History of the Social Web

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Just when did social media begin? Some would argue with the telephone, but(even with the advent of three-way calling) vocal conversations remain primarily a one-to-one medium, while social media is fueled by many-to-many communications. In the late 1970s, Bulletin Board Services (BBSs) came into existence, allowing users to exchange messages by connecting to standalone computers.

However, it was not until the emergence of the Internet that a common means became available to access a social platform. In 1979, UseNet became a popular way for Internet users to post articles and respond in hierarchically-organized newsgroups. BBSs, such as CompuServe and Prodigy, grew into important social media platforms. In the 80s, the number and type of social  media on the Internet continued to expand, such as discussion forums and dating services, but it wasn't until the first decade of the third millennium that real explosion of social media hit.

The following resources detail the amazing journey of how social media became the phenomenon it is today:

• Definitive (lol) Definition and History of Social Media
• The History of Social Media in a Blink
• The History and Evolution of Social Media
• A Brief History of Social Media
• Social media's history and trajectory

Using Wikis to Promote Your Business

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A Wiki is software that enables people collaborate on creating interrelated topical documents.The best known instance of a Wiki is Wikipedia -- a popular online encyclopedia built through community participation. Business can also benefit from Wikis, by facilitating and encouraging the collaborative production and sharing of company documents, files, and knowledge among management, employees, customers, and suppliers. Product documentation, teamwork, and project management are ripe areas where Wikis can make immediate and substantial contributions to improving collaboration, knowledge sharing, and positive outcomes.The resources below offer insightful advice in effectively putting Wikis to work in your business:

• HOW TO: Use Wikis for Business Projects
• How to use wikis to collaborate, brainstorm and share knowledge
• Would Your Business Benefit from a Wiki?
• Collaborating through wikis
• Start an internal wiki for your business
• Start using blogs, wikis in your organization
• A Small Business Guide to Wiki

What is Social Media Marketing?

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Social media marketing (SMM) uses social media platforms to positively influence consumers toward a company’s brands, products or services. In other words, the goal of social media marketing is to create a “buzz” online, so that complementary content about a brand, product or service goes “viral,” with consumer-generated media endorsements spreading like wildfire across the Internet (--think of a highly watched YouTube video extolling the virtues of a product or service).

It is not hyperbole to say that social media marketing is fundamentally changing the way businesses communicate with consumers. In fact, social media marketing has become so powerful it is now driving search engine results. Today, people are using highly accessible social media tools to find, create, and share content online. Social media enables people to collaborate and form consensus opinions, connecting and forming relationships in ways never before possible. This presents a new challenge and opportunity for business—to positively influence this ongoing conversation about the company’s offerings.

Think of it this way, social media marketing is the 21st Century digital “word-of-mouth” advertising. However, instead of discussing a company’s offering in person or over the phone, Internet users have turned to social media platforms to express their opinions. Popular social media platforms include blogs, (which can be found using blog search engines such as Technorati and BlogPulse), micro-blogs (e.g., Twitter and Jaiku), social networking sites (e.g., Facebook and LinkedIn), video and image sharing sites (e.g., YouTube and Flickr), podcasts, bookmarking (e.g., del.icio.us and StumbleUpon), wikis (e.g., Wikipedia), and social network aggregators (e.g., Mybloglog and Plaxo).

Some useful resources for defining and better understanding social media
marketing:

• What Traits Define a Social Media Marketer?
• Social Media Marketing Definition
• Defining Social Media Marketing
• Defining A Social Media Marketer
• Defining Social Media Marketing

Measuring Social Media Marketing Success!

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At some point, the decision to use social media marketing or convincing someone else to do so eventually comes down to justifying the expenditure of resources and time. This typically involves measuring the success of the effort. Measuring the effectiveness of using social media to promote a business can be done both qualitatively and quantitatively. Most people feel more confident and comfortable with numbers, so social media metrics dominate, such as Return on Investment (ROI), Web analytics, and other similar quantitative assessments.

The following resources provide a variety of useful methods and tools for measuring the success of social media marketing campaigns:

• Social Media Metrics Superlist: Measurement, ROI, & Key Statistics Resources
• Tools and Metrics You Need to Measure and Monitor Social Media Success
• Assessing free social media metrics tools
• How to Measure Social Media ROI for Business
• Measuring Social Media ROI: Does size matter?
• Net Promoter Score (NPS) Criticisms and Best Practices

Social Media Marketing Training Needed Now!

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As the global recession wears on—cash-strapped companies continue to slash marketing, advertising, and public relations budgets and positions—with one highly notable exception—businesses spending on social media marketing has skyrocketed and continues to escalate at an unprecedented rate. The movement to social media has quite simply become a stampede, with social networks such as Facebook recently topping 300 million users, LinkedIn surpassing 40 million users, and Twitter, with 23.6 million users, grew by 900% over the last year!

According to the 2009 Digital Readiness Report, “…most organizations are considering hiring social media specialists.” However, despite the urgent, massive and growing need by business for social media marketing specialists, the number of people being educated in social media marketing falls far short of demand. Unfortunately, universities and community colleges have been slow to create social media marketing courses to meet this seemingly recession-proof career, leaving a vast educational vacuum and incredible opportunity for a forward thinking institutions to fill this gaping hole.