77% of active internet users read blogs. 900,000 is the average number of blog posts in a 24 hour period, according to Business Week.

LYNCHBURG, Virginia. – May 5, 2009 – A ‘Blog-Off” competition will be held on May 22nd at The Muse Coffee in Wyndhurst at 9:00 in the morning. Local business networking group, Friday 2.0, has put together a panel of four judges to evaluate the main criteria that makes an effective blog. Submission deadline is May 15th.

Lynchburg Blog-Off

The purpose of the event is to evaluate the effectiveness of local bloggers, while educating local business owners that those who fail to embrace social media technologies for business will be left behind. Through the month of May each judge will get a chance to share their criteria for blog sexiness, usability, search engine optimization and community engagement.

In a Coleman-Parkes Research study, companies currently using Social Media reported the following:

• Improved Feedback 78%
• Improved Customer Satisfaction 66%
• Improved Customer support 71%
• Increased Sales 40%
• Improved public perception of company 75%

The panel of judges include ShoutOut LLC’s director of marketing, Andrew Potter, Marketing-Helper.com’s Jennifer Bailey, BrowseLynchburg.com’s Phil Tucker, and Nannette Saunders from RE/Max. 

“More and more companies are using social media and blogging to position themselves as industry leaders in their fields,” said Marketing-Helper.com owner Jennifer Bailey. “A lot of companies are afraid of this thing called social media, but the truth is that if we can learn how to adapt in an effective way then we can not only cut our marketing costs but increase sales leads.”

Those interested in learning more about the competition can visit The Blog-Off Fact Sheet >

About Friday 2.0
Friday 2.0 is a local Virginia networking group who meets on Friday mornings at 9:00 a.m. at The Muse coffee shop in Wyndhurst. Friday 2.0’s goal is to get educated about social media tools and opportunities. The most passionate and curious professionals attend this un-meeting as a way to connect with like-minded individuals and discuss the topics and trends relevant to technology, social media and the future of social media. Everyone from the freshly-minted twitter-er, to the tech-advanced executive managing 500 people are encouraged to attend and participate. All voices are equal and welcome at Friday 2.0! Join our Facebook Friday 2.0 Group.

Other Resources:
Coleman-Parkes Research Findings
Definitions of Social Media

A recap: 

• 60% of American citizens used Social Media.
• 93% indicated business should have a Social Media presence
• 85% indicated businesses should interact via Social Networks with their customers

Consumers surveyed indicated businesses should use Social Media to:

• Solve Problems – 43%
• Obtain user feedback on product and services – 41%
• Enable consumers to interact with the company brand – 37%
• Market to consumers – 25%

Barriers to initiating Social Media Programs:

• Lack of understanding by Senior Management 58%
• Negative impact on employee productivity 49%
• Fear of unknown technology 58%

Companies currently using Social Media reported the following:

• Improved Feedback 78%
• Improved Customer Satisfaction 66%
• Improved Customer support 71%
• Increased Sales 40%
• Improved public perception of company 75%

Within the survey completed for Avande were some general statements which must be considered:

• 52% of respondents stated “Companies that fail to embrace social media technologies for business purposes will be left behind “
• 78% of respondents stated “As we enter a possible economic downturn we need to focus on new ways of communicating with customers which add real value.”
• 77% of respondents stated “If they did not initiate a Social Media Program Social Media would enter the company by stealth”

Your time is valuable. I am a master multitasker, and even I have a hard time deciding where to invest the time I do have. 

1. How much time is needed to be effective at social media? Think of social media as a marketing project. It’s not a hobby (thanks @awpotter I like that line). The first step in any advertising or public relations campaign is research, then planning, then implementation. The research and planning phases – which are the foundation of your campaign – are going to take more time to build than the actual implementation. So in the beginning – you could spend 10-50 hours launching your campaign. 

2. How much time do I need to spend on a weekly basis promoting my cause through social media? Once your campaign is launched, it is a process of learning. The first time you do something it always takes longer than the second, then third time, and eventually you have it down and you don’t have to think about it anymore. But that doesn’t answer the question, does it?

The answer varies depending on:

     A. Your purpose and goal

     B. How fast your typing is, how fast you are at writing, your internet connection speed… are you getting the point? 

Scenario: You are promoting your wedding cake business online. You already have a blog setup with a linkedin account, facebook as well as twitter. You are experienced in your field and excited about weddings. So, you write one blog a week with good information for brides, then you use that blog to promote what you do by searching for brides on facebook and sending twitters out daily. You also find some unique wedding website communities to contribute to, like offbeat bride and weddingwire. So, you spend an hour a week on your blog, a half hour a day on facebook and another 15 minutes a day on twitter. Then you spend an average of 2 + hours a week on other sites. Minimum Time per week = 7 hours (an hour every morning with a cup of coffee!)

3. What social media tools should I be using and how often should I use them? There are four basic tools every professional should be using: Blogging, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. Each has a different purpose in gaining new leads, check out my training on becoming a trust agent. Your field is going to have additional tools available (like weddingwire for cake makers or photographers). But how much time you spend on each depends on your field and your purpose! Check out the scenario above. 

And to respond to Chris Brogan’s thoughts on being realistic about time, Chris points out that ever since the web happened our expectations about response time has changed. Chris says, “We can reinstate boundaries and manage expectations. Business has to move fast, but do we really want the future where we’re all tethered to Twitter?”

It’s true. Boundaries are important. Nobody can expect people to be as good as me at multitasking (hah!). But – it is also true that the internet and social media has changed our ability to response quickly. We can get emails, twitters and facebook responses on our mobile phones. We can hire virtual assistants to manage our LinkedIn accounts! 

As I have said before, Social Media has turned 6 degrees of separation into new and instant connections across the globe! So, set your boundaries, don’t overexpect people to revolve their valuable time around you – but also know that there are tools out there so we can capitalize on our God-given abilities and human beings to be the ultimate task-masters! 

Check out our social media 101 program that will help you get a hold on your marketing >

Here are some stats from Technorati on the state of the bloggosphere. See the full report here.

The truth is that when you notice a catchy trend, the game is to start using it as quickly as possible before it blows up. My partner and I probably own at least 50 domain names for great ideas that we may never have time to use, but at least we have the option! And it certainly keeps us on our toes at the forefront of marketing trends. 

A great example is the networking trend that just won’t stop, and it started when MySpace blew up. There are probably 100s of sites where individuals and businesses can go to connect. 

So take my advice, and go create a profile for yourself at the following URLs: 

GodFuse, LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace, Digg, Delicious, YouTube, Technorati, SPhinn, StumbleUpon. 

Other ideas? Leave a comment.