One of the biggest challenges we hear from companies implementing social media marketing, customer service or other social media approaches to their businesses is how to measure the effectiveness of their efforts. This frequently starts with determining the right metrics to measure performance, but before anyone gets too far down that path, someone asks about ROI.

Maybe your boss pops her head into your office and says, “You know all that time you are spending on social media? Well, what’s the return on that? They’re really breathing down my neck from upstairs, and I’ve got to show ROI on everything. Those are the numbers they are used to seeing.”

And what do you suppose the response would be if you come back with, “What’s the ROI of your mom?”

Many social media experts have ignored the question of ROI because social media’s adoption was a natural course of action for them and their companies. They did not have to prove the value in the early stages. We are now at a place where the early majority is making decisions about social media adoption and they require proof of value. Companies are spending real money and they need to understand what the return is on their investment.

According to a study by the Lenskold Group, less than 20% of marketers feel they can adequately measure the ROI of their social media efforts. The easy part is the formula for measuring it. It is your revenue earned minus your costs, or investment in the effort, divided by your costs. This is usually represented as a percentage, but it relates to dollars. Not followers. Not fans. Not likes, comments or retweets.

The hard part is gathering those two numbers and making them inclusive to get an accurate picture of your social media ROI. For this to be truly successful, the ROI and the metrics that contribute to it needs to relate to your company’s business objectives. And no matter how many social media strategists, experts, gurus and ninjas try to show you how to do this, because it ladders up to YOUR company’s goals and objectives, you must be a key part of determining these numbers.

Read more about why we are at a tipping point that requires us to now measure the ROI of social media and learn how to measure it yourself by downloading this ebook written by Dr. Natalie Petouhoff.

Social media has become such a huge part of our lives – even in the stock market.

Johan Bollen, Informatics and Computing professor at the Indiana University discussed his findings on the connection between social media and the Dow Jones Industrial Average recently on CNNMoney.com. He explained that:

• The public’s collective mood on Twitter correlates to fluctuations in the stock market
• The public’s overall anxiety and mood seems to predict the Dow closing values three to four days in advance with 80% accuracy

Although financial services are slow to adopt social media, and especially hesitant to get involved with something they don’t quite understand, there are still a few hedge funds and investment firms embarking on this new idea of predicting the Dow through tweets.

Richard Peterson, managing director of Santa Monica-based MarketPsych, a leader in behavioral finance research and consulting, has tapped into this idea as well. Two days ago, in an interview with The Financial Post he explained that Twitter has become so popular that analysts are able to grab a real-time reflection of popular sentiment. They can see moods around the globe moving up and down.

What does this all really mean? Social media cannot be ignored any longer. We use it to connect with friends and family, find love and friendship, to learn and share, find employment and opportunities, to recruit and hire, for market research and customer service, and now, to predict the stock market.

Do you think it’s possible to predict the Dow through monitoring the public’s sentiment through their tweets? Do you think this idea will catch on?

If you are on any social media network, chances are pretty high that you’ve at least heard of Pinterest by now. Along with individual users, brands are looking to establish a presence on the popular social media network, with many early adopters, including Etsy and Whole Foods, leading the way. As David Thomas talked about last week, Pinterest is a game changer for how brands create and share content. If you are a brand curious about Pinterest but unsure on where to start when it comes to sharing content, here are some suggestions.

Show Your Personality

In celebration of Mardi Gras today, let’s mix up a concoction for a social media blog post that packs more punch than the costume-filled sidewalks of Bourbon Street. Yes, New Orleans is rampant today with beads, drinks and the boisterous use of #mardigras on Twitter but the concept is about various cultures coming together, celebrating and uniting under the common theme of having fun.

How does all of this relate to stellar blog posts? Developing a successful blog post takes the same amount of preparation, creativity and dedication as the best mojito you’ve ever sipped. Here are the ways to build your blog post that is toast-worthy.

1. Place mint leaves and 1 lime wedge into a sturdy glass.

Start with the tasty stuff. Your post should lead in with what your readers really want because that’s what they came here for. Don’t make them dig for that signature lime wedge. Your readers are busy people so acting quickly will make them happy, thirsty and back for more.

2. Use a muddler to crush the mint and lime to release the mint oils and lime juice.

To keep your readers engaged and spending more time on your blog, sprinkle the entire post with helpful insights (vs just dedicating one aspect of your post to takeaways). As they read, they’ll continue to taste the creativity of your post and before they know it, they’ve finished the whole thing.

3. Add 2 more lime wedges and the sugar, and muddle again to release the lime juice. Do not strain the mixture.

After you’ve written the first draft of your post, go back and look at ways to enhance it further. Does it stand out? Perhaps you need a more engaging headline. Can you cut it back a bit? The addition of imagery or videos could help better tell your story. Spending time perfecting your post will go a long way and your readers will notice your efforts. Make sure not to go too wild with editing or you’ll strain the post and the flavor will be gone.

