Currently, I’m subscribed to a few different means of social media. After weeding through ones I wasn’t fond of (including MySpace), I’ve found a lot of value in the ones I’ve active in. They include: Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, (the smaller ones) Content Wrangler, Twenty Something Bloggers, and various professional wikis and blogs. Please feel free to link to/friend/follow me! Of course, I keep up with most of this via RSS–which is like cheating, but still comprehensive.

Scenario A: The weekly sales meeting begins with a rundown of big projects everyone’s working on. Your seasoned salesperson, Mary, runs into a problem blocking the sale that is out of the business’ direct influence. Rather than losing the sale Mary turns to LinkedIn and asks about it on the Q & A boards. Someone in Denmark recognizes the problem and provides a case study. Mary thinks strategically and applies the information to her newest client.

Scenario B: Industry news is moving quickly. You’re responsible for keeping on top of it, but are already overloaded by your day-to-day work. You pull the RSS feeds from the top 15 industry news leaders, including private blog commentary to gain insider perspective. After skimming the feeds for 15 minutes each morning you’re able to pick up the information you need and stay on top.

Scenario C: Cold calling and traditional advertising aren’t cutting it for your B to B sales. Your clients are turning to the Internet and private consultants to decide what they should buy and when. Rather than losing the market share, your company launches a blog to both educate with your industry expertise and introduce how your products apply to their businesses.

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