Here is a Top 8 list of our Most Popular Posts for 2009 according to our tracking statistics on Hootsuite. You the community, clicked on these posts the most, so I put together a list of the most popular ones just in case you wanted to bookmark it or share it with your contacts (always appreciated)

Please help share these with the Business Community as I’m sure they will find these extremely valuable in preparing their strategy for 2010. This is in order of oldest post to the newest.

1. Top 5 Lessons Learned about Social Media, Social Networking, Twitter, and Business”

This is the post that really kick-started our renewed passion for consulting, except instead of providing trusted IT consulting, our TEAM shifted into providing trusted Social Media Consulting because we identified the trends of businesses needing a team of consultants to help guide them on this new medium which should now be part of their marketing mix. Social media has been added to the equation of all marketing departments, or at least should be and the budgets will finally be there for 2010.

2. 10 Keys for Small Business Success Using Social Networking

This post gave actual tips small businesses can implement right away and gained much popularity among the small business community.

3. How CEO’s Can Create A Blue Ocean Strategy And Save The Company Using Social Media

As we know, good leadership starts from the top and works its way down, yet now we have seen a more bottom up approach thanks to social media. I would suggest any executives still trying to wrap their head around social media, you may want to read this popular post I did and the video explaining how to create a blue ocean strategy using social media with some examples in layman’s terms.

4. Top 5 lessons learned in the trenches of social networking for business and social media consulting

This post discussed what life has been like in the trenches of providing social media consulting and strategies for companies to leverage with even some lessons we learned early on. A good refresher like this is much needed for the New Year.

5. Top 5 Lessons in Trust relating to Social Media and Social Networking

Especially in today’s economic climate, we are extremely reliant upon the trust we have built with our network and community, and we must constantly be cultivating these relationships. The book I would recommend you read is by a fellow social media evangelist Chris Brogan. The title of his book Trust Agents speaks for itself. Here is where you can get your copy: Remember- leaders are readers!

6. San Diego Small Business Fair- Social Networking 101 Slides

This post gives the actual presentation I did at the local San Diego business fair. We received some very good feedback on the content presented so I encourage you to view this post just in case you missed the live event.

7. Top 10 Reasons Businesses Should Embrace Social Media and Twitter To Survive in 2010

Here was another Top 10 list I had put together explaining why businesses will should be embracing social media more as part of their business strategy for 2010. It received over 800 hits so there should be at least a few good points that you may find beneficial.

8. What are the ABC’s of Social Media For Business?

It is important to know the foundation of social media for business development purposes, so these ABC’s explain some of our processes we use (transparency) in working with clients to establish principles to ensure a solid foundation.

Here is to a great 2010 and we at the SNSD team wish everyone a Happy New Year!

Justin R French

P.S. As your trusted advisor, In case you were looking for a cost effective tool to stay in touch with your customers, prospects, and community, you may want to consider starting 2010 off with a tool we use at SNSD called Aweber. You can sign up here for a FREE test drive:

Can You Have More Sales, Too?

Helping over 65,000 businesses like yours raise profits and build customer relationships using AWeber’s opt-in email marketing software for over 10 years.

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First off, as 2009 comes to an end soon, I am very humbled by all the great people I have come to know on twitter over the last year throughout our journey. The team at SNSD could not have gotten here without all your support. Honestly, it’s those close to me in my network on Linked-in and especially Twitter that keep me moving forward even though some days I feel like I am in the dumps or have lost my mind….

I have heard so many different terms used for the new title in social media lately and wanted to discuss some of the following with you and get your feedback:

Social Media Strategist
Social Media Consultant
Social Media Advocate
Social Media Manager
Social Media Coordinator
Social Media Coach
Social Media Mentor
the list goes on……

People want to know where the jobs are- they are in social media. If you have a business degree, experience in consulting, understand strategy, marketing and sales, and have some technical abilities, these are the types of careers to consider. Are there any titles I am missing? If we are connected on twitter or linked-in and we share a common bond around the social media movement for business, I want to hear from you. I have some very exciting things planned for 2010 and as we have developed and grown our thought-leadership collectively on social media for business, we will finally be able to start productizing our best practices and direclty impacting the business community in a positive way. Can you say turn-key?

