So, have you started that blog? Not sure what to write about or how to keep that blog alive and interesting? Especially when you are thinking about your audience, what information they want and how to integrate all of this in with your Internet Marketing strategy!

Well, there are many points to remember and points to avoid. In this blog, I will provide the "things to do" in blogging in this post. For the next post, we'll focus on the "things to avoid" in blogging. So, as you think about blogging keep these points in mind:

• Do be respectful of your audience and ensure any humor-based messages do not come across as critical or annoying.
• Do provoke meaningful conversation in a professional, non-criticizing manner.
• Do write what you know and post your areas of expertise.
• Do have a monitoring process in place for comments on your blog posts.
• Do respond to all comments in an appropriate and professional manner.
• Do ensure that all content associated with you is consistent with your work and with your company's values and professional standards.
• Do be polite and respectful when posting comments on other people's blog posts.
• Do share content that is open-ended and invites response and encourages comments.
• Do create a content plan for your blog and ensure consistent frequency in your blog posts.
• Do use a tracking system for all links (ie, bit.ly.com)

So, you have everything in place and ready for a good social media marketing campaign. Now what? A key part of an effective social media marketing campaign is to engage your community in a conversation and thereby demonstrate your expertise and your capabilities in a specific topic.  Here are a few basic do's and don'ts to keep in mind as you generate manage your social marketing.

• Do write your posts in the first person and be as transparent and honest as possible.
• Do ensure your messages are relevant to your audience and followers.
• Do ensure your posts are engaging and entice a conversation.
• Do ask questions and solicit feedback from your audience.
• Don't hard sell on the social portals. Use social media to share your expertise.
• Don't post messages at a frequency that would be considered SPAM.
• Don't post any messages that are unprofessional or do not provide value to your audience.
• Don't post anything about customers, colleagues, etc. that you would not want them to see.

Remember, be open about what you know and provide valuable information for your target market. After all, good Internet Marketing is all about good and relevant content.

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So, what do you do with those business videos and business images that you have been taking for your products or services? Well, a great tool in creating an effective Internet Marketing strategy is use those videos on your website and in your Social Media Marketing portals. So, how do you do that?

• Do share appropriate business related videos and/or images on your company website, blog and the various video sites (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.)
• Do try and optimize any videos you upload with relevant keywords (title tags, video descriptions, etc.)
• Don't upload inappropriate pictures to your gallery or photo album
• Don't create a company video without a standard company branded title and end slide
• Don't use copyrighted material (videos or images) without the owners written permission

In developing an effective Internet Marketing strategy you need to consider how to build a credible and successful online community. Here are a few key points to consider in planning for and implementing your online marketing strategy.

• Do build your community with your business contacts (i.e., business associates, past and current colleagues, partners and customers).
• Do ensure your are engaging yourself in other people's social networks.
• Do follow or add business contacts to your community that chose to connect with you.
• Do email your customer database and encourage them to follow or add you on the social portals.

Of course, there are a few points to avoid.

• Don't mix your personal contacts (friends and family) with your business contacts. Keep a separate profile for personal use.
• Don't assume people will find you. Actively search for social network users relevant to your company.
• Don't neglect to manage your followers. Block those that are not business appropriate.
• Don't forget to include the social icons and "follow me" links in all of your marketing materials.

So, whether you have a profile or are looking to create a social media profile, it is always good to review a few key guidelines. So, from an Internet Marketing perspective, let's review the do's and don'ts of a good social media profile.

Let's start with the positives.

• Do use your company name in your profile name, or use your company domain name.
• Do have a company logo or professional photo for your profile picture and use a consistent picture across the social portals.
• Do provide a company biography on your porfile and list your industry or service expertise.
• Do use a branded profile design where possible.

Ok, now for the profile items to avoid.

• Don;t use multiple names across your social portals.
• Don't use the same profile for personal and business use, keep them separate.
• Don't use your personal contact details (ie, gmail) as this looks unprofessional. Use your company branded contact details instead.
• Don't detail your personal hobbies and religious or political beliefs on your company profile.

