Social Media for business is relatively new in comparison to other avenues in the  Marketing Industry. Recently, I started to think about the people that really get it, I mean that really truly GET the purpose of Social Media as it pertains to business and the many people that still don’t.  As I thought of this I realized that I may be thinking of Social Media on a larger scale than I should. Once I started to think about things in those terms I then realized that Social Media is just a small part of what the Internet is about in terms of marketing a business. Further, what I do is beyond JUST SOCIAL MEDIA.

Social Media is just one small sliver of the New Media Marketing Pie. So, I started to really think about limiting oneself to just Social Media and companies that have limited themselves to JUST Social Media with their self proclaimed Social Media Gurus, Magicians and such. One word? Why?

The Internet is a HUGE place with limitless potential if one choses NOT to limit themselves.  From a business perspective pushing though boundaries is what sets a business apart from its competitors . So in thinking in terms of marketing a business why just Social Media, why NOT push a bit farther to Social Media Optimization. Then go for the gusto with Internet Marketing? Why should companies NOT consider going beyond the limitations of Social Media with the  gurus that push status updates and Tweets? Why not push the boundaries of what is conventional?

In moving past JUST SOCIAL MEDIA one must be cognizant of the choices available, know what each choice involves and select accordingly.

In its most basic form:

• Social Media is using a variety of channels to engage with people.
• Social Media Optimization is creating content which allows social media channels to work together. It includes the use of various channels to drive targeted traffic. Social Media Optimization is similar to Search Engine Optimization except the channels used are social media oriented instead of search oriented.  These channels are Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Video, Social Book marketing, Curation, Mobile Marketing, RSS Feeds and more. These channels are then used to optimize content to maximize online business and brand exposure.
• Internet Marketing is taking a variety of different online channels and platforms such as social media, e-commerce, SEO, SMM, Affiliate Marketing, Video Marketing, eMail Marketing, Banner Ads, Websites, Mobile Marketing and more to create a complete online presence and marketing strategy.