More to come on this in 2010 🙂 Be ready for Great things!

Justin R French
Social Media Visionary

We are often asked by prospective clients what is involved with social media for business?  We decided to write up a basic ABC’s of Social Media to help give you a inside peak into our process and methodology (with-out giving away to much proprietary information) in how we work with clients.  Hope this helps clarify.

A- Assessment (Basic or In-Depth analysis of your current online marketing strategy, SEO, competitive analysis, SWOT, keyword research, etc.)
B- Budget established (Our starting monthly subscription package right now based on supply and demand is 1,000$/ month)
C- Construct a Social Media Plan or Social Media Strategy (This is setting your business up for success and we do these often for our clients)
D- Delegate (we then execute the strategy by consulting, coaching and training your appropriate staff members on their integrated efforts)
E- Evaluate results, tweek strategy, and adjust tactics or tools used as needed to achieve maximum ROI
F- Functional Dashboard for measurements and decision making of executives

Video to follow on further explanation of these items. Do you have any questions we can answer? Submit us a comment below or email our CEO Justin R French at snsdjf@gmail.com he’s known to be very personal and responds quickly.

The Social Networking San Diego TEAM

p.s. We recommend this tool we use to follow up with our clients and you should definitely try it out

Can You Have More Sales, Too?

Helping over 65,000 businesses like yours raise profits and build customer relationships using AWeber’s opt-in email marketing software for over 10 years.

Take a Free Test Drive today!

Social media marketing is going to be HUGE in 2010 and we are finally seeing some decent budgets being formulated. We started out the first 2 quarters of 2009 helping the small business community mostly, but have realized that mid-size firms have demonstrated to us the budgets are now there and they are seeing the value more and more (which is a very good sign for the economy too). We will continue to help our small businesses of course, and are still finalizing the coaching and subscription services we have been discussing (I know well over-due) but things have been very busy in the trenches.

I wanted to share with you some frequently asked questions we ask prospects before engaging in a social media marketing engagement:

1.  Is your business involved in social media yet?

2.  What’s working / Not Working?

3.  Why do you think your company is ready to engage in social media?

4.  Do you have a social media plan for 2010?

5.  Are you measuring your results?

6.  Are you keeping an eye on your competitors online?

7.  What is your differentiation factor?

8.  Is your website web 2.0 friendly?

9.  On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate your customer service?

10.  On a scale of 1-10 how would your customers rate your customer service?

11.  Do you have staff members who can commit the time to training?

12.  Are you breaking the news first for your industry and developing yourself or your firm as a thought leader for your consulting or legal practice?

Well, this is EXACLTY what we help our clients do everyday; prepare them to listen, teach them to engage, and change their mindset into the 21^st century digital economy. But I must warn you that if you think everything is perfect when it comes to social media marketing your wrong. There is NO one tactic you will try that will get you 2 million views to your you tube channel (unless you are using Scott Stratten or better known as @UnMarketing on Twitter- make sure you follow this Jedi Marketer for some un-believable insight.)

Just like traditional marketing, you have a lot of options (tools) to consider. I know your boss is telling you to stretch your dollars as much as possible, BUT at the same time get the most effective response from your audience while not trying to sound to “spammy” right? Well then social media marketing may be the answer you’re looking for. Remember, marketing is getting the horse to the pond, and a sale is getting the horse to drink.

I know marketing is more complex than that, but you get the idea. It’s all about the marketing message you portray and the call to action that’s key. With some heavy research from our research team, we may be able to offer you the “fast track to social media for business” which many of our clients have experienced.

What topics would you be interested in hearing more about for 2010? We are preparing some turn-key products and essential social media tools as resources to our clients that are going to really help the business community so stay tuned. If you’re a marketing firm looking to offer social media marketing and consulting services to your clients, send our CEO Justin R French an email at snsdjf@gmail.com and put in the subject “affiliate program” and request more information.

