Everyone’s heard of Facebook. Perhaps you use to keep in touch with your college pals or keep your family updated on what’s going on with the kiddies.

But did you know you can actually use Facebook for business?

YES, it’s really true.I recently sat down with one of the world’s leading authorities on Facebook for business, Mari Smith.

In this video Mari shares some of her tips and techniques for using Facebook for business (including how to balance the personal and the business!). Below you will see our interview.

By the way, if you want to follow me on Facebook, go here.Are you using Facebook for business? How has it worked for you?

Reading a good white paper can be like experiencing a great cappuccino. There are two basic components to each, which depend on one another for success.

Two Ingredients—What’s the Right Blend?

For cappuccino lovers, those components are the coffee and the milk (skillfully blended together by the barrista). While the coffee flavor takes center stage, it is sipped through the frothy cap of steamed milk, and getting the combination right is critical for the best experience.

Following that analogy in white papers, the essential components are education and marketing. But which should be more prominent?
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I hope you’re having a great Friday.

Just wanted to share a bunch of new social media study findings:

* 1 in 20 Americans using Twitter (Harris)

* Forrester predicts 34% annual growth for social media marketing $
through 2014

* Retailers Shift Marketing Dollars Towards Social Media (Forrester…)

* 49% of Mobile Twitter Users Aged 35 and up (Nielsen)

Also wanted to remind you that next Thur. is the last day to save $200 on your ticket to Social Media Success Summit 2009–THE premier online event for marketers and business professionals who want to master social media marketing. Go here to join the nearly 400 others who already registered.

Unless you’ve been fully disconnected from the world, it’s been hard not to notice all the talk about social media these days.  Sites like Twitter and Facebook are all the rage.  But what does this really mean to you and your business?

Why Social Media Now??

The idea of selling, pitching and applying hard-core marketing techniques doesn’t resonate with your prospects during a recession. In addition, you likely have fewer dollars to spend on your marketing efforts.

The magic of social media is twofold. First, you can engage directly with prospects and customers without any middleman (no list broker or reliance on publications). Second, it’s free. There’s absolutely no cost to leverage social media sites and build huge followings. Forget about email providers and search advertising. Social media marketing bypasses all the fee-based services you’re used to.

And there is no better time to begin social media marketing. Sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have literally exploded and encompass hundreds of millions of people. For example, if Facebook were a country, it would be the eighth largest in the world.

Even though social media is HOT, according to the Social Media Marketing Industry Report, most marketers have only been using it for a few months.  What does this mean? A big fat opportunity for your business.

First, The Bad Way to Use Social Media

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