Social media has the power to make your digital web stand out from the rest of the digital universe.

The explosion in social media usage means that customers are increasingly connected and empowered. A customer can post a comment about a product or company which may have some very drastic effects.

Your digital web must provide positive information for your customers in an easy to understand and factual way.  Don't forget your customers know 30 people you don't and the power of the spoken and written word is very powerful in the exchange of ideas and experiences. Products and services can be destroyed by the voice of social media depending on the individuals experience.

When starting to promote awareness of your digital web using social media such as Twitter or Google plus, you and your business must have a strategy.

1. What’s Your Pitch?
Can you describe what your company does in 120 characters or less?

2. What’s the Point?
What type of program is this? Awareness, Sales, or Loyalty? Pick one.

3. What’s Your Relationship with Your Audience?
What does your audience know about you today?

• Nothing
• Aware of you, but never acted
• Acted once
• Repeat actions/enthusiasts
• Advocates

Pick up to two of these segments to focus upon, but make sure they are adjacent on this scale. It’s too confusing to have a strategy that targets advocates AND people that have never heard of you. That would be two strategies, not one.

4. How Does Your Audience Use Social Media?
Using the Forrester Social Technographics Ladder, understand how your target audience (as defined by gender, age, and geography) uses social media. If your audience skews older, you may not want to engage in a lot of “make a video” contests, since that segment indexes low on the “Creator” scale.

You can play with the Social Technographics Ladder data right here:

5. What’s Your One Thing?
What’s the soul of your brand. What’s the one thing that defines you and it’s not features and benefits. Volvo = Safety. Apple = Innovation. Disney = Magic. What’s on the other side of your = sign?

6. How Will You Be Human?
Social media is about people, not logos. How will you let down your guard? If you’re a small company, congratulations, this should be pretty easy. If you’re a big company, how can you act small again?

7. How Will You Measure Success?
Lots of ways to measure social media success, so make sure you determine your key metrics BEFORE you get started.