I read many social media blogs on a regular basis. A majority of the blogs I read offer practical advice on how to effectively participate in social media. The keyword in that last sentence is "practical."
Some social media blogs seem to miss the boat when it comes to practicality and real world strategy. These blogs take a more academic view of social media and marketing. While this is good if you are really into the subject of social media like I am, I suspect to the average small business owner who is just starting to participate in social media marketing, these blogs are just talking over their heads. And really, how useful is that?
Social media isn't an academic pursuit at its core- it's about relationship building.
It's my premise that the best approach to participating in social networking is to keep it simple.
My advice to business owners just starting to participate in this arena is to find the best platform for their business and stick to it. Do you like the interface in Linkedin and feel comfortable navigating the site? Then participate on that network on a regular basis. Have you made some connections on Biznik? Then why water down your social media activities just because some "strategist" who probably has been working in social media for less than 6 months tells you that you ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO be on Twitter, Facebook etc.
Maybe seek out a forum where the people you want to network with are participating. You can easily build up a reputation by participating and adding valuable input to a forum thread about your industry. Just remember to add a link to your website and blog in your signature if it's allowed so forum participants can find your space on the internet.
The point is, do what works for you and focus on that. You can always use automation tools to publish your activities to sites like Twitter and Facebook (Ping.fm is a really good one). That way if you feel like you need to be on those sites, you can do so without spending a whole lot of time on them.
Start out small and as you become more comfortable with participating and promoting your business at these sites, then you can choose to expand your participation on other networks.
Keep it simple. Now that's a smart move.