Look forward to hearing more from our growing business community.

The Social Networking San Diego Team

1. Product & service improvement

2. Company reputation improvement

3. Sales people cost nothing (for now) Social Media helps identify new sales people for FREE!!!! These brand influencers and brand ambassadors will help strengthen your brand by telling real life stories of how your products and services have helped them professionally or personally and this is critical for sustained growth over the next 5 years- this I can guarantee. Reach out to them before they go to you competitors.

4. Old Sales Tactics are replaced by Social Selling – We now tell our friends/ colleagues/ partners whom we are connected with online about our experiences (good and bad) and depending on your “social influence” this affects the buying decisions of products & services of your firm.

5. Transparency, Truth, and Timing Are now embedded in model companies and aren’t just terms companies throw around anymore, but actually reflect on their culture. (i.e. Zappos, whole foods, Gary-Vee (Wine Library TV) etc. Either you are in or out, no 1 foot in half @#$ stuff! And if you try to be in when your out, you will be labeled as OUT!

6. Everyone has a voice– Media outlets fear the truth because everyone has a voice now, & this is growing exponentially.  Is about giving the power back to the people or consumers who have been advertised and marketed to all the time and have pushed them to the limit.  People and consumers want to be engaged or recommended a solution or product from their peers now NOT advertised to.

7. Competitive Advantage, First Mover, and Business Strategy All tie into Social Media Marketing (If you don’t know what these terms mean look them up or go to business school)

8. Change is no longer talked about, its now about ACTION-great leaders will surface in organizations who are embracing this opportunity to get ahead and develop their circle of influence to promote this change, plan, execute, train, and track (ask us for details on these services- we have a proven system)

9. Google pay per click declines, email marketing declines, and Social Media takes over (I now check twitter more than my email- much quicker for me to say less but still have more of an impact than writing a huge email) Plus- this forces creativity and improved communication (learning to communicate with “less” is the new “more”.)

10. Communication is still the key– Social Media is just a new form of communication that businesses are now accepting as part of their marketing mix. Companies wanting to get involved with social media, be prepared, you will need a budget. When you get one, talk to me or one of our team members.

Anything you’d like to add? Agree/ Disagree?  Would you mind leaving your insight on this post below? I’m interested in hearing from you.

Please re-tweet this post, share, and let other business professionals know about this top ten list. This is extremely useful for the business community in which we are educating, training, and consulting on the business application of Social Media. We have been for almost 1 year now. Thank you

Justin R French

CEO Social Networking San Diego

GaryVee, Me, and Robert @ Syrah in San Diego- book signing of CrushIt (Still finishing up)

Buy it here discounted:

In case you haven’t noticed, Entrepreneurship is on the rise. Especially what I call “Social Entrepreneurship”. Why? I will give you 3 simple reasons:

1. No such thing as job security anymore
2. Average employee tenure at a firm is only 2 years and a few months
3. People are tired of doing things they are not passionate about, and are seeing new opportunities and accepting more risk to do something they love and follow their passion (especially Generation Y)

What are your thoughts about the current trend in Entrepreneurship & Entrepreneurship being taught in business school? Agree or disagree? IBM embraces entrepreneurial minded people and formulates mini entrepreneurial teams to innovate, collaborate, and demonstrate products/ projects that create change and improvement over existing technologies. If there is one model company to follow its IBM. I have studied them for years, and they truly are an industry leader and we aspire to run our start-up the same way. For more on Entrepreneurship, please visit my blog “An Entrepreneurs Journey” here: The Journey Of An Entrepreneur Any comments? Do you agree/ disagree with my opinions? Let me know,

Thanks
Justin CEO Social Networking San Diego

Free? There is nothing FREE in this world as we know BUT if you don’t mind rolling up your sleeves, taking some notes, and working long hours then this may be the right opportunity for you to earn a FREE PhD using these FREE online tools and all your investing is your time. Not a penny more (except if you want to pay for some premium subscription services on some of these tools that help you listen better and teach you how to build systems) Times may be tough, but as business leaders and business professionals, we need to stay on top of education because at the end of the day, customers pay for our knowledge, experience and education and as consultants, we must stay up-to-date and constantly be learning.

