In this installment of “Tips,” I answer questions submitted by SM 10X30 participants about some more advanced topics involving Facebook.
As a reminder, all questions are welcome whether you are new to social media or are already very familiar. I love to help and chat about social media. Get exclusive tips, photos, and videos by joining our Facebook page.

Q. How does a (Facebook) fan page become a fan of another page? (more…)

Since the introduction of SM 10X30, Marketwire’s Social Media Fitness Program in mid-January, more than 3,000 people have registered and taken on high-intensity workouts to improve their social media skills and boost their confidence levels.  Folks are joining us from all corners of the globe: Canada, the US, the UK, India, Mexico, Guatemala, China, Italy, Spain, Israel, Kazakhstan, Puerto Rico, United Arab Emirates, Australia, New Zealand and many other countries. SM 10X30 participants represent Fortune 500 companies, government departments, non-profit organizations, media companies, colleges and universities, and PR practices of all scopes and specialties, from international and boutique agencies to private practitioners and consultants.  It’s clear that social media is important to communicators everywhere, regardless of geography and professional discipline. (more…)

In this installment, I answer questions submitted by SM10X30 participants about Facebook accounts for business.

As a reminder, all questions are welcome, whether you are new to social media or someone who is already very familiar.  I love to help and chat about social media.  Connect with hundreds of other social media enthusiasts on Marketwire’s Social Media Corner.

Q. How do I create a Facebook account for my business? (more…)

Earlier this month, Econsultancy’s Vice President, North America Rebecca Lieb and Sally Falkow, president and social media strategist at Expansion Plus, presented “Engagement: The Key to Success in 2010,” a webinar that highlighted case studies and other research to show how engagement in social media and other online channels is tied to financial success. Appropriately, this second installment of our Ask the Expert interview series features Rebecca and Sally as they answer Nick’s questions  on social media engagement. (more…)

In this installment, I’ll answer questions submitted by SM10X30 participants about Twitter lists and retweeting.

I am now following @marketwire. I saw the post asking if followers were on the #sm10×30 list. How would I go about getting on that list?  (more…)

In this weekly series, SM 10X30 fitness trainer and resident social media specialist Nick Shin answers selected questions from program participants, offering tips and insights to help you make the most of your training.

Hi folks.  In last week’s Tips from the Trainer, I answered questions about username availability and how limiting your profile affects your social networking.  This week, I decided to answer questions specific to Twitter and Facebook.

How do I change my username on Twitter? Why would I want to change my username?  How do I cancel a Twitter account so I can reuse my email address? (more…)

Social Engagement. Today, it’s vital for business sustenance and success. For many companies, social media and other online channels were lifelines that helped them overcome a tough economic climate and, in some situations, allowed them to grow.

Join Sally Falkow, social media strategist and president of Expansion Plus, and Rebecca Lieb, eConsultancy’s VP, North America, for a free webinar and case study presentation on real-world applications and benefits of social media engagement. (more…)

After an intense workout session, a recovery period is essential for muscle rejuvenation, inner reflection and whole-body relaxation. If you’re an SM 10X30 participant working hard to complete our social media “workouts,” the same applies to you.

In this weekly series, SM 10X30 fitness trainer and resident social media specialist Nick Shin answers selected questions from program participants, offering tips and insights to help you make the most of your training. (more…)

It’s a communications love triangle. Who do journalists go to most for sources and story research: PR or social media? Actually, it’s not as contentious as it sounds. According to social media strategist Sally Falkow’s summation in a posting on eConsultancy’s blog , a national study found that 89 percent of the journalists polled rely on social media even though nearly half of them believe that it suffers from a “lack of fact-checking, verification and reporting standards” to make those sources credible.  As she puts it, “It’s a supplement, not a replacement.”

This is a good thing for PR. Journalists still consider the tried and true PR professional the best connection to reliable information. Yet, considering many PR departments and agencies are responsible for their clients’, not to mention their own, social media sites, it becomes doubly important to ensure content is factual and transparent. So, the symbiotic nature of the relationship becomes less a love triangle, and more a monogamous partnership — with one spouse being slightly schizophrenic.

Read Sally’s entire article, along with comments from readers.

Todd Defren, principal at high-tech PR firm SHIFT Communications and author of the popular blog PR-Squared, is the inaugural guest in our Ask the Expert series.  As the PR industry is morphing (thanks in great part to social media), so too is SHIFT with a new office in The Big Apple. We picked Todd’s brain on both fronts: (more…)