and your message. Your
teachings are well read and videos are well watched for content. Results are maturing as your Knowledge grows and matures of social media.

Level 4)  True Authority. (Highest)

This can only come from Consistent, Experienced, Knowledge Driven RESULTS and SOCIAL PROOF. In Social Media Leadership, there are no short cuts, and no hidden trails. True Authority can only come from what you have made happen in the marketplace for you and others over time and consistently. And folks will realize it, and want to be  a part of your Impact, and follow you and befriend you by the tens of thousands with little marketing needed. The word organically gets out.

But there is yet another level of Authority that we all can start with and I will end with:

Lets all work on our own Personal Authority and get as great at social media as we can, and connect and make a difference in as many lives of folks as we can. Anyone can be a Leader in social media, but you must travel the growth cycle to mature into that Leader.

And if we make some revenues along the way nothing wrong with that – as this IS Social media Marketing. But that is only PART of the Focus you should have.

blessings…Doug Firebaugh
PassionFire Training
Follow Doug on Twitter

Editor’s note: this post was written by Doug Firebaugh of PassionFire International. If you’re passionate about social media, social media marketing and social networking lifestyle design, contact me about writing an article yourself.

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