In 2010, in December, Yahoo Voices syndicated my article:

2011 Marketing Update Planning Checklist

Then we updated it for 2012 here in November 2011:

2012 Social Media Marketing Guide Planning Checklist and 2011 Stats

September 1 updates:

We can add a few things…

Ah yes, it all starts with a plan:

• The blog – social media marketing in 2012 starts with a modern website (sometimes referred to as a blog – short for weblog).  This website must grow weekly, becoming a more and more popular; and a larger and larger online resource.  This website must exist as it’s own domain, and be owned by you, so that this ‘cyber real estate’ is owned by you as the business and presence grows.  A blog on WordPress.org, or Blogger, or any non-topic-specific behemoth platform will not work for competitive searches – the host must be known for related content for best rankings on competitive searches.  The site must be on it’s own machine, or a host that is known for well optimized, related content.  A virtual server from a company with cPanel Software is very inexpensive.  We  offer free hosting on our servers for the first year to offset setup costs with savings.  If you have not done so already, it is time to move your website into WordPress, or some other content management system (CMS) which you personally and all of your staff can edit, change, and add to – a website cannot be a static brochure anymore.  CPC, CPA and other auction style advertising models have removed all profit from paid search in the long run – because the big players are getting involved, and they are willing to buy the market.  Unless you are very heavily capitalized, and have a crack, state of the art marketing team, you cannot compete on an even playing field.  Fortunately, content trumps distribution, which is automatic – and those same large players are not known for innovation, controversy, viral popularity, niche popularity, or non-commercial content – and, thus,  the value of these are elevated online.  A small or start-up company can compete – but not head-to-head, and not on a level playing field financially.    Even the largest of companies need  to seek out viral and social marketing experts, outside of their normal chain of command, because innovators and forward thinkers are generally not rewarded in large companies.
• The platform – WordPress has over 60 million blogs, and nobody really knows how many other websites are in WordPress – some say over 200 million sites.  This means everything for an interactive website, because the users must be able to use the software.  Your visitors will not know why, necessarily; however, if your website (which really needs to be a social media enabled, interactive community) is in WordPress, they will be able to use it.  >>more about WordPress here>> (If your users can use your software, and they are compelled to do so, your website will succeed)  
• Strategy considerations – picking a battle that you can win: I often have this discussion with realtors: they all want to come up on ‘city state real estate’ searches, because those are the most searched for; but have you ever wondered by whom?  There are, by some estimates, over 200,000 licensed real estate agents in the US: they all search city state real estate often …lets see , that is how many per state….the most expensive words you can buy?!  One of the problems with Real Estate is that it pays so well that it is hard to get a Realtor to listen to any strategy other than what all the other realtors are doing.  I call this “pack mentality”.   I would equate it to guys who concentrate on metrics and measurements and call them self marketers, when all their decisions are made on main-stream accepted and forensic data.  The fallacy is that all this information is worthless when it comes to online marketing: if you do what the ‘main-stream’ or your peers are all doing, you will fail, from sheer numbers.  The true innovators are the ones making real money – and they do not share their secrets until they stop working.  In online marketing, following the pack is sure failure: even more risky than trying something new.  For most people and companies, innovation is the only solution that MAY work, while following the ‘pack’ is sure failure.  If you are mainstream in real estate, the numbers suggest that you will not be here next year!  Online marketing favors the new, the quick, the controversial even, the different.  Conventional ‘following the leaders’ will not work online, for anybody but the leader.  Online, it is better to become an expert, than to listen to one.  What are you an expert at?  Start there.  What you know has value online, whatever it is , related or not: and somebody with that same interest needs what you are offering.   Make your strategy based on your abilities, interests and assets: if you love what you are doing online, you will do it well, and often; and you will succeed.  They all live in houses, take vitamins, buy presents, have health concerns, raise children…there is always something to sell to those that you can reach.  Pick the battle that YOU can win.
• Your profiles, outlets, fans, and links – your social network:  I post a good, original article or two per week mostly.  We encourage our clients to post weekly, as this is necessary for any presence with any reach: to maintain the profiles and build the fans.  If you cannot, or will not do this; then you need to pay somebody else to do it.   I can always find somebody to post for you, and we are training an ever increasing number of people to do this well; we have priced this ongoing weekly posting at $100 per month or more depending on the marketplace, and the qualifications and reach of that blogger; and that “hands off” alternative includes the website, rankings on Google and the other search engines, and even preventative reputation management of the top ten slots on Google also for that person or company brand and/or proper name..  I know of very few businesses which cannot cash flow such an effort from the leads that are generated from the postings and ever growing social media profiles where the ongoing posts are bookmarked, shared, liked, tweeted, etc…we have ongoing clients in almost every industry.    Think of it as your entire advertising budget:
• MARKET CONDITIONS – Thanks to http://www.mediabuyerplanner.com/entry/109944/marketers-accelerate-social-display-ad-spends-in-2012/ for this information:An Advertiser Perceptions survey revealed that fully 59% U.S.marketers and agencies plan to increase social media display ad spends (e.g., on Facebook, Twitter) over the next 12 months. In comparison, less than a third (31%) plan to raise display ad spending on ad networks and exchanges, while just 29% expected to do so on publisher sites.Thanks to http://www.marketingcharts.com/direct/cmos-say-full-steam-ahead-for-social-media-spending-21315/ for this:Although CMOs say that social media spending currently accounts for 7.4% of their total marketing budget, they forecast that share to increase 46% to 10.8% in the next 12 months, according tofindings from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, which released its latest CMO Survey in February 2012. And spending will undergo an even more drastic upswing in the next 5 years, with CMOs predicting that social media spend will account for 19.5% of their total marketing budgets, almost tripling current levels.This trend towards higher social media spending was also found in a December 2011 study conducted by StrongMail in conjunction with Zoomerang. 55% of business leaders responding to that survey said they planned to increase their social media budgets this year, making it the top channel cited for increased spend behind email marketing (60%)…….
  

