I really want to slap them in the forehead and ask, “Why are you even doing it then? Pull the plug! Stop wasting your resources on it!”

Marketing is supposed to influence consumer behavior, but what happens when marketing becomes a two way conversation and the people who are in direct contact with consumers are not thinking like salespeople? The conversation keeps going and nobody buys anything. That’s really fun, but it won’t keep you in business.

There are a million things we do every day that make us feel like we’ve worked hard and accomplished something. Social media is one of them. Today your social media team connected with lots of people, drove conversation and created awareness. Fans commented and you commented back and all this activity can be measured, even.

What about those sales?

Did anything get sold?! That’s when the excuses start to fly:

1. But … social media is only about raising awareness, you know — like billboards.

The difference between a billboard and social media marketing is that if you talk to a billboard it can’t talk back. Billboards can’t have conversations, answer questions or talk you into doing stuff. They can make you aware of something, but then you have to go somewhere else to learn more; like a website, toll-free number, or Google (it if its one of those movie billboards that’s supposed to make you curious about what it is when all you see is a date).

2. But … the product (or service) is crap!

So what? Lots are. Even turds get swarmed by flies. Your job is to sexy up that turd and gather up some flies. If it’s really that bad you shouldn’t have promised social media miracles or dedicated a team of people to manage your social media show. Find the right audience and connect with them. Do your job.

3. But … it’s hard to connect social media data to sales figures.

Then stop trying to do that. Just look at your numbers before you start a social media campaign, promo, launch a video, run a contest, and look at them after. Are you selling more? If not, stop doing it or do it differently. If so, double down on it.

I run an Los Angeles-based digital agency and my two biggest responsibilities include making sure new business is coming in and great work is going out. We rely 100% on social media for our new business development, so each day when I ask myself and our team what we accomplished today, I don’t mean the details, I mean the results. What did we do to move the needle forward for ourselves and for our clients?

4. But … social media is just about building interest and demand.

Yup. Then what? Is some other team supposed to swoop in and take care of the sales part? Are you going to wait for consumers to call or email for more info or ask where they can get what you’re selling?

You have a captive audience. They just need to know what to do next. Make them not only aware of your product or service, but aware of what they can do to get it and reasons why they should.

5. But … it’s what the Client wants.

If you’re managing a Client’s social media and you’re only doing it because they said so — maybe the client is wrong. Listen to what the client wants to achieve more than how the client wants you to do it. If their ideas aren’t working show them the pie charts. People love pie charts. They clearly tell the story while simultaneously reminding them of pie, and everyone loves pie.

A few years back, my agency was pitching a viral video marketing project for IBM. The marketing director asked me “do you have the balls to tell us what you really think, no matter what we say?”

You’re the expert in the room. Start acting like it.

By the way. I said yes and we got the job. Now get back to work.

Connect with David on Twitter.

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Many researchers and professionals believe social media is merely a trend that will meet its end once a new successor takes the spotlight. What they don’t realize is that they are only partially right. There are many platforms in social media with some more popular than others, and new ones always developing to topple the current hierarchy of social media platforms.

While new sites are being introduced, others find their reign as ‘top dog’ diminished. However, one thing doesn’t change – social media’s existence.

In the last couple of years, companies have really dove into the aspects of social media. Some have hired in-house social media experts, while others have sought out social media companies to manage their company’s social media presence. Whatever the case, businesses know that if they want their brand to grow in this age of technology, they better step up their social media game.

However, status updates and tweeting about your brand isn’t enough. When consumers decide to follow or like a brand via social media it’s for many reasons – but I want to focus on these three:

1. They like the business.

2. They want to keep up with news surrounding the business

3. They want to engage with the business on a personal level

Consider this: when a customer visits their favorite store (because of a sale the store tweeted about), but has an unsatisfactory visit the customer is more than likely going to use social media to talk about their experience by writing on the company’s Facebook brand page, tweeting, or commenting on their Instagram pictures.

These types of social interactions create the perfect opportunity for businesses to empower customer service teams to address issues presented by customers.

