These days, companies of all sizes are diving into the world of social media, and Misty Lackie, CEO of Go Smart Solutions, LLC, is making it easier and more affordable than ever for small businesses and individuals to create and customize their social media “brand”. Misty started Twitbacks.com, a tool that helps create free and affordable custom Twitter backgrounds. Twitbacks.com is a huge success and has been featured in BusinessWeek, CNET and PCWorld.

Misty has been involved with social media for years, and learned early on how valuable social media can be. Currently she sees how powerful and valuable Facebook is for businesses and has created FaceItPages, a do-it-yourself system that allows businesses to create a professional Facebook business page without the designer price.

Here’s what Misty had to say about social media:

What is your job/company/profession/title?

I am the CEO of Go Smart Solutions, LLC. We develop self-serve online marketing solutions for businesses.

What was the first social media technology you used?

Back in the day, I would use discussion forums. I lived and learned in forums. I know there are some who may not consider this as a type of social media, but my belief is that forums were – and still are – an aspect of social media. The technology has been around for a while; it just wasn’t always in the form we’re familiar with today. Forums, social bookmarking, Twitter, Facebook, etc. are all forms of social media technology, in my opinion.

What is your favorite social media tool?

I use a lot of them, and some more than others, but my favorite social media tool at this time is Facebook. I feel like with Facebook I can engage on a deeper level with not only our members, but my family and my friends as well.

How have you used social media for your business/company and how has it benefited?

We mainly use social media to connect with our customers. We actually end up doing a fair amount of support through social media. In fact, our customers will sometimes contact us directly through Twitter or Facebook rather than by email or phone. We see these platforms as another way to be able to provide quality support to our customers in a setting they are comfortable with. We also use many social media platforms to monitor our brands and what’s being said about them. We have received some new business through social media, but it has mostly benefited us by keeping us visible with our existing customer base.

How much time would you say you spend a day engaging social media?

I normally spend about an hour per day unless we are releasing something new or dropping a press release. In these cases, I will spend more time managing the messaging for the new release.

How do you incorporate it into your day so it’s not a time waster?

Great question! It is easy to get caught up and spend hours in the different social media platforms, which can cause you to become less productive in other business operations. I have been guilty of this. I set my schedule to check the major platforms in the morning and in late afternoon. I also have alerts set up that I monitor at least once per day. I don’t allow myself to spend more than 1/2 hour in the morning and 1/2 hour in the afternoon on these platforms (collectively). I have also trained myself not to get distracted throughout the day while working on other things. This same type of discipline can also apply to things like email or phone calls. As a small business owner, it is important to manage your time; if you are spending all of it in the social media platforms, on the phone or answering emails, you may be loosing valuable time growing your business. I have set times throughout the day where I will answer emails, take or return calls, monitor social media, and do anything else that may need my attention.

Is there a social media tool/technique that you think is underutilized that you would like people to know about?

I think Facebook business pages are underutilized. Our company uses various Facebook business pages and each send a decent amount of traffic to our sites. I also think many companies are not using social media as a support channel. Being able to support our customers through these channels has been invaluable to us.

How did you come up with TwitBacks?

TwitBacks started out as an office conversation. We were discussing how there was a new business trend with Twitter backgrounds and how designers were charging hundreds of dollars for these. I mentioned that I could create an app that would allow people to create their own Twitter backgrounds using templates and have the output save as an image. It was statement that I wasn’t really even serious about but Candis, our marketing communications rep, thought it was a great idea and hounded me for weeks about it. So I registered the domain and decided to make it a weekend side project. The very first release was very minimal, but it went totally viral. CNET and some other big sources picked us up. From there we built onto it and have just been adding more features over time.

Do you have any new services coming out?

Our latest service is FaceItPages. It is a DIY system that allows businesses to create a professional Facebook business page with your branding, links, etc.  Following are a few pages that have been created through the service.

FaceItPages.com

Estudiar Hoteleria

Shoes Online

Lauren Mcmullen – Your Social Media Marketing

Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland

We are also working on a video advertising platform, VidShout, which will allow business to create video ads (commercials) with landing pages and have those video ads published online to video portals, shopping comparison sites, directories, etc.

Where can people find you online and via social media?

http://www.gosmart4u.com

http://twitter.com/gosmart4u

http://www.facebook.com/gosmart

http://www.linkedin.com/in/gosmartsolutions

Up and Coming Trends:

Being on top of social media can be difficult because it changes so frequently. You start to feel like there is a new app or social media outlet coming out every day, but here is a list of the top 5 up and coming social media trends. Check them out and tell us if you agree with this list or what trends you would think should be added!

The Wonderful World of Google:

If you’re thinking about a career change, you might want to check out the openings at Google. Social news site Reddit had Google employees say what they do and don’t like about working for the Internet giant. If the fact that you are working with a group of super intelligent people all day long doesn’t entice you, then maybe the free gourmet breakfast, lunch and dinners will have you rethinking your career path! Read this article to see what other employees of Google had to say.

