Social networking - so tantalising for all those brands out there - millions of people in your target market all in one place - how do I get in there and sell to this captive market.

I can see lots of brand managers grappling with this one - spurred on by their directors - we have to get into this social networking thing - its where all the buzz is.

Here’s the view of one blog commentator:

http://www.web-strategist.com/blog/2008/06/17/how-brands-can-buy-social-media/

In essence - the article outlines that value comes from three areas:

- Advertisements - straight purchase of ads

- Sponsorships - longer term form of advertising

- Social Media Optimization - using the social media platforms to optimise your brand and content (part of what Trovus does)

I would add several other areas;

- engage with the discussions - this is a battle for mindshare - this is’nt about you the brand, its about what the people want - run with what they want and help them get - its the best way to get engagement;

- create things (content and tools) that are of interest to your target market - its about what you can do for your market, not how much you can sell them.

The key thing - its not about you - its about them. Thats why I dont believe that advertising on social networking platforms works - it just jars as its an intrusion and doesnt add to the value of the platform for the users.

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