Customer service no longer consists of only phone calls and answering machines. Businesses are now able to use various online platforms to publicly address concerns of customers. Since customers  have the ability to address concerns and such at any time they wish on any social platform, businesses must be ready to address issues when they arise.

By providing additional outlets for customer service – especially mainstream social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook – businesses are crafting their brands to deliver a higher level of customer service – one that is seen as dependable and accessible to their customers. In turn, businesses gain an active consumer loyalty which is what competitors are so actively fighting for.

Connect with Social Media Delivered on Twitter.

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Over the last several years, businesses have increased the pace of adopting social media strategies for use in marketing, service and other related capacities. What’s becoming very clear however is that adopting social media and understanding its impact on customer and employee relationships and also the bottom line are not always linked. This disconnect between social media strategies and business value is forcing many executives to rethink their overall approach and the infrastructure they built to support it. The result of this reflective process is motivating organizations to transform everyday social media initiatives into deeper social business strategies.

Charlene Li and I spent the better of the last year studying how organizations approach social media and how planning, processes, and outcomes mature over time. Our findings are significant and are included in our newly released report, “The Evolution of Social Business Six Stages of Social Media Transformation.”

The results of our work were surprising to say the least. We uncovered a notable gap between organizations that executive social media programs and campaigns and those that specifically invest in social business strategies. Altimeter defines the evolution to a Social Business as the deep integration of social media and social methodologies into the organization to drive business impact.

On one side the chasm, there are businesses (or departments) that are actively investing in social media without intentions or outcomes being tied to business goals. On the other side are organizations that are deeply integrating social media and social methodologies throughout the company to drive tangible business impact.

In fact, we found that only 34% of businesses felt that their social strategy was connected to business outcomes and just 28% felt that they had a holistic approach to social media, where lines of business and business functions work together under a common vision. A mere 12% were confident they had a plan that looked beyond the next year. And, perhaps most astonishing was that only one half of companies surveyed said that top executives were “informed, engaged and aligned with their companies’ social strategy.”

But there’s hope. Charlene and I learned that the two most important criteria for a successful social business strategy are that it is 1) clearly aligned with strategic business goals of an organization, and 2) has organizational alignment and support that enables execution of that strategy. What separates them are six distinct stages that we believe most organizations have or will traverse as they mature.

Six Stages of Social Media Transformation

The six stages include:

Stage 1: Planning – “Listen to Learn”

The goal of this first stage is to ensure that there is a strong foundation for strategy development, organizational alignment, resource development, and execution. Key tenets of this stage include listening to customers to learn about their social behavior; using pilot projects to prioritize social efforts; and using audits to assess internal readiness.

Below are a few key considerations to help your business remain relevant and competitive in a changing, tech-savvy global marketplace.

Technology Is Your Friend

While you shouldn’t jump on every new technological trend, it would be a huge mistake to ignore all of them. Strategically testing marketing in different strategies, platforms and products could yield big results, especially if your target demographic is responsive to your tests. For example, mobile marketing and social media are definitely worth the time investment.

Mobile Marketing is On the Rise

Mobile marketing is no longer considered a trend, but rather an evolution. The percentage of mobile users that use internet-friendly smartphones is quickly increasing and there is no reason to think the trend will reverse anytime soon.

This presents an entirely new arena in which your company can reach potential customers. Immediate mobile marketing challenges include tailoring messages to a smaller touch-screen without sacrificing usability, as well as leveraging how mobile users search for products and services on their phones.

However, if your company appropriately addresses these challenges, including redesigning your company website to be more mobile friendly (responsive) alongside testing mobile ads, you can potentially increase your reach with on-the-go consumers.

Social Media is Here to Stay

Social media is a great platform to reach consumers. If you manage your social media efforts in-house (in lieu of hiring a social media agency) the cost could be minimal with tremendous reach potential.

For instance, social media channels are exploding in reach (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc.). Therefore if your company is not visible in key social media platforms you are missing out on valuable conversations and revenue.

Not only can you gain brand visibility and build relationships with customers, you can also convert likes, tweets, shares and pins into sales.

