Social Marketing... an brief intro.

For the past few months I've been working heavily in the area of social media and social marketing through a pretty cool marketing program called House Party Buzz.

In a very short period of time, I've learned that a vast majority of marketing professionals don't truly understand social marketing. To summarize, social media is "people having conversations online". This is done by sharing thoughts and ideas, photos, videos, etc.

Web 2.0 brought us sites like Flickr, Tweeter, Facebook, MySpace and YouTube - and there are many more on the way. These sites aren't about online fads; they represent a global shift in the way we communicate.

Social Marketing is about engaging consumers directly in an open and honest conversation. If they love your product, they'll talk about it. If they don't like your product, you need to let them say their piece and learn from consumer thoughts.

As a marketer you need to let go of the reins and let consumers take control of the conversation. The more you try to influence their discussions, the sooner you'll be resented for getting in the way. Regardless of the messages you try to put out there, people will talk; and social marketing is a great way to connect with your customers.