  Highest Spending Levels Among B2C Product Firms

  Meanwhile, the CMO survey shows that B2C product companies lead all industry sectors in terms of spending allocated to social media, dedicating 9.6% of their current marketing budgets to this channel, ahead of B2C services companies (8.4%), B2B services companies (7.4%), and B2B product firms (6.2%).

  Looking at the next 12 months, the same trends apply, with B2C product companies expecting 15.3% share of their budgets to be allotted to social media, compared to 11.7% for B2C service companies, the nearest category. In 5 years, B2C product companies again predict the largest share of marketing budgets to be spent on social media (23%), though B2B service companies and B2C service companies expect to be relatively on par in terms of the share of spending they will dedicate to the channel (19.1% and 19%, respectively)……

  Thabnks to http://technoratimedia.com/2012/02/smbs-forecasted-to-spend-7-8-billion-for-social-media-marketing-in-2016/ for this:

  2011

  ·      SMBs spent $1.1 billion on social media advertising in 2011

  ·      Almost 2/3 of SMBs reported having a social media presence last year (primarily on Facebook)

  2012 and 2013

  ·      SMBs are forecasted to spend $2 billion in 2012

  ·      SMBs are forecasted to spend $3.9 billion in 2013

  ·      SMBs plan on spending 13.7 percent of online advertising budgets for social media in 2012

  ·      80% of SMBs are forecasted to have a social media presence by the end of 2012

  ·      Social media is listed as the 3rd highest category for online spending in the coming year ahead of streaming video, mobile, and banner ads.

  It’s obvious that social media has and continues to create an impression on local businesses across the board, and Borrell estimates that SMBs will spend $7.8 billion—a sevenfold increase—in 2016!….

  Thanks to MASHABLE for this:

  http://mashable.com/2012/01/19/online-advertising-surpasses-print-2012/

  Online Ad Spending to Surpass Print for First Time in 2012 [STUDY]

  For the first time in U.S. history, marketers are projected to spend more on online advertising than on advertising in print magazines and newspapers.

  According to a study released Thursday by eMarketer, online advertising is expected to generate $39.5 billion in sales this year — a 23.3% increase from 2011 — compared to a sum of $33.8 billion on print.