Foursquare Adds Layers:
Can you imagine seeing the world through the eyes of the Huffington Post or how about the Independent Film Channel? Foursquare is letting you do just that. According to ReadWriteWeb, Foursquare has added “layers” letting you subscribe to tips from these organizations about locations you are near. Now, you can hear the Wall Street Journal’s version of New York City.

No one puts social media in the corner! Dell Inc. incorporated a social media team into their payroll in 2006 and they continue to believe that social media is vital for any company and here’s why.

LinkedIn adds familiar features such as likes, follows and group discussions to their network. Do you think these changes will help LinkedIn compete with other social media outlets?

The iPad is still H-O-T, HOT! Apple has sold more than three million devices in the past three months. How many of you want the iPad and for those lucky enough to already own one, what’s your favorite feature?

Have you seen the Samsung commercial with the guy breaking the Guinness Book of World Records for the fastest texting? He is using an application called Swype and it will be available for a limited time only to Android customers. Check out this video showcasing Swype’s capabilities and then you can be the fastest texter on the block!

Still not sure what being a Mayor on Foursquare can get you? Well, if you are the mayor at any of the 463 Sports Authority stores nationwide it will get you $10 off your purchase. What other stores and offers would you like to see next?

Will you be watching France vs. Mexico in the World Cup on ESPN2? Even if you aren’t able to take off work for this 2 p.m. game, check out this NPR story that discusses the impact the World Cup has had on social media.

If you’re a wino then you have to check out vinyou! It‘s an online event venue for wine lovers that locates wine tastings in your area and gives you the opportunity to post your own wine tastings.

The iPhone 4 will be coming out next week, but it’s becoming more and more difficult to preorder. The large number of customers eager to get their hands on this new smart phone has overwhelmed Apple and AT&T. Anyone planning on getting the iPhone 4? Who WANTS to get the iPhone 4?

The wait is over! Starbucks will start providing free WiFi beginning July 1. Click here to see everything the Starbucks Digital Network has to offer to its loyal caffeinated patrons.

Would you like to be able to check out of your Foursquare locations? So does Robert Scoble, read his blog on other ways Foursquare can improve their growing social media network.

Martha Stewart has left the kitchen and entered the world of social marketing. If you are a fan of her cupcakes you might enjoy a taste of her social media tips to promote and grow your business.

Groupon sends a daily email containing an unbeatable deal on the best stuff to do, see, buy and eat in your city. As long as the minimum number of people sign up for the groupon then the deal is on! This is where social media kicks in — if you see a groupon that you just can’t live without you can post it on Facebook and Twitter and invite your friends to buy in as well.

Pete Cashmore, founder and CEO of Mashable, commented at the Mashable Media Summit last week that Groupon is the obvious next big thing in social media. Groupon, however, is only in select cities and our fair city of Charleston has not made the list yet. The more times Charleston is requested on www.groupon.com the better the chances are that we will be able to cash in on these amazing deals.

Visit www.groupon.com , check out the deals happening in other cities, request Charleston and tell us what you think!

That’s the power of social media. And it’s a power NBC is harnessing as it continues its “Fan It” initiative into the 2010-2011 TV season. Fans signs up on the NBC website and then earn points for talking about NBC shows on Facebook, MySpace or Twitter. Points are good for NBC merchandise (wonder how many points I’d need for an Office bobblehead?) or for entries into mega contests (wonder how many points I’d need to appear on Parks & Recreation?).

In an Associated Press article last week, Adam Stotsky, president of NBC Entertainment Marketing, is quoted as saying, “A recommendation from a friend is infinitely more powerful than any message we can put out through conventional marketing channels.”

That’s sums up nicely what social media is all about and why it’s critical for businesses to be part of the landscape. Social media has expanded the concept of word-of-mouth marketing beyond asking our neighbors to recommend a good plumber into a global network of referrals.

If your business isn’t paying attention to social media, it’s missing an opportunity to reach potential customers, reward them for their business and respond to their questions or complaints. Last week I asked on Twitter if anyone could recommend a good company to pressure wash my house. I received a recommendation from a Twitter follower so plan to call that business this week.

What would have made that example even more powerful is if this particular pressure washing business was on Twitter and could have reached out to me directly, possibly offering a free estimate or a discount.

I applaud NBC for recognizing the massive referral system that is social media and hope it serves as an example to other businesses that engaging your customers, rewarding them for their efforts and thinking beyond conventional marketing channels has to be a part of your business plan.

If I had a dime for every poor PR person who I see straddled with the job of keeping the company Facebook and Twitter page updated, I’d be a rich woman.  I used to be the company PR person and I know how much that person is already carrying on their shoulders. Often their job entails: marketing, community relations, event planning, advertising, employee relations, government relations … oh, and that little thing called media relations, which by itself can be a full time job for a decent-sized company. Social media has now gotten thrown into the mix.

Now, if you had to pick an existing job to add social media duties to, PR is definitely the one I’d choose. Afterall, those people understand the company’s brand and message, and hopefully are skilled communicators and writers. But it’s matter of time – and social media takes a lot of it!

So what’s the solution? I whole-heartedly believe if companies truly want to do social media right (and to me, there’s no point in doing it any other way, because it just becomes a waste of money when the results don’t match expectations) they need to either 1) Add a new position whose job is entirely social media (and better yet, create a social media team) or 2) Hire a social media firm with proven success.