4. Fill the glass almost to the top with ice. Pour the rum over the ice, and fill the glass with carbonated water.

We’ve been talking a lot about the sweet stuff, but what about the heart of the post? In other words, the rum is what makes a drink. Your expertise and value live in this step. Add value to your post that no other blog can give. Write about what you know. It’s likely insightful.

5. Stir, taste, and add more sugar if desired. Garnish with the remaining lime wedge.

After you launch your post, watch the reaction of your audience. Are they sharing it? What are they saying about it? What is the sentiment? Go back to your post and tweak it accordingly. Perhaps additional information or a helpful image is needed. By adjusting your post based on feedback, you’re showing that you’re listening to your readers. That goes a long way.

Consider the garnish as your headline. It’s the flourish that goes on top to make the drink more attractive. And it can make your blog post more appetizing too. A catchy headline that grabs attention yet successfully summarizes your post will get you more readers, engagement and sharing. It’s all about taking the time to think through a smart headline approach.

Are you using these steps in your blog writing? Are they in this order? Additional value for a post can be fun and subtle. For instance, not only did we share ideas for better blogging, but we gave you a recipe for an awesome mojito to celebrate Mardi Gras. Have fun but always remember to blog responsibly.

To learn more about creating content, check out the ebook, 4 Steps to Creating Content for a Social Media Community.

Who doesn’t love a haiku? Especially one that involves travel and social media. If you’re not overly sure of what makes a haiku a haiku, have a look here.

In a world where we have so much to say, but are often limited by the number of characters or the attention span of our audience, sometimes a simple poem makes all the point you need. Here’s one I penned regarding travel…

Travel industry

uses social media

for promoting deals

… but I bet you can do better! I’d love to hear YOUR travel haiku. Bonus points if it incorporates social/digital marketing in some way, shape or form!

Drop your best haiku(s) in the comments section below. Learn more about social media for the travel industry here and read our latest ebook, From Takeoff to Landing: How to Soar on the Social Web.

It’s Presidents Day, that time of year when Americans fly back home to solemnly commemorate to Franklin Pierce, Rutherford B. Hayes, and Gerald Ford with their families. Or at least that’s my confused understanding as a Canadian.

What I do know for a fact is that after a respectable rest US Presidents come back to life as social networks. Let me initiate you into the secrets.

Geocities — George Washington

Social media was brought into existence through the exertions of many Founding Fathers, but the first social network to win the popular vote was Geocities. Its citizens may have been proud members of different colonies like “Colosseum,” “Hollywood,” and”RodeoDrive”, but they were brought together under the GeoCities flag.  When Geocities and its wooden teeth were laid to rest on October 27, 2009, the nation mourned.

Google Buzz — William Henry Harrison

William Henry Harrison was sworn in on March 4, 1841, delivered a two-hour inaugural address in the pouring rain and died of pneuomonia exactly 30 days, 12 hours and 30 minutes later. Google Buzz lasted only a little longer, shutting down after less than two years. Yet William Henry Harrison’s grandson Benjamin later became President, and Buzz lived long enough to see its own grandson rise to prominence.

Google+ — William Howard Taft

William Howard Taft was the only US President to also serve as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. But he is more famous for being extremely “big-boned”: an enormous 330 lbs. Legend has it the President got stuck in the White House bathtub; four attendants and a gallon of butter were pressed into service to dislodge him. Google’s own size and expertise in other areas like search and advertising make it quite as formidable.

Twitter — Calvin Coolidge

The laconic Calvin Coolidge kept himself to statements of 140 characters or less — but he also gave an astounding 529 press conferences, more than any other president. Biographer Claude M. Fuess may well have been describing Twitter when he wrote of Coolidge, “He embodied the spirit and hopes of the middle class, could interpret their longings and express their opinions. That he did represent the genius of the average is the most convincing proof of his strength.”

Facebook — Franklin D. Roosevelt

No President will ever create a timeline longer than FDR’s 12 years in office — and no social network has enjoyed anything like Facebook’s lengthy dominance. Roosevelt’s expansion of the power and reach of government may have been controversial, but the working class was grateful to FDR for food on the table. Fellow New Yorker Zuckerberg’s own New Deal has inspired protests too, but the masses would not long survive without the social media provisions Facebook offers.

Pinterest — John F. Kennedy

Suave, attractive, and an eye for the ladies? Is this JFK we’re talking about … or Pinterest? Both swept away the dull and dowdy and ushered in a new era of youth, glamour and fashion. Nixon may have won over radio listeners — but Kennedy demonstrated the triumph of the visual when TV viewers voted him the debate winner. While other networks looked at things that were and asked, “Why?”, Pinterest looked at things that never were and asked, “Why not?”