  That’s impressive growth, especially since 2011 also witnessed a 23% jump in online ad spending, according to eMarketer’s calculations. Online ad revenues should continue to grow over the next half-decade, albeit at a more modest rate, as shown in the chart below. Total online ad investment is projected to hit $62 billion by that time.

  The forecast for print is foreboding. Marketers are expected to continue cutting their print advertising budgets for the next half-decade, spending $32.3 billion in 2016, 10% less than what they invested in print ads in 2011.
  Spending on TV promises to be largely unaffected by growing online ad budgets, although the gap between the two is set to narrow significantly. U.S. marketers are expected to spend $72 billion in TV advertising in 2016, up 18.6% from 2011.
  Overall, it looks to be a healthy year for the ad industry, with total U.S. ad spending forecast to grow by 6.7% to $169.5 billion. eMarketer attributes the bump to investment in campaigns ads and mobile advertising. Total ad spending is set to reach nearly $200 billion by 2016, of which online will account for a third.
• Facebook is a must - we are all there more and more – gaining universal acceptance as a popularity driven social network with controllable levels of access: we have a business endorsement page, and a group for every city blog: they all go over 100 members withing the first three days, and our Los Angeles Blog and Facebook group are the “largest social network in LA” according to Google!   If you are selling primarily to consumers, I suggest a much more robust viral marketing plan for Facebook – a fan club, thumbs-up tab, viral video, groups, meetings… in many business a full time Facebook marketer is indicated.  We are business to business mainly, and I only post my content there, and our upLog.org groups on Facebook (where we make the Facebook material searchable on Google) now represent and ever growing thousands of very connected personal acquaintances.
• Linkedin.com -  Our largest referrer; largest source of clients other than our own site: I  have a complete profile and I post to about 50 groups that fit my audience:  I do very well here by just re-posting all my articles here.  I highly recommend a strong LinkedIn presence for B2B and for recruiting.
• Google+ -  I like the software, and I like the integration with Google mail, calendar, docs and other apps that I use for maintaining my presence.  I was able to transfer most of my presence elsewhere in minutes, and my network continues to grow on its own with nothing by my posting my articles to maintain.  Google+ is emerging as a leader for B2B.
  
• Niche communities and link building with high quality posts – run a search for the terms that you think will feed you traffic – see who ranks.  Do they allow posting?  Do they allow comments?  Do they need guest columnists?  Content is king!
• UpLog.org is unique -  exclusive to its bloggers: so that a properly optimized upLog.org blog ranks immediately for competitive geographical real estate and other searches, and our client is the only sponsor in his town for what he does.  At $300 per 1 year exclusive,  with training and support, this is a very inexpensive all encompassing alternative, with high link-authority to get started (the link alone is worth that much, and it includes reach to our audience of over 3,000,000 and our creation of instant rankings in so doing, the blog, training, support, launch..)
•  About email marketing – I have been appending and mailing out the B2B Home Business Network News .com – business.uplog.org for 20 months now: I include some recent articles, how-to’s, a plug or two for a client..the double opt-in list is over 150,000 now with no unsubscribes.  I was curious, so I moved it to my proper name (israelrothman.com) to see how many people actually got it.  To my amazement, only one unsubscribe, just enough to know it is working.  This form of marketing is very effective: we purchased a couple of scrapers, and setup the PHPlist ope- source list program – if you do not want to do this yourself we can manage and build, setup and format your list: $500 down, $500 month.  We can reach, increasingly so, anybody you want to reach, any demographic, any search…we will promise a 100k list within a year for most industries of you use our strategies.  Such a list can feed almost any business with the right strategy executed well.
• About robo-calling or voice broadcasting – again we have been dong this regularly for about 20 months:  it is an effective and easy to generate traffic and even deals – we provide a trial to 5000 numbers, names, websites, and addressees that we scrape from key word search and/or certain other websites, and we provide the voice-over if needed, and the list afterward to track results with follow up.
  

• Summary: the proverbial “cheese” has “moved.”

• original article is here:
  2012 September Marketing Action Plan – Social Media Advertising Agency Services