I hear so often, “I don’t have time to do Twitter Justin, I have to run my business. Or I love this one,” My customers aren’t on twitter or social networking sites so we don’t need to get involved with that stuff.” Well ok, so I won’t sell you on the power of Twitter for your business anymore, or how building relationships in a virtual setting is just like networking at the local chamber. What I will try to sell you on is the importance of educating yourself on a new world- The Online world and how business has changed. If you don’t see that by now, I hope your still in business next year when we launch some new products that may help you stay ahead of your competitors online.

I can confidently say that with all the knowledge I have gained over the last 10 years of being an Entrepreneur and getting a degree while running small businesses, id like to give you a taste for the online education I received. This isn’t spending thousands of dollars with University of Phoenix or FullSail (Though Mira Costa College and the business program at Cal State San Marcos were hidden Jewels) for education, its just knowing where to look for the thought leaders, technology, listening, strategic thinking, and studying case studies.

Here are some of the listening tools I used to receive my PHD in online marketing for business over the last 4 years:

You Tube– I have watched hundreds of business videos on leadership, sales, marketing, CEO keynote speeches, Webinars, How To videos, technology conferences, start-up companies, etc. The point is YouTube can be used for educational purposes as well as entertainment, and there is plenty of great content out there which saves on gas and hotel expenses. Don’t forget savings from those pricey course fees. I can honestly say that a good portion of my learning relevant information to my industry (Business & High Tech) has been done using video and Google.

Small Business Trends– I have been subscribed to this site for longer than I can remember. Anita and her team have given me extremely valuable information in my journey as a small business owner over the years, and I continue to read the articles from this wealth of information. (Big thank you to Anita) Here is the link to this site (Click Here): Small Business Trends

Google Reader– I can’t tell you how many times I’ve used Google to find relevant information on a topic I was researching (I love to research, as we know, Leaders are Readers right?) Read a headline from one of my blog subscriptions, and was informed. As we know, knowledge is power and there is no better free tool than Google Reader (Google Alerts too)

Linked-In– At first I was skeptical about Linked-in (just like everything about on-line) but then I started engaging in the group discussions and realized how much valuable information you can receive from extremely successful people who have been in the trenches and have years of experience. I then would add my insights and the sharing of business experiences can help shape better decision making. 10 minds discussing an issue on business are better than 1 right? Linked-In was where I was introduced to the “Thought Leader” term online. If you have a passion about a particular area of business (find that group on linked-in), you want to demonstrate your expertise in your particular industry by sharing your insights and be the first to put out relevant information (first mover advantage) on a topic. Here is my Linked-in if you’d like to connect with me (but do me a favor when connecting, can you please mention what made you want to connect and how you see it being a mutually beneficial connection. This would help me out a great deal.

More topics to come tomorrow, I have been consulting for clients around the clock and am beat…..

What types of sites do you use to keep informed? What are some of your favorites? I’m interested in hearing your feedback- talk soon

Justin

P.S. We are launching a social media for business product soon so be on the look out

(Click Picture For Large View)

Today was an exciting day for me and I wanted to share my experience with my readers, colleagues, customers, partners, and friends. I started out doing some consulting for a client in the morning, then went to the Handlery Hotel in San Diego where I was speaking on behalf of the Small Business Development Center (or the SBDC) on Social Networking 101 for Business. This is a subject I have been helping the small business community on for quite some time now, and this was probably my seventh speaking engagement on social media so I am becoming less nervous each time. Once I found my groove though, It was all good.

I am extremely passionate about helping small businesses as I have for the last 10 years of my consulting career. Selling your time is not easy to do, and if you ask any consultant (myself included), they will probably say the same. But with social media and social networking this makes selling YOURSELF and your products, services, & company a little easier with what I call “relationship and educational selling” but more on that topic later…..

