“Well now home entertainment was my baby’s wish
So I hopped into town for a satellite dish
I tied it to the top of my Japanese car
I came home and I pointed it out into the stars
A message came back from the great beyond
There’s fifty-seven channels and nothin’ on”

So go the lyrics to the 1992 Bruce Springsteen song that lamented the hollowness of an expanded array of channel options with very little substance. If Bruce were to rewrite the song today, in our social media savvy world, it might be “There’s fifty-seven million posts but there’s nothing to say.” There is no doubt that social media has reached the mainstream. There are now 91 million Facebook users and 14 million Twitter users, and the numbers are climbing each day. Marketers are debating the merit of investing time and effort in jumping on the social media bandwagon. Many recognize, once you begin the dialogue, you can’t stop. You can create a Facebook fan page in seconds, however, populating that page with relevant, timely and consistent content that engages community is a much larger task. So, before marketers invest heavily in any social media platform, they need to think about the art of the story. Here are some brainstorm starters for crafting stories that play well with social media:

• Thought Leadership: Paul Levy, CEO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, provides and excellent example of how an inside look can establish a thought leadership presence online. Levy is sometimes controversial, other times philosophical, but his posts are always well thought out and intentional. Task: Find thought leaders in your organization who have a voice and a story to tell, as well as the skills to do it. Build a blog around their leadership insight, then tie into the blogging ecosystem.
• Showcase Your Culture. Your corporate culture is your best recruiting tool and usually your best story. Southwest Airlines has done a great job showcasing its culture on YouTube. Behind most of its videos, is a well crafted story. For example, this video documents the story behind Southwest’s “25-minute turn” – highlighting operational efficiency and it’s corporate can-do culture.  It’s easy to create a YouTube channel, and even produce your own video, however, lay the groundwork first. Crafting your story online takes thought and time.  Before you flip on that handycam, think through the story line basics: What are the top 10 stories you have going at your company? How do they reflect your core values? What are the elements of the story? Who are your best storytellers? Sometimes I encourage clients to create a Story Map before embarking on a social media initiatives. This keeps everyone grounded in the content, rather than the enabling platform.
• Relevancy, Relevancy, Relevancy. More than ever, we live in a relevant culture. From web searching to news, to personal relationships, people are seeking relevant content and engagements that speak to them and their immediate situation. A relevant social media strategy includes three things: 1) Knowing your audience; 2) Understanding what’s important to them; 3) Delivering content in a way that respects their time. While the H1N1 virus was an unwelcome visitor to many of us this flu season, it has brought about a great example of how social media can be used to tell an important and relevant story. At the onset of the epidemic, the Center for Disease Control placed social media at the cornerstone of its public awareness strategy. The CDC website contains numerous ways health providers, care givers and community members can share important updates about H1N1 using social media widgets.

The bottom line: A successful social media strategy includes a blend of technology enablement and old fashioned story-crafting. One without the other is not a recipe for success.