So, as that first step make certain you are establishing a profile that is appropriate and complete for your business and professional needs.

San Francisco, Matt Zuckerberg (Facebook CEO) just announced some revolutionary tools available from Facebook to website developers. These changes are designed to provide new tools that will allow users to see personalized versions of websites they visit elsewhere on the Internet. Using these tools will allow websites to customize a users experience based on their list of friends, favorite brands and other elements they share on their Facebook profile. Can you imagine the implications of a website that can tailor a website based upon the interests and social connections (as long as they are logged in to Facebook)? This would allow a visitor to see what their friends viewed and liked (which can really affect a users perspective of how they view a website's product or service).

So what are the potential ramifications for Facebook, Google and the web in general? Should the Facebook community embrace this capability, Facebook will be able to gain valuable insights that will help it sell more advertising on its platform. From a Google perspective, this could pose a very significant threat to the Google Adwords dominance of recent years. And with the projected increase in online advertising over the next five years, this is a gigantic opportunity for the dominant player.

You can read the original article; http://tinyurl.com/28ypyyq

Over the next few days I plan to recap some of the do's and don'ts associated with good Social Media Marketing. We'll discuss some of the following highlights:

1. What to do or not do in creating an effective profile
2. What to do or not do in building an online community
3. What to do or not do for video and image sharing
4. What to do or not do in creating status updates and messages
5. What to do or not do for you blog posts and comments (and you are right, this will be a longer set of do's and don'ts)
6. What to consider about privacy and confidentiality in your Social Media Marketing campaigns

Any specific questions? Feel free to email or post a comment for us to discuss.

Ok, so go figure. I was attending a nice quiet social event last evening and the talk turned to social media and specifically "what is LinkedIn?" So, I had the opportunity to listen to another member of the group give an example of how this "online business network" can help on a professional basis. This individual is an executive in the banking industry and has been active as a LinkedIn member. He became aware that a particular bank was going to have a vacancy and would therefore have a need for an appropriate replacement. Now, this individual knew the name of the senior executive he needed to contact but did not know them in person.

So here's how he used LinkedIn to get that introduction to a specific individual. What he did is enter the name of his boss in to LinkedIn search. Once he found his boss, he was able to look at the 2nd connections and see who was connected to this third party bank. He found a mutual connection that could introduce him to a member that had a direct connection with the target executive, was able to get an introduction, then received the cellphone number of that executive and placed a timely and effective phone call. He now works that bank in a more lucrative and rewarding position.

So, now think of how this process can apply to your Internet Marketing strategy. Yep, start to look for and work the connections for your target market accounts. Not only can they find you, but you can find and market to them. Sometimes, the concept of Six Degrees of Separation are very powerful (if you work at it).

So, you can probably tell that I am a strong believer in the power of the LinkedIn network! If used properly, it can help you define and achieve measurable results in pursuing your Internet Marketing strategy. So, let me provide a little cheat sheet of actions you should take to get started on effectively using LinkedIn. Just remember, you need to not only establish a good LinkedIn profile, but you need to use it and keep it updated.

Own a profile that truly represents YOU. List your current and past positions and all of your education. Make certain you identify the dates worked or attended for each (this helps the right people and opportunities find you). Remember to add that professional profile picture and a well written summary paragraph.

Ensure Your connections Represent Your “Real World” network.  Use the LinkedIn feature to import your contacts (you can select who you want to invite during the process) from your webmail, Outlook, Palm, ACT!, etc. Next search for and connect with colleagues and classmates that are already on LinkedIn.

Leverage the power of your LinkedIn network. Post a question on Answers and tap in to the community of experts, this is especially helpful for those tough questions. Lookup someone’s profile before you meet with them to learn their background and see who you may have in common. Search for Service Providers and make the best selection based on your trusted network.