Kat French of Social Media Explorer was kind enough to put up a four-part series written for the social media practitioners last month. Yes, you may think that since so many have written on social media it isn't necessary to read the same old stuffs anymore. True, there are rules of the trade that remained the same but application of social media is pretty much another thing as I learn more each day.

If there's anything that I like about this series, it's just the simplicity without the technical jargons you commonly read elsewhere. That's to say, Kat had made this series application-ready. You can almost pin the points and questions raised on a board and get your team working in a think-tank right away. That's something you don't actually get a lot from elsewhere.

I am just going to summarize in my own understanding on the four parts for two good reasons. First, I want you to read. It is meaningless when I have to parrot every single point mentioned. Secondly, our perceptions are different. Likewise, our customer base are essentially diverse too. What works for me, need not necessarly work for you.

Part 1: Getting Ready to Get Social
What turns me off a lot of time is looking at (corporate) blogs that springs up all over, but yet readers who left comments are not being engaged. It puzzled me on the intention of these blogs. Therefore, you should penetrate the corporate layers and run yourself through some legitimate questions before you embark as quickly as others shut down. The most important question of all, are you or your company ready?

Part 2: Creating an Effective RFP
The second part of this series touched on how to go about seeking external help. It is advisable that you are specific with your requirements and spots the services that fit well in your plan. But not just anyone. You will need to do a lot of homework on your end, looking into their working styles, their methodologies and more. Be ready to disclose your objectives, and not blindly requests for proposals when external parties hardly know anything about you.

Part 3: Working with Partners and Vendors
I love this part the most. In social media, I often looked at how PR agencies or marketers adopt social media but slumbered back into traditional mindsets that they have been using in their entire lives. It's easy to spot where I am because the circuit isn't really that big, and inside information gets around fast. But if you're looking at the bigger picture, then you will have to forsake some old practices and habits which are defined by Kat.

Part 4: Determining Success or Failure
This last part is subjective in my opinion. Long ago, I used to cite some examples as failures and very quickly some of the participants opposed. What I am pointing out is, social media isn't just about gathering a bunch of bloggers for a gathering or doing one-off blog publicity. Social media is an ongoing activity and therefore you will need to highlight and measure specific targets. Can you relate this back to the initial objectives of getting into social media? Absolutely.

It's enlightening to read social media from another angle, and I hope you can benefit by going through Kat's efforts. Hopefully, you will be able to put some of those to the tests and give it a run.