 Productivity Software’s Competitive Edge

There is a great deal of productivity tools and software that can give your small business a competitive edge. Invest in software that helps your company measure and leverage internal customer data,  forecasting revenue opportunities, and increase departmental efficiency.

Various cloud-based software options can allow your company to better serve customers in less time. Exploring these types of software options can truly bring your business into the forefront of technological advances.

Connect with Aspect Software on Twitter.

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Jean Zhang writes on behalf of Aspect Software. Aspect provides next-generation call center technology, enterprise workforce optimization, and Microsoft solutions for contact centers that help build and sustain customer relationships. To explore Aspect’s efficiency software, resources for workforce optimization, and other services, please visit the company website.

From curry houses to house painters, it seems like everyone (including their dogs) has a social media presence of some kind. From highly-active Facebook profiles with hundreds of fans to a Twitter account ghost-town with merely one or two tweets a month.

In any case, it is  clear that social media is here to stay. But whilst it may come naturally for a clothes designer or skateboard manufacturer, judging the value of social media can be tricky for those in more established industries.

For example, many companies in mature industries (e.g. financial services, automotive, petroleum, and tobacco) have found themselves constantly asking one simple question: What’s the point of social media?

Benefits of Social Media Engagement

If you operate in a mature industry where there is an established pattern of market share, earnings, and profits social media doesn’t appear to be worthwhile. However, before you toss out social media, first try to weigh the pros and cons of going social. There is a good chance that one or more of your clients has asked the same question already.

Beyond the more obvious uses for social media (e.g. customer service), why should you invest your time into sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and even Instagram?

Here are some reasons which instantly jump to mind: increased customer engagement, boosted brand recognition, etc. All of these factors are important and can cumulatively lead to an increase in your company’s core metrics.

In fact, social media is one proven way to innovate in a mature industry. If you find yourself looking at your company — and industry — wondering if true innovation can really take shape, start with social. Social media can not only drive online engagement it can also influence offline behavior.

But if you’re not completely sold you may still be asking — can social media offer any measurable benefit? The answer to this one, it seems, may be completely subjective.

There are plenty of inevitable benefits from conducting social media activities. For example, social media offers a great way to connect with influencers in your space. Start first by identifying them and then figure out what content they want and respond to — this can lead to promotion of your content and your services well beyond your own network.

For example, a recent study ”names Facebook and LinkedIn as the top platforms for driving direct contact or in-person meetings. After a social interaction on Facebook, 70% of the survey participants said they contacted someone offline, compared with 55% for LinkedIn; 37%, Twitter; 25%, Google+; and about 8% for Pinterest.”

We all know this type of person and he or she can take many different forms. I admittedly have one of these friends. For anonymity’s sake, we will call him Peter.

The Social Media Business Fail

Peter hosts a radio show. He loves to talk about–and attempts to get everyone he has ever met in his life to listen to–his show. Unfortunately, no one ever does.

Not because the radio show is necessarily bad, rather he over does it — especially on social media. It has gotten to the point where no one wants to have anything to do with his product or Peter.

He has three different Facebook brand pages, a Twitter account, and a “friend” Facebook account just for the show. He posts content about his radio show approximately every two seconds.

In short, he is always clogging up my news feed and uses the show page as a political mouthpiece from time to time.

Peter is failing at social media.

How to Avoid Being a Social Media Pain

There are plenty of things wrong with this scenario. Yet, somehow, Facebook has not used its powers to weed these types of people out of the social media realm entirely. They exist everywhere and sadly, most do not even understand how unbearably irritating they can be.

Peter is a prime example of what every small business should know on how to avoid being a social media pain. Not only so a) you don’t become that person, but b) to correctly and successfully market your business.

To ensure you do not end up like Peter here are four simple ways to mind your social media manners on Facebook and other social media networks.

1. You only need one social media page for one business.

That’s right, folks, just one.

There are a few reasons why your business only needs one social media account per social media network. First, there is the practical reason. If someone is searching for your business on social media networks, having multiple accounts for the same product or service will confuse the customer and turn them off before they get to know you.