Which President would LinkedIn have been? And what about an apt Millard Fillmore comparison for my cocktail party tonight? Let us know in the comments or via Twitter.

Building a social media relationship with someone who influences your community just takes a little common sense. After all, influencers are people just like you and me. The same things that make us want to know someone better will win them over as well.

Ask Questions

Don’t just assume you know everything about the influencer because you read it on their blog. Try to start a conversation through asking questions that you are actually interested in knowing their opinion on. These questions don’t need to be fully professionally inclined, but could be finding out their favorite meals, movies or hobbies. Find out more about them as people.

Show Interest

If your influencer post a new blog post or tweets an interesting article, engage with them. Show that you are interested in what they are saying. What’s the secret to make sure this comes off as genuine versus empty flattery? Actually be interested! Honesty comes through when you speak to people, even virtually, so don’t try to be interested in something you’re not. Be transparent, share your mutual passion for topics and you’ll have much more in-depth conversations.

Treat them Like People

While everyone enjoys a little hero worship here and there, most of us feel most comfortable around those who we can talk to freely and openly. If instead of treating an influencer like someone who is important because of what they can do for you, but rather treat them as important because they are a person you can learn from, the connection you build will be stronger, more realistic and hopefully long-lasting.

Those are just three simply ways to get to know influencers (and the rest of your community) but there’s a million out there!

What ways would YOU like to be won over? How do you get to know people in the social space? What’s the first thing you look up about a person?

For more information on how to cultivate influencers, see chapter 3 of this month’s ebook.

Reality TV – There’s no escaping it and for many of us, we don’t want to. From American Idol to Survivor reality television has taken over. But how does social media play a part in reality television or the making of a star? The “Social Media as the the Driver of Reality Television” panel touched upon these questions, and many more yesterday, at Social Media Week Miami.

Reality TV Panelists: Steve Berke, Lesley Abravanel, Alexia Echevarria, Louis Aguirre (Photo Credit: Ivan Nava)

The panel was hosted by Emmy award winning TV host of WSVN 7’s “Deco Drive”, Louis Aguirre. The local all star panel included Lesley Abravanel (pop culture writer for the Miami Herald), Alexia Echevarria (Executive Editor for Venue Magazine and cast member Real Housewives of Miami on Bravo), Steve Berke (Contestant on Fox’s The Rebel Billionaire) and was certainly one of the more popular and entertaining panels of the day.

There’s no doubt you’ve heard of Bravo TV’s hit franchise “The Real Housewives.”  Part of what makes it so popular is that Andy Cohen had the foresight to give people the power to share their stories around the shows and directly interact and engage with him, the network and the reality stars themselves. All reality show housewives are required to have social media accounts. They tweet, they blog and they have Facebook pages and clearly, their audience loves it and it’s working for them.

Also, driving the link between Reality TV and social media are apps like Into Now and Get Glue, that allow you to check in to the shows you’re watching and talk about it with others who are watching as well in real-time.

At one point, Steve Berke stated that social media has already changed the world as we know it stating that if it wasn’t for social media, today’s U.S. President wouldn’t be Obama, it would be Hillary.

Social media is turning the average Joe or Jane into celebrities. Don’t believe me? Ask Justin Bieber. Steve Berke mentions that in order to break into the music business, you’d better have a pretty healthy following on YouTube if you even want to be considered by a record label. His suggestion for creating videos that will get watched – digital shorts. He added, “If a video is too long (10Min) I’m going to skip it, but if the video is 3 min long ok.”

Speaking of celebrities, it’s said that they will measure your level of celebrity by the number of followers you have on your social media accounts. Which leads me to the conversation about Klout. If you don’t think people are paying attention to Klout or that your Klout score doesn’t matter, think again. Fashion Night out at Bal Harbour Shops selected their VIPs based on high Klout Scores stated Louis Aguirre. Respected journalists with years of hard work couldn’t even get into to some of the VIP Parties yet there were bloggers who where in attendance because they had more clout that traditional journalists.

So what can we learn from this and what were some of the key takeaways?

• 90% of the television shows being produced right now are digital oriented.
• Teenagers watch 5 times more YouTube videos than TV.
• Social TV is where it’s at with apps like Into Now and Get Glue.
• Everything is heading toward being web based – so social will become even more important.
• Attention spans are getting shorter, build your content around that fact.
• SuperBowl had over 1 million viewers watching ONLINE.
• Twitter is the new focus group.
• Social networks has become the online water cooler.
• Don’t underestimate the power of YouTube (or social media in general).

and finally, Reality TV much like social media, isn’t going anywhere, anytime soon.