Adding it to a plate that is already full is a recipe for disaster and is the reason why social media sometimes gets a bad rap for its bottom-line results. You can’t expect that by posting to your Facebook page once a week, taking several days to respond questions and comments, and linking your Twitter account to Facebook, which always cuts off your posts because they’re too long for Twitter, to cut muster.

The only time it really works to add to an existing job is if you can find someone extremely into social media, who’s willing to be on at home, check in on their phone while out and generally be on all the time. That does happen occasionally, but you want to be sure that person doesn’t ignore their original job duties and that they don’t burn out.

The benefits of paying someone to do social media are:

1) That is their sole focus, so other duties aren’t neglected.  Social media is no longer a distraction.

2) They can keep accounts updated multiple times daily.

3) They can quickly respond to questions, comments and complaints.

4) They can proactively monitor tools like Twitter and Foursquare for mentions of the company and for prospective customers and interact with them, rather just be in reactionary mode.

5) They have time to brainstorm creative promotions.

6) They can stay up to date on the changes in social media (which goodness knows is a daily occurrence) and adapt campaigns accordingly.

7) They can put together a plan with goals, strategies and tactics.

They can compile and review metrics to see what’s working well and what isn’t.

What do you think? Should social media be added to an existing job? If so, who’s? If not, should you add a job? Hire a firm? In a future post, I’ll offer some tips on what to look for when hiring an outside company to manage your social media presence.

We picked Meghan as January’s social media star, because she’s on the front lines of journalism embracing all that social media can do for this industry. She “gets” it where so many media outlets continue to struggle.

Meghan started the WMBF Facebook page in August 2008 with only 10 fans, but has grown the page to over 10,000! Daily, she manages multiple social media accounts for WMBF, including Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and, one you may not have heard about, Bubbletweet. Here is what Meghan had to say about social media:

What was the first social media technology you used?
Facebook. Over the years, it’s slowly become the No. 1 way I can keep a personal connection with my family and friends back in my hometown of York, Pa.

What is your favorite social media tool?
Definitely Twitter. Believe it or not, I was actually against getting a Twitter account, because I didn’t see the point in posting to the world what I was doing 24/7. Now it’s one of the first things I check on my Blackberry when I wake up – to see who’s doing what and what topics are making news in the Web world.

How have you used social media for your business/company and how has it benefited?
In all honesty, it’s one of the most important tools I use as both a journalist and as a Web producer. Social networking takes news to a whole new extreme – it allows us to see who’s doing what, what issues are important to our viewers, and really allows us to make those important connections with those who keep close tabs on our news product.

Our Facebook fan page has just exceeded 10,000 fans – many of which were gained in 2009. That’s an outlet where we can interact with our fans with a “Question of the Day” and post controversial news stories that we know will draw a response from the public. It also allows us to strengthen the push-pull from social networking sites to WMBFNews.com.

Twitter is another – I can’t tell you how many news stories we’ve broken because of Twitter and how many relationships we’ve built with legislators, community leaders, businesses and organizations because of the exchange of a few tweets. If we can’t pull any news stories off of Twitter, it at least helps us get our brains pumping to come up with new, fresh news content for our shows.
On the flip side, we can keep better track of our competition this way.

How have you seen TV news change since you started in the profession with regard to social media?
It has exploded! I can remember when we had 20 fans on our WMBF News Facebook Fan Page and 100 friends on our MySpace page. We’ve been nursing our social networking sites since we first launched in August 2008 and now depend on it for comments on controversial stories that really affect our viewers or our market drivers. Now, you’ll see a “Facebook Question of the Day” on each of our newscasts – and a big push to become a fan of WMBF News either on Twitter or Facebook.

What role do you see social media playing in TV news in the future?
I see it as a way to gather news stories, build the WMBF News brand, draw people into our product, interact with the community and share breaking news when it happens, as it happens.

How much time would you say you spend a day engaging social media?
Ha – it feels like 24 hours a day! It’s hard to gauge because my TweetDeck is always open, I’m always fiddling with UberTwitter on my phone when I’m away from my desk and always checking out Facebook. It’s a part of the job!

How do you incorporate it into your day so it’s not a time waster?
It’s hard! I make sure that when I’m at work – that’s what I’m on Twitter or Facebook for – just work. When I go on dinner break, am heading out to do a story or am on my own time, that’s when I hop on my personal Facebook and Twitter accounts.

What’s your best tip for using social media for business?
Use it as just another tool to better your product and your overall image. Don’t ignore the fact that your viewers or clients are interacting with you on a “virtual” level – it’s the perfect time to draw people in! Engage, interact and don’t ignore!

Is there a social media tool/technique that you think is underutilized that you would like people to know about?
This is where I plug BubbleTweet, I do believe! I think BubbleTweet is an AWESOME alternative to Tweets if you have a webcam. It’s been a cool way to take people behind the scenes during a newscast, break news stories on a more personal and visual level and to show people that the news is more than just TV.

Where can people find you online and via social media?
www.twitter.com/wmbfmegmiller
http://www.facebook.com/meghanmillerwmbf