Peter’s radio show has a couple different Facebook brand pages and a friend account. He would make things easier on himself and his prospective customer by consolidating all of his social media presence into a single page.

I’ve shared this analogy with many people — when talking to my local social media club members, at informal meetings with fellow entrepreneurs and even on a big stage as a keynote speaker. It has also become a predictable indicator of how much the crowd is actually listening to what I’m saying.

Those that aren’t listening remain calm through this statement. Others that are paying attention always form a half-wry smile, followed by a disapproving head shake.

But before you grab your torches and pitchforks, give me a second to explain the idea and what led me to this conclusion.

I’m not suggesting that your grandparents are going to jump on social media networks, attract a massive following, build a website, capture email addresses, and soft-sell their wares to a web-savvy audience. That isn’t something that most of your grandparents’ generation learned while fighting in the trenches in World War II.

That said, my grandparents are incredibly agile and much smarter than me, so I’m not saying they couldn’t do the aforementioned things. But things have drastically changed.

The Downfall of Today’s Business Environment

Fifty years ago business was far different than it is today.

For starters, a business owner’s customer base was largely local, and although mail-order was an option, most customers preferred tangible items that they could look at, touch, and try on. With a local customer base the typical brick-and-mortar storefront included some signage and an employee or two.

Some businesses might have had a second store across town if they were popular enough. These are the so-called “mom and pop” shops that we refer to when comparing locally owned businesses to the big box retailers like Walmart.

The major difference in the way prior generations ran a business (one of the largest downfalls of modern business) in comparison to today’s small business environment is customer service.

When you went to your local butcher you knew him by name. He knew you, your wife, your kids, your siblings, and your mom and dad. He also knew your neighbors, where you work, and your favorite type of steak. This is precisely the type of consideration and personalization that would have kept you from going to the butcher down the road — even though his prices were slightly cheaper.

You felt a connection with this butcher. You had a relationship.

Social Media: Today’s Great Equalizer

Fast forward to today and social media “has become an integral part of modern society. There are general social networks with user bases larger than the population of most countries. There are niche sites for virtually every special interest out there.”

Social media empowers a small business — the little guy — to compete with the likes of you Coca-Cola, Walmart, Best Buy and others … at least on some level. Although social media is largely billed as “the next big thing” or “futuristic marketing” by some — instead in many ways social media really does take us back 50 years to the days of doing business with someone you had a relationship with – someone who provided you a good product, at a fair price, and with great customer service.

Over the last thirty years there has been a departure from this way of thinking.

In today’s arms race to see who could attract the most global customers, relationship-based marketing became the collateral damage. Big box department stores moved into town with cheaper, imported goods and put the local butcher out of business. With the number of local mom and pop stores diminishing, relationship-based marketing was a thing of the past — until recently.

The True Value of Social Media for Small Businesses

When it comes to social media, everyone hears that social networks like Twitter and Facebook are great for marketing small business products and services. Any small business owner can create a social media account and start pumping out a dozen tweets a day pitching their products, or making a plea for your business. But they’re missing the mark.

With more than 500 million users, Facebook has become the dominant player in the social networking industry. Of the social network’s growing user base, small businesses are leveraging the networks power to connect consumers with their brands.

A recent small businesses survey indicates “that 96 percent of them are using Facebook as a marketing tool, and 86 percent found their social media efforts on Facebook to be effective.”

When using Facebook as a social media marketing tool brand consistency is important. Effective use of branding on the main three visual elements (i.e. cover photo, profile picture and tab images) timeline messaging, and engagement separate the leaders from the pack.

Here are 10 small business brands that do an insanely good job of communicating their brand and engaging their social network.

1. Brit + Co

Brit + Co. does an excellent job of using their cover photo to communicate their platform content and messages. The photo of Brit Morin on her computer sparks a bit of familiarity and app savvy amongst followers. Brit + Co.’s use of share-worthy photos and frequent updates mirror her brand’s mission to make creative living innovative, simple and beautiful.

