Be helpful more often than you are pushing your product or service.

@jordanrunsit Talk about what other people are interested in and be helpful.  

@debbielynnava I wholeheartedly agree with that as a first step, but one would wonder how to take that even deeper because in the social media world, there are a good amount of people who are helpful, but are also quite dull and oftentimes irrelevant.

@russellallert that also is a valid point. I guess the real question is more of a philosophical one. All of these methods are quite valid, but there is some X-factor that generates interest? Could it be possible that the real issue would be trying to change the whole attitude of social media, especially in regards to business? Sometimes it seems like people are constantly looking to capitalize for their own personal benefit instead of truly “networking” through the use of social networking sites.

Well said, @debbielynnava! I think that point is one that businesses have the hardest time grasping.

This is why I love SME! All of the answers are so, “spot-on”. @jordanrunsit, you are also right that there is an undefinable quality to the entire thing. I’m supposing that it is this that drives the growing interest in this venue. I really feel that the nature of business is rapidly changing. The failures of some large corporations is probably the product of one element in particular. As the others mentioned, all merchants must accept that people are demanding more of a, “relation”, type of interaction with companies than ever before. As we advance we will probably see the line blur more and more from client seller to, friend-confidant. That’s just my take on it, though.