Tips for Using Social Media

I read a blog post today by Eric Karjaluoto that posed nine suggestions for brands using social media. I found the post really interesting, and felt that Karjaluoto's points were relevant to any user of social media. Whether you are a brand using social media, a company or an indiviual, consider these points when engaging others online:

1. Advertise less- "try to pull people into what you're saying instead of pushing your message out to everyone."
2. Listen to what's being said- this way you get a chance to respond to what is being said.
3. Learn from it- use feedback- positive and or negative- to your advantage by learning from it. Whereas focus groups were relied upon in the past, social media poses a way to get real feedback for free.
4. Define your purpose- isolating your purpose will allow you to assess the appropriate tools for reaching your audience.
5. Speak human- "why not be a person who thinks, cares and makes mistakes? (We can identify with those people)."
6. Have a personality- "social media is only interesting when it's social...most people are pretty interesting once you strip off the layer of corporate varnish we all seem to wear."
7. Play- use the process of trial and error to see what works for you. Let go of trying to be perfect and try something new!
8. Give us the good stuff- make and give away "stuff" that has value to your audience
9. Avoid the quicksand- it's easy to get caught up in the world of social media, but don't lose sight of "where you're going and what you want to do."

Karjaluoto also includes a bonus tenth point, but you'll have to check out the post for yourself to see what it is.

What do you see as the most important tip for using social media?