Many of you may recall a rather non-traditional, yet wildly popular haiku from Jonathan Schwartz, former CEO of Sun Microsystems, who tweeted his resignation earlier this year.

Brilliant! So, on his coattails and in celebration of National Poetry Month, Marketwire is holding a haiku contest of its own for aspiring poets and social media enthusiasts alike.

The challenge:  Create a haiku that speaks to one or both categories:

1. SM10X30, Marketwire’s social media fitness program
   For inspiration, visit the SM10X30 microsite and read about the program; more than 3,500 people have registered since January.  (PS – if you haven’t registered, the time is now!)
2. Social Media
   Compose a haiku about anything relative to social media. From Twitter to tags, and wikis to widgets, it’s wide open.

DEADLINE: Friday, April 30, 2010

What is a haiku? In their traditional form, haikus are short Japanese poems that consist of 17 syllables in three metered phrases of 5, 7 and 5, respectively. While most haiku often speak to nature or the seasons, any topic can be discussed.  For example, Jonathan Schwartz’ haiku was:

Financial crisis (5 syllables)
Stalled too many customers (7 syllables)
CEO no more (5 syllables)

And, to put things into perspective, here’s another example specific to the SM 10X30 program:

Basic rules I learn
Twitter, Facebook, mastery
Strength in social space

Prizes per category:

SM10X30
Use hashtag #sm10X30 on Twitter and include @marketwire

• Grand prize*
  • One (1) free Marketwire Social Media 2.0 release
  • $50 Amazon gift card (valid for the Canadian and U.S. stores; £25 Amazon cards for UK winners)
  • SM10X30 T-shirt and titanium water bottle
  • Paul Gillin’s book, The New Influencers: A Marketer’s Guide to the New Social Media
  • Haiku posted on the Marketwire blog, Twitter and Facebook
• Runner-up
  • $50 Amazon gift card (valid for the Canadian and U.S. stores; £25 Amazon cards for UK winners)
  • SM10X30 T-shirt and titanium water bottle
  • Paul Gillin’s book, The New Influencers: A Marketer’s Guide to the New Social Media
  • Haiku posted on the Marketwire blog, Twitter and Facebook
• Selected Finalists
  • Haiku chosen at random will be posted on the Marketwire blog, Twitter and Facebook

Social Media
Use #socialmedia on Twitter and include @marketwire

• Grand prize
  • $50 Amazon gift card (valid for the Canadian and U.S. stores; £25 Amazon cards for UK winners)
  • SM10X30 T-shirt and titanium water bottle
  • Paul Gillin’s book, The New Influencers: A Marketer’s Guide to the New Social Media
  • Haiku posted on the Marketwire blog, Twitter and Facebook
• Runners-up (2)
  • SM10X30 T-shirt and titanium water bottle
  • Paul Gillin’s The New Influencers: A Marketer’s Guide to the New Social Media
  • The selected haiku posted on the Marketwire blog, Twitter and Facebook
• Selected finalists
  • Haiku chosen at random will be posted on the Marketwire blog, Twitter and Facebook

How to enter:

Contest dates:  Thursday, April 15, 2010 (1 pm EST) through Friday, April 30, 2010 (12 am EST)
Cost to enter:   There is no cost to enter this contest and no purchase is necessary. You may submit multiple entries to both categories.
4 ways to enter:

1. Email Nick Shin at nshin[at]marketwire.com
2. Tweet Nick @marketwire on Twitter
3. Click through on our Marketwire Facebook page
4. Comment on Marketwire’s “Do you haiku?” blog post

Notification:

The winning entries will be announced by Marketwire during the week of May 17, 2010. Following the announcement, individual winners will be notified via tweet or email only. Winners will have seven days from notification to claim their prize. If you are a winner, send Nick an email from an account that can corroborate your identity. Unclaimed prizes will not be awarded.

Contest Rules:

Need more details? The “fine print” is available here.

Questions?

Contact Nick Shin via:

• Email: nshin[at]marketwire.com
• Twitter: @marketwire
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/Marketwire
• Marketwire Blog: Comment on the “Do you haiku?” blog post

Good luck, everyone!

Many people involved in social media feel there is just too much information coming at them.  They feel overwhelmed, and that social media just doesn’t work.  This week, I received a question from an SM 10X30 participant about overexposure and information overload.