As promised to the many small businesses that attended today’s Social Networking 101 for Business workshop, I have attached the slides (see below)

I hope today’s session was informative and you learned something to take back and execute in the trenches. If you wouldn’t mind sharing below in the comments section, what is the #1 thing you took away from today’s presentation? If I could get your feedback on this so we can share with other small businesses it would be great. Remember, its all about engaging!

P.S. If youd like FREE Access to Our Beta “Social Media For Business Coaching Program” please send me an email at snsdjf@gmail.com with the subject line “coaching” and I will send you the exclusive invite.

What desktop tool do you use to manage your twitter account? Probably you are using TweetDeck or Seismic Desktop. They are fascinating tools, and love them for multiple account management and multi-column look.

Something I miss is the SPAM control features. Always thought if I could get a tool where I can hide the tweets from people whom I cannot unfollow. I finally got one.

These days I have been using a new Desktop App, Buzzom Desktop developed by InRev Systems. InRev has good web based account management service, Buzzom.com , particularly famous for its people search feature.
I had huge issues with other Twitter Clients particularly while posting Picture and videos, now Buzzom Desktop provides a cool drag and drop.
Next big thing I like about this tool is the cool Twitter Elite groups like Celebrity, Economy, Entrepreneur, Social Media, and Technology etc. These groups have all major Tweeters, and the groups are configurable to fit own interest. Best, you don’t need to follow these folks to get their update 

This Desktop Tool has some really great features, some of them include:
1. Hide users who are spamming with too many or useless tweets without unfollowing them.
2. Get updates on what the twitter elites like GuyKawasaki, BBC etc. are saying without following them.
3. Configure your buddy list and be in touch with them by viewing only their tweets.
4. Find news and people using keyword Search for tweets, location and biography.
5. Auto shorten your long URLs when they’re sent using http://nxy.in.
6. Drag-drop video and pictures to auto upload and tweet about them.
7. Choose how you want to see your tweets, by auto refresh or manual refresh.

I love this tool for its wonderful features. It’s a great time saver. Can’t say if it can compete with TweetDeck and Seismic yet, and establish itself in the elite category, but it deserves a try.

This tool is in its alpha version now, and is available for download . You can try it FREE here:

Social media makes business development fun again! No I’m serious! Our VP Keith Tacla (Follow him here on twitter) used to dread telemarketing, door to door sales, direct mail, sending out newsletters, etc. and I could see that the minimal results he was achieving from these traditional styles of marketing and business development was discouraging to him. But then last year around this time, he and I figured out a better way and we had an “ah ha” moment. Using social media tools and social networking for relationship selling.

This is the current trend of our clients, and our own business model and the results we are achieving to fill our pipeline has been amazing and sometimes even overwhelming to keep up with the amount of interest in these types of services. Social media goes hand in hand with social networking. The networking part is the same as in the off-line approach, except when networking online with other business professionals, this allows you to scale and allows global opportunities. You also get word of mouth generated online about your products, services, and customer feedback real-time. Business development now is about connecting with old customers, new customers, existing customers, getting referrals, sharing stories, and delivering results and value. If a company is going to spend on your product or service during these tough times, you can bet there going to want to measure every dollar spent and what that ROI is. This might be difficult to do with social media and social networking, but at the end of the day, social media selling is all about developing TRUST with your prospects first because in business, if someone becomes to know you, like you and trust you, they are more inclined to do business with you or most importantly buy from you. We are in the process of coming out with trusted products and services (systems) we use as well as our customers that we have tested, confirmed deliver value and achieve results. At the end of the day, its all about selling YOURSELF because if you can sell yourself, you can sell products, services and solutions to those who trust you. Be on the look out and stay tuned. Are there any products or services that you recommend we should add to our suite of recommended products or services?

This video which describes Top 4 Reasons Why Small Business Should Use Google Products should give your business a good start: