It seems like it should go without saying, but social media is about more than just hard-core marketing of a product or service. With respect to marketing efforts involving social media, you should consider it as planned social interaction. After all, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and others aren't magic and they aren't just places to advertise. Instead, they are simply ways to enhance communication with customers and prospective customers.

Interacting socially online isn't much different than it would be in the real world. Think of it this way, If someone walked into your place of business would you go up to him and say "Thanks for coming, download this ebook!" would you tap him on the shoulder repeatedly trying to convince him to buy this product or that? Would you walk up to someone at a restaurant having a conversation with their friend and say, "You know, that is a nice tie, I sell ties, visit my site!" No, you wouldn't. Or at very least you shouldn't, because customers will walk right out the door and never come back. Worse, they will tell their friends what an ass you are and you'll get a bad reputation.

The same is true in social media, but the trick is to develop a plan and a framework for how you can develop natural conversations and integrate those into your overall marketing program.

Just because you have a Facebook page, it isn't going to suddenly skyrocket you and your business to the stars. However, it is an opportunity to enhance your ability to communicate with your customers and interact with them on a social level - nothing more. That's where we come in and work with clients to better understand their business and how they can have a great conversation that makes people want to be a part of what they are doing.

So now you are ready to start communicating online and you know what "not to do". It's time to develop a framework for social interaction.

5 Steps for Developing a Framework for Social Interaction

Social Interaction by definition is dynamic, chaotic, spontaneous, and exciting. In many ways, it defies planning - but that doesn't mean you should avoid having a plan!

Step One: Determine Strengths, Weaknesses, and Goals

When we work with a client, the first step is to talk with them and develop an understanding for who they are and why their business is unique. During this process, we'll also be able to better understand any strengths or weaknesses that the client might have socially - something we will need to embrace or overcome when we bring the client to the social media world.

Additionally, you should develop goals for the social media effort. These can be as basic as to have a place for fans to gather online, or it might be to build a core of brand advocates and early adopters who will hopefully share tidbits about your brand on their blogs and online forums.

Step Two: Determine Your Audiences

Once you know what you are working with, it is time to determine who you want to communicate with. This is important because different audiences use different online media, have different time constraints, and generally consume media differently. Ultimately, your audience determines everything - frequency of interactions, type of interaction, topics you encourage discussion of etc.

Step Three: Determine Who Will Communicate with Customers

The owner doesn't always have to be the one that tweets all day. This is an important thing to realize - especially when we work with smaller, local businesses. As long as the person who is communicating understands the personality of the business and what the goals are, it can be virtually anyone in the organization. This includes a manager, wife or husband of the owner, or we can also manage the communications effort for our clients.

Step Four: Decide What Technology Is Available and Is Useful

Depending on your goals and who will be communicating, your brand may chose to interact using mobile devices, web driven applications, video, text, or even tools who's goal is to create real world connections with online people.

Step Five: Agree on the Framework and Begin Implementation

It is essential for all layers of an organization to understand what's going on, so you should have a written document to refer to and that all levels of your organization can embrace.

This doesn't mean that you have to have the guy at the register tweeting every time a customer buys something, but it does mean that he should be aware that there is a Facebook page, or a YouTube channel and how to identify and encourage satisfied customers who are likely contributors to engage with your brand online. This could be as easy as saying, "Thanks for stopping by, did you know we give out 2 for 1 coupons on Facebook? Here is our card."

We find that by going through these steps that it allows us to develop effective social media plans that can help virtually any client better understand the value and the potential of social media. After all, social media is more than just placing ads in front of people, it is an online conversation that can enhance your business, increase the loyalty of your customers, and oh yeah - it can drive sales too!