As a reminder, all questions are welcome, whether you are new to social media or are someone who is already very familiar. I love to help and chat about social media.  @ me on Twitter and let’s talk!

Q.  What are your suggestions in preventing overexposure and information overload when it comes to using all these social media sites?  Can you recommend a percentage mix of content and conversation to keep your fans and followers interested?

• Post relevant content.   In general, it’s not how often or how much you tweet or post, it’s the quality that counts. If you continually develop new and relevant content, your followers will continue to be interested. It’s important to make the content relevant to your business so they can think of you when the need arises. It’s also important to post consistently. A stagnant social media account is one of the sins of social media marketing and you will lose followers/fans quickly.
• Engage in conversation. Providing relevant content is great, but you also don’t want to look like you’re spamming. Remember that spam applies to social media as well.  The point of joining a social media site is to develop relationships. A great start is to join a TweetChat on Twitter, fan a page on Facebook and answer questions on LinkedIn. This shows your fans that you are authentic, knowledgeable and willing to help, as opposed to being seen as a person only wanting to sell.
• Market yourself smartly. There might be a time when you need to promote a great offer and you want to get as much exposure as possible. In preventing overexposure, be creative and re-word the message rather than repeating the same thing over and over again.
• Ask questions.  Instead of just broadcasting your message, seek advice and answers from other users and groups. You’ll be surprised by how helpful the social networking community really is and how it can spark a great conversation.

Thanks to the SM10X30 participants who submitted this question. Your dedication and willingness to learn are much appreciated! Keep your questions and feedback coming! Send me an email at nshin [at] marketwire [dot] com.

If you are part of the SM10X30 program, comment or @ me on Twitter to be included in the #sm10×30 Twitter list.  Here is a link to follow those who are as dedicated to social media as you are: http://twitter.com/#/list/Marketwire/sm10×30-rockstars.  Be sure to join the Facebook group dedicated to SM10X30 participants.

I’m sure many of you participating in SM 10X30 – Marketwire’s Social Media Fitness Program — have had thoughts of using social media as a source of lead generation. Whether you are new to social media or a grizzly veteran, always be cautious of your mindset when using social media, especially if your main objective is generating leads. You can come off as spam and you will instantly lose credibility.  In this installment of my weekly Q&A for SM 10X30 participants, I answer questions about how to prospect for leads via social media, particularly Twitter and Facebook.

As a reminder, all questions are welcome, whether you are new to social media or already very familiar. I love to help and chat about social media. Check out our SlideShare presentations for exclusive tips.

Q. How do I create a list on Twitter and Facebook?

• The purpose of creating lists is to group your followers. For example, you might want to create a list specifically for those in your industry. Creating a list is simple, but it can be time-consuming, especially if you have a lot of followers.
• To create a Twitter list, log in to your account. On the right-side bar, scroll to where it says LISTS and click NEW LIST. You can then name your list and include a description. When naming your list, it can be annoying if you decide to change the name later. Twitter cannot recognize the name change so you’d have to manually re-add the followers to the renamed list. Once you create the list, you can add followers from your page of followers. From that point on, you manually add followers. You can also add users to your list even if you are not following them.
• For Facebook lists, you can create lists for your personal profile, but you cannot create them for your Facebook fan page or for your Facebook group. Creating a list for personal profiles can be done under FRIENDS and then click CREATE A LIST.

Q. Prospecting via Twitter

I am looking for is a list of local florists in Chicago, IL. How do I go about creating such a list or group? Is there a way to group together using location as a starting point? Maybe using Foursquare?

• Foursquare could be a place to look, but the only trouble with Foursquare is that it is not yet widely used. Although you may find a few clients this way, it’s probably not ideal. I would recommend using Twitter search or Twitter advanced search and typing in keywords.
  • Basic search: http://search.twitter.com/
  • Advanced search: http://search.twitter.com/advanced
• The advanced search function allows you to search by location and to specifically scan tweets.  Another option is to use Twitter keyword search tools that scan Twitter profiles. Two that I use are TweepSearch and Twellow.
• Another option is to download a Twitter application such as TweetDeck or Hootsuite and create keyword search terms. That way, whenever someone mentions “florists” in their tweet, you can determine if they are a prospect. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to compile a list.  It’s all about monitoring and keeping track of your keywords. There isn’t a simple solution of typing in a keyword and – voila! – an entire list of individuals come up. Personally, I track several keywords and ones I continually monitor. The majority of tweets will be about interesting articles or comments, but once in awhile, I come across a legitimate prospect.