2. Fannie May Chocolates

Fannie May Chocolates’ Facebook brand page does an excellent job of showcasing their gourmet chocolates and sharing their story of tradition and premium offerings.  We really like their creative use of tabs to market best sellers and showcase their artisan chocolates. Their consistent use of product images and videos to encourage social sharing make their brand’s social conversations deliciously smart.

3. Hypebeast

Hypebeast, a lifestyle magazine that features the latest in men’s fashion, art, design and music, takes a minimalist and fresh approach to their branding — appealing to their core audience. Their posts are infused with on-topic fashion and culture content and photos that spark “hype” conversations.

4. JackThreads

JackThreads, a members-only shopping club for men that serves up street, skate, and surfwear brands at 80% less than retail, offers a great example of using creative imagery with Instagram and promotional announcements that pique follower interest in a conversational tone.  Their brand consistency and energy can easily make the company a crowd favorite.

According to to a new survey released by CareerBuilder, the largest online employment website in the United States, “Nearly two in five companies (37 percent) use social networking sites to research job candidates.”

“Of the employers who do not research candidates on social media, 15 percent said their company prohibits the practice. Eleven percent report they do not currently use social media to screen, but plan to start.”

Are Social Media Checks for Recruitment Legal?

Job seekers should be aware of the “legal [and career] risks [associated] with revealing too much information on social network,” according to law firm directory Lawyers.com. “Online social networks are public forums, and once information is in the public domain, it can be used against you in a court of law,” says attorney Gloria Allred.

“Once information is posted online, it’s recorded forever and available for retrieval 20, 30, 40 years down the road and can later be used in a court of law where relevant.”

And while viewing public information on social networks is considered fair game, some companies reportedly engage in social media screening practices that are considered a violation of privacy. A recent survey of executives, conducted by law firm Littler Mendelson, “found that 1% of respondents had ‘asked for social media logins as part of the hiring or onboarding process.’”

“Earlier this month, Illinois became the second state [following California] to ban employers from making these [asking for social media logins] and other requests by passing HB 3782, a bipartisan bill that prohibits firms from demanding access to the private social networking profiles of job applicants and employees,” according to PolicyMic.

Why Small Business Owners Use Social Media for Recruitment

When asked if using social media for recruitment, screening and background checks is a part of their hiring process, small business owners overwhelmingly agree that it is a essential tool to help source new job candidates.

In spite of the potential pitfalls (including discrimination claims) associated with using social media to vet new hires, it is a widely accepted practice that is gaining traction.

We asked eleven entrepreneurs to share their thoughts on using social media to source job candidates and here’s what they had to say:

1. It is okay to look at anything that’s out in the public domain.

“Nowadays, it’s equally important for a job seeker to have a complete resume, as well as profiles on social networking sites. Our company uses LinkedIn to review a potential candidate’s experiences and recommendations based on what’s provided in their public profiles. After that, we look at Facebook to see if a candidate fits our workplace culture.”

- Ian Aronovich, President and Co-founder at GovernmentAuctions.org @govtauctions

The dilemma that many new entrepreneurs face when starting a business is a state of sluggishness — a position of waiting.

It’s as if they are waiting for a significant moment of clarity that indicates they have it all figured out — a perfect understanding of their niche offering and complete confidence in their business idea. For some small business owners, they simply ‘wait’ to put the wheels of their business in motion until this ‘a-ha!’ moment occurs.

Starting Social Media Efforts Early

When I’m coaching entrepreneurs, the state of waiting is especially visible when it comes to developing online marketing plans and social media marketing efforts –  particularly getting started with Twitter.

Most small business owners are aware of the opportunity that social media presents to connect with potential customers and realize that there is a need to build their online presence to engage with them. However, they don’t see the point of starting to communicate on social media platforms until everything is crystal clear.

This is a huge mistake and here’s why.

No matter how great your business idea is or the uniqueness of your offering, company website and branding — if no one knows you exist all of your efforts are useless.

Ask yourself this:

What good is it to invest heavily in a funky, cutting-edge business website without preparing marketing strategies to increase awareness and let people know it exists?

The thing with online marketing, specifically using social media networks such as Twitter, is that it takes time to leverage its power.