The best offence is a good defence

So you know what you want to achieve with Social Media. You’ve drafted your strategy document and you’re ready to press the go button. So what next, how do you actually engage with an audience using Social Media? It sounds great and you’re sure it’s exactly what your organisation needs, but how do you actually get it done?

If you want to engage your audience in a conversation and start relationships through the use of Social Media, you have to do the hard yards first and build a credible, defensible reputation in the space on which to build more targeted message based campaigns.

In simple terms, building the credibility of your organisation, or your products or services is easiest done by getting your hands dirty. You don’t have to start and or write your own blog (although you could), but you should comment on others where your comments add value or demonstrate expertise.

If you see a value in micro blogging, don’t ignore replies you receive and actively search out questions that you can answer. Search through existing content, on for example, You Tube or Flickr and add commentary or thoughts that substantiate your proposition.

Join social networks in Facebook, My Space or Bebo as appropriate and create an active profile by engaging with your fellow members or fans. And most of all, represent your organisation, product or service honestly, openly and realistically to enhance your reputation.