Q. Prospecting via Facebook

Is Facebook set-up the same way as Twitter? I want to find the same types of groups on Facebook, too.

• Unfortunately, Facebook’s search function isn’t as robust as Twitter’s. You can do a search for a keyword such as “florists,” but if that keyword is not part of the business name, then that business will not show up in the search results. Just remember to look on the left sidebar to look at the search results for “pages” and “groups.”

Thanks to all the SM10X30 participants who submitted their questions. Your dedication and willingness to learn are much appreciated!  Keep your questions and feedback coming!  Send me an email at nshin [at] marketwire [dot] com.

If you are part of the SM10X30 program, comment or @ me on Twitter to be included in the #sm10×30 Twitter list. Here is a link to follow those who are as dedicated to social media as you are.  Also, be sure to join the Facebook group dedicated to SM10×30 participants.

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.

I checked my username (namechk.com) and found that it’s available on all social networking sites but one. Do I sign up for all the sites just to get the username out there?

NS: It’s a cliché, but I have to answer “it depends.”

If you are a business owner (or represent a business), then I would secure that username even if you have no immediate plans for using that account.  You never know what the “next big thing” will be in social media. Look at all the Fortune 500 companies (Walmart, Dell, Bank of America, General Motors, to name a few) that lost out on their name on Twitter before it exploded into a phenomenon.

• If you plan on using your name to brand yourself (i.e., going the “consultant route” where developing your name is vital), then I would secure that username on all sites.
• If the user name is for personal networking, I would secure your username for the sites you feel are most relevant to you.  In some cases, having a photo- or video- sharing account might not be necessary. If you secure the username today and it’s gone tomorrow, would you be okay with signing up with another/similar username?  For a business, probably not.  For personal use, sure.

I’m concerned about receiving unsolicited emails. If I make my profile private, does that limit the effectiveness of social networking?

NS: It can limit the effectiveness depending on your goal.  If your goal is to network and gain business, then make your accounts public.  If you simply want to participate, I would look at the privacy settings and limit what the public can see.

On LinkedIn, I make my entire profile open to the public because my focus is on networking.  But, if you want to only open it to your connections, you are limiting your networking opportunity.  Your decision is based on who you are comfortable sharing information with.   If someone is intent on contacting you, they will contact you on Twitter or LinkedIn and send you a message.  Personally, I include my email address on the Marketwire Twitter account and my personal Twitter account and it’s worked wonders because it offers an added customer service outlet.

Below are some quick tips regarding your new personal Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook accounts.  If you are opening accounts for your business, then the accounts should be made as visible as possible, which is the nature of transparency.

Twitter – Keep it public, but share limited personal information

Facebook – Turn on privacy settings and limit your information to your connections only.  Facebook is a more personal networking site meant for family and friends.

LinkedIn – Keep it public, but share information with your connections at a minimum.  Opening information to the public is based on your comfort level.

Hope that helps. Keep those questions coming! Shoot me an email at nshin [at] marketwire [dot] com.

By way of this quick post, I want to officially welcome everyone who has already signed up for our free Social Media Fitness Program, SM10×30. Within 24 hours of the program’s launch, we had more than 300 people register, and response to the concept of ‘getting fit, fast, with social media’ has been overwhelmingly positive.

Created to help PR, IR and marketing communications professionals to better understand the how’s, why’s, so what’s and what’s-in-it-for-me’s of social media, the daily workouts and program exercises will show you the benefits of getting active in social media, and show you how it can help your business.

Please keep the questions, feedback, and suggestions coming. You can @ or DM me on Twitter, post a message on the Social Media Fitness Program Facebook group, post a message on our LinkedIn Group or email me at nshin[at]marketwire.com. As the official trainer for this program, I am pumped (okay, I had to say it!), and ready, willing and able to assist with blogger, media and participant requests. Whether you are enrolled in the Basic Training or Core Conditioning track, I am here to help you succeed.

Big thanks to everyone who has RT’d about the program on Twitter using the hashtag #sm10×30, shared program information on Facebook, and spread the message through LinkedIn and blog posts. Help spread the word: http://bit.ly/5yHTEv.

We hope that this program helps you build your confidence and become more social media savvy. Again, a hearty welcome to all participants.