Proceed with Caution!!!  That is my first advice in the industry of Social Media and Internet Marketing. I have to speak to this epidemic of marketers and speakers jumping on the latest bandwagon buzz and teaching how to use an Internet technology that they themselves have used for less than a year, and with only mediocre success at that.  Almost anyone can write a book, and most can prepare a speech on a niche component of this industry and sound like the master or guru.

Take myself for instance, all I do in Internet Marketing and Search Engine Optimization for my clients, Strategy Group members and my own projects.  I make sure my experience is the best it can be by following and working with the best in the industry, continual education, testing strategies and implementation going on 9 years!  Yeah, that’s a long time in this industry … I don’t take it lightly, and those that know me say I live and breathe it.  That is a tremendous compliment!

If you are getting ready to hire a traditional marketing company and they are selling you on the use of Social Media you need to come to the table prepared!  Here are some questions they should be able to answer, and the answers you need to be looking for:

Q: How long have you had Social Media implemented in your company?

A: You want to see at least 2 years, that’s right were they in the afterthought stage of the game or an early adopter that really has a firm footing in this industry.

Q: What is your background in Internet Marketing strategies as a whole?

A: You want to see 3-5 years minimum in the Internet Marketing field, this field has been changing faster than any other in history.    How did they implement eMail marketing, an online branding campaing, YouTube, Twitter, or even Facebook.  Getting on board with any of these with just a year or so of background is extremely limiting when developing a strategy.  A strong background in Internet Marketing will tell you how hard they work to stay on top of the next emerging tactic and how they will test and implement it in to your campaign.

Q: Who will be handling your Social Media?

A: If they say them – your done … move on.  Social Media is all about your voice, your relationship with your followers and ‘friends’.  What happens when the person that is writing for you leaves, now a new guy comes in and the voice is completely different.  OR, what if you want to interject an update – it WILL sound different than your ‘hired voice’.

Q: Where do you start with Social Media?

A: If they give you a long list of sites to create profiles on then your going to feel overwhelmed in trying to get enough followers on them all that is it destined to fail.  Granted there are some top level Internet Marketers that can create all these profile accounts and get followers overnight, if you are at that level you’re not reading this article anyway.

If you only ask these 4 questions, look for strong experience and request references to existing clients to chat with you will be in much better shape!  I’ve been in this industry since 2001 and can see the snake oil from the experience in a minute, but most cannot.  Unfortunately the il-informed are being taken advantage of everyday, my goal is to help you make better decisions for the health of your business!

Comments are greatly appreciated, please share your experiences working Social Media or lessons learned with marketers.

emily