Want a successful social media strategy? Think “seaplane”.

Here’s a test. You’re told you need to buy a vehicle. What pops into your mind?

Back up a few steps and get a wider perspective. What are the choices? You have thousands upon thousands. How do you determine which is the best choice for you?  It’s a process of elimination based on your objectives, needs and preferences. Here’s something you may not realize. You’ve already eliminated a majority of your alternatives and you don’t even know it. That might be good – yet it could be limiting you at the same time.

For example, The first thing that popped into your head was probably a car or pickup truck. You completely ignored watercