Our third-annual social media blog contest generated nearly 600 nominations (almost twice as many as last year’s contest).

Our panel of social media experts carefully reviewed the nominees and finalists, analyzing the quality of their content, the frequency of posts and reader involvement (among other things).

With that in mind, here are ten blogs that need to be at the top of your reading list.

#1: Social Mouths

Social Mouths, the brainchild of Francisco Rosales, provides deep and honest looks at social media marketing and trends that impact our industry.

The site contains detailed posts with real-world examples, and addresses new and difficult topics.

#2: ViralBlog

ViralBlog provides a daily stream of social media trends and inspiration through case studies and other interesting articles.

The site has excellent content with useful tips and advice.

#3: Jeff Bullas

Jeff Bullas takes a close look at how businesses can get found online through social media.

The site has excellent content with solid social media insights.

#4: Hubze

Hubze has built an audience by focusing on social media trends and tips on social media marketing tactics.

The site contains a nice variety of media, including articles and podcasts.

#5: The Sales Lion

The Sales Lion from Marcus Sheridan is a blog that seeks to build community around inbound marketing, blogging, business and life.

The site fosters strong community with great participation through comments.

#6: Pushing Social

Pushing Social from Stanford Smith provides practical blogging tips and resources from a fresh perspective.

The site contains creative, informative and readable posts with deeper-than-average advice.

#7: Heidi Cohen

Heidi Cohen provides intelligent insights on social media tactics and trends, all while making the complex simple.

The site contains comprehensive and thoughtful content.

#8: MarketingTech Blog

MarketingTech blog provides a technology-focused approach to new media marketing.

The site covers a variety of topics and media, including radio and video.

#9: Likeable Media

Likeable Media keeps readers current on industry trends and new tools while also providing strategies and tactics for using Facebook and social media marketing.

The site contains very current information on new tools and platforms.

#10: SplashMedia

SplashMedia provides interesting takes on strategy, tips and trends, while their SplashCasts offer some great success stories.

The site features great use of a video show as well as diverse postings with good in-depth content.

Congratulations to the winners! Be sure to check out these amazing blogs.

The badge of distinction: If you’re a winner, you can post the image you see here on your blog and please link back to this page.

A special thanks to our judges: Andy Sernovitz (author, Word of Mouth Marketing and CEO, SocialMedia.org), Rick Calvert (CEO, BlogWorld) and Michael Stelzner (author, Launch and CEO, Social Media Examiner).

What do you think? Share your questions and comments in the box below.

We’re looking for your nomination for the Top 10 Social Media Blogs. The winners will be promoted in our 120,000-reader newsletter and announced on Social Media Examiner.

How to Nominate

Please make a single nomination of your favorite social media blog by commenting below and including why you like the blog (only your first nomination counts). Be sure to include a link to the blog.

To make the cut, a blog must be nominated by multiple people.  Make your nomination by 1/5/2012.

The Judges: Our judges include Andy Sernovitz (author, Word of Mouth Marketing & CEO, SocialMedia.org), Rick Calvert (CEO, BlogWorld), and Michael Stelzner (author, Launch & CEO, Social Media Examiner).

Winners will be selected based on the quality of their content, the frequency of their posts, reader involvement and their blog’s ranking (in that order).  Think part readers-choice and part Oscars.

The winners will be announced here in January and also in our newsletter. Click here to see our 2011 top 10 blog contest winners.

Note that our judges will decide the final winners.

Go ahead and enter your nomination right now in the box below and be sure to let your friends know about this contest.

Have you got a favorite small business Facebook page? Keep reading to learn how you can nominate them.

The winners will be promoted in our 94,000-reader newsletter and announced here.

How to Nominate

Please make a single nomination by leaving a comment below and include why you like the page (only your first nomination counts). Be sure to include a link to the Facebook page you’re nominating.

To make the cut, a Facebook page must be (1) owned by a small business and (2) receive at least two nominations.

How it Works

We track and score the nominations, then our panel of judges helps determine the top 10 small business Facebook pages.

The Judges: Our panel of Facebook experts includes Mari Smith (co-author, Facebook Marketing: An Hour a Day), Dave Kerpen (author, Likeable Social Media) and Michael Stelzner (author, Launch).

Winners will be selected based on the quality of their Facebook pages, the frequency and quality of their wall activities and fan engagement.  Think part readers’ choice and part Oscars.  The winners will be announced here in early September and also in our newsletter. Make your nomination by August 22, 2011.

In addition to amazing exposure, each of the top 10 winners will also get free tickets to Facebook Success Summit 2011—the web’s largest online Facebook marketing conference.

Note that our panel of judges will make the winning selections. Their decisions will be final. 

Enter your nomination right now in the comment box below (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page) and be sure to let your friends know about this contest.

Social media is a big subject. If you’re looking for some reliable places to go for the best tips and social media tactics, look no further!

Our second-annual contest generated more than 300 nominations. Our panel of social media experts carefully reviewed the nominees and finalists, analyzing the quality of their content, the frequency of posts and reader involvement (among other things).

The following are the winners of Social Media Examiner’s Top 10 Social Media Blogs for 2011.

If you’re looking to master all that social media has to offer, these rich blogs need to be at the top of your reading list.

1. Brian Solis: The grand master of social media, Brian is one of the web’s leading social media evangelists and his blog is required reading for businesses.
2. TopRank: This popular blog, the brainchild of Lee Odden, provides exceptional social media advice and should be one of your daily destinations.
3. Convince & Convert: Jay Baer’s Convince & Convert provides outstanding content for businesses seeking to embrace social media. This is the second year Jay has made our list.
4. Six Pixels of Separation: Mitch Joel offers consistent and thought-provoking content delivered with personality.
5. Social Media Explorer: This blog, from Jason Falls, provides excellent perspective on the current state of social media and should be a regular stop for serious social media marketers. This is the second year Jason has made our list.
6. Brand Builder: For businesses looking to dive deep into social media discussion, check out Olivier Blanchard’s rich insights. This is the second year Olivier has made our list.
7. Spin Sucks: Gini Dietrich’s blog takes a look at social media from a PR perspective. Check her site out!
8. Danny Brown: Danny Brown’s blog examines the human side of social media with rich content and insights.
9. The Anti-Social Media: For something completely unique, check out Jay Dolan’s satirical blog on the state of social media.
10. BrandSavant: This unique blog from Tom Webster combines a great intellect with with common sense, giving it an edge.

Congratulations to the winners. Be sure to check out these amazing blogs!

Share the love: Feel free to post the above list on your blog (just reference this post).

The badge of distinction: If you’re a winner, you can post the image you see here on your blog and please link back to this page.

A special thanks to our judges! Thanks to David Armano (Edelman), Debbie Weil (author, The Corporate Blogging Book) and Rick Calvert (CEO, BlogWorld) for their participation.

Do you frequent any of these blogs? What do you think? Share your comments in the box below.

The list of 23 finalists is pretty impressive! Take a look for yourself below.

The Judges: Our judges include David Armano (Edelman), Debbie Weil (author, The Corporate Blogging Book) and Rick Calvert (CEO, BlogWorld). They are currently finishing up their reviews of these sites.

Here are the finalists (in alphabetical order):

• Anti Social Media
• Brand Builder
• BrandSavant
• Brian Solis
• Convince & Convert
• DannyBrown
• Grow: Marketing. Social Media. Humanity
• Kikolani
• Kommein
• Mack Collier
• Mark Oborn’s eMarketing
• Michael Brandvold
• Pushing Social
• Reel SEO
• Ricardo Bueno
• Six Pixels of Separation
• Social Media Explorer
• Social Fresh
• SocialMouths
• Social Penguin
• Spin Sucks
• StormDriver
• TopRank

How We’ll Pick the Winners

1. Initial qualification: A blog must have a strong social media focus, must have been nominated multiple times by multiple individuals and must be regularly updated. If someone nominated more than one blog, only the first nomination was counted.

2. Final winner selection:

• Quality of posts: Our judges will examine and score the quality of posts on each blog. Educational and discussion-spurring posts are more valuable than self-promoting posts (55% of decision).
• Frequency of posts: Blogs that feature multiple posts per week will score higher. This is a sign of the blogger’s commitment to blogging (15%).
• Reader involvement: Blogs that have regular comments from readers are another sign of a healthy blog. In addition, the numbers of nominations for a specific blog play a part in this (15%).
• Blog ranking: The number of other blogs that link to the nominated blog shows the value of the content (15%). We’ll use accepted third-party blog ranking systems for this portion of the score.

Congratulations to the finalists! We’ll announce the winners here soon!

What do you think about these blogs? Leave your comments below…

I’m looking for your nomination for the Top 10 Social Media Blogs. The winners will be promoted in our 48,000-reader newsletter and announced here.

How to Nominate

Please make a single nomination by commenting below and include why you like the blog (only your first nomination counts). Be sure to include a link to the blog.

To make the cut, a blog must be nominated more than once.  Make your nomination by 1/5/2011.

The Judges: Our judges include David Armano (Edelman), Debbie Weil (author, The Corporate Blogging Book) and Rick Calvert (CEO, BlogWorld).

Winners will be selected based on the quality of their posts, the frequency of their posts, reader involvement and their blog’s ranking (in that order).  Think part readers-choice and part Oscars.

The winners will be announced here in January and also in our newsletter. Click here to see our 2010 top 10 blog contest winners. Note that the decisions will be made by an objective third-party panel.

Go ahead and enter your nomination right now in the box below and be sure to let your friends know about this contest.

Tons of nominations came in.  Our panel of social media experts carefully reviewed the nominees and finalists. What follows are the winners of Social Media Examiner’s Top 10 Social Media Blogs for 2010.

If you’re looking to reap the rewards of social media, these rich blogs need to be at the top of your reading list.

1. Chris Brogan: The Elvis of social media and the king of common sense, Chris Brogan is in a league of his own.
2. Social Media Explorer: Social media all-star Jason Falls provides a fresh and interesting take on all things social media.
3. Mashable: The world’s source for social media news, Mashable is the place to go for breaking stories.
4. Convince & Convert: Jay Baer provides rich content for businesses seeking to embrace social media.
5. Altitude: Amber Naslund offers a breath of fresh air with smart, inspiring and personal social media insight.
6. CopyBlogger: The king of engaging content, Brian Clark and his team help businesses persuade in a 2.0 world.
7. Brand Builder: For businesses looking to dive deep into social media discussion, check out Olivier Blanchard’s rich insights.
8. Diva Marketing: Toby Bloomberg’s blog provides a wide array of social media advice.
9. Kikolani: Looking for great “getting started” social media guidance?  Then frequent this blog.
10. Future Buzz: A nice mix of stories and reviews makes Adam Singer’s site one that should be on your radar.

Congratulations to the winners. Be sure to check out these amazing blogs!

Share the love: Feel free to post the above list on your blog (just reference this post).

The badge of distinction: If you’re a winner, feel free to post the image you see here on your blog and please link back to this page.

A special thanks to our judges! Thanks to Scott Monty (Ford), Ann Handley (MarketingProfs) and David Meerman Scott (author New Rules of Marketing and PR) for your participation.

Do you frequent any of these blogs? Share your comments below.

How to Nominate

Please make a single nomination by replying to this message and include why you like the blog (only your first one counts). Be sure to include a link to the blog. To make the cut, a blog must be nominated more than once.  Make your nomination by 12/31/2009.

The Judges: Our judges include Scott Monty (Ford), Ann Handley (MarketingProfs) and David Meerman Scott (author New Rules of Marketing and PR).

Winners will be selected based on the quality of their posts, the frequency of their posts, reader involvement and their blog’s ranking (in that order).  Think part readers-choice and part Oscars.

The winners will be announced here in January and also in our newsletter. Click here to see our other top 10 blog contest winners. Note that the decisions will be made by an objective third-party panel.

Go ahead and enter your nomination right now below and be sure to let your friends know about this contest.

UPDATE: Nominations are now closed.