There were plenty of great conversations around this panel and I could write for days, but in the interest of accommodating those short attention spans, I’ll let you check the recorded version yourself for more. You can watch the livestream playback at: http://new.livestream.com/smwmiami/realitytelevision

You can read Lesley Abravanel’s blog “Scene in the Tropics” in the Miami Herald, check out Alexia Echevarria’s magazine “Venue Magazine”, keep up with Louis Aguirre on his Facebook page “Louis Aguirre TV“  and learn more about the projects Steve Berke’s working on at his website “Steve Berke for Mayor”.

Do you think reality television is here to stay? What reality shows are your favorite? (You can tell us, we promise we won’t judge) Do you use Twitter and Facebook while you’re watching TV?

On the final day of Social Media Week, let’s fire up the Radian6 analysis dashboard and find out who was talking about the event. We’ll focus on the four cities with the most conversations.

New York City

Opening up a Conversation Cloud, we can see the 50 words used the most in conjunction with Social Media Week NYC.

Communications giant Nokia and social media’s latest obsession Pinterest both cracked the top 50. Eli in Tanzania drove conversation as well thanks to this tweet from @UN_Women.

For every hashtag use of #SMWMagic in next hour, Eli in #Tanzania gets $1 to finish school! Keep tweeting! owl.li/97xfU #smwnyc

— UN Women (@UN_Women) February 16, 2012

London

Hopping across the Atlantic over to London, let’s see what was driving UK conversation.

Nokia makes an appearance again as well as Google, the search engine giant scores with Google+ and the #SMWGoogle hashtag. Londoners were also discussing social media use by athletes in conjunction with the upcoming London 2012 Olympic Games.  Former Olympic Silver medal-winning Badminton player Gail Emms also factored largely into the conversation.

Toronto

Next, let’s see what the Canadians were discussing this week in Toronto.

In terms of brands, Bell Media and BMO Financial Group drove a fair chunk of Toronto conversation. The Women Shaping the Social Media Landscape panel and the #WIW hashtag also sparked an incredible amount of discussion this week in Toronto. For more insights on #SMWTO happenings check out the latest two posts from our own Jason Cassidy.

Miami

Finally, let’s move from the cold of Canada to the warmth of Florida and see what drove social conversations in Miami.

The “Personal Branding through Social Media” panel was the clear winner here with “Branding”, #PersonalBranding and the Twitter handles of the panellists dominating the Miami conversation cloud. For more on #SMWMiami, check out this post from our own Trish Forant, who was in attendance this week.

Most Active Tweeters

Speaking of Trish, she checks in at number nine amongst the most active tweeters this week. Using the influencer widget and adjusting to account for only on topic posts, here were this week’s biggest Social Media Week enthusiasts.

Language Breakdown

Finally, given the global presence of Social Media Week, let’s have a look at the language breakdown of social media week posts using a topic analysis widget.

English dominates with 87.1% of all posts with Japanese placing second with 4.7%.  In descending order, Portuguese (3.7%), French (1.8%), German (1.7%), Spanish (0.8%), and Italian (0.3%) round out the list.

This snapshot shows just how diverse the social-media conversation has become. It’s brought the world together on the major platforms while still allowing for discussions of more regional interest to flourish.

But we’ve got one more trick up our sleeves. We asked a few social media week attendees about this week. Is it useful given that social media is already well known? Here’s what they had to say.

Were you in attendance this week at any of the 12 locations?  Any particular panels or presentations our audience should be aware of?  Has Social Media become so prevalent in our daily life that a week devoted to it is becoming unnecessary?  We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comment section!

Jason Boies is a member of the Radian6 Community Engagement Team.  His focus is on the worlds of healthcare and pharmaceuticals.  He also tweets about film, pop culture and comic books over on Twitter at @JasonBoies.  Read other blog posts from Jason here.

The Social Media Breakfast of Connecticut helped close Social Media Week today by showing the community management love. The session, Community Management: The Perils and Promise, was a great primer into this exciting and challenging field.

I was honored to be on the panel. Joining me was Lauren Vargas, Community Management Strategist at Aetna and Tyson Goodridge, Director of Social Media at Acsys Interactive (featured in this image).

But if you didn’t make New Haven one of your stops this morning, here are 15 key (tweet-sized) nuggets that will get you started on your community management journey.

Don’t go rogue with community management. Have a social media policy or you will fail.

Use Responsive Classroom as a source of inspiration for community strategy creation.

The challenge? Make policy fun.

Men are from Google +, women are from Pinterest. Know where your audience hangs out.

Community managers are like Spider Man. With great power comes great responsibility.

You call them community managers? How about cat herders?

Be a storyteller.

Give local stories international attention with compelling content shared on social media.

Community manager is the new black, but it doesn’t come easy.

Consider urban planning – build from the ground up.

Go beyond text -  turn those case studies into videos, infographics and webinars.

Every single employee is a community manager.

Social media is not siloed.

Social media ROI exists but there is no silver bullet.

If you were to elaborate on some of these points, where would you focus and why? To learn more about community management, check out our posts from Community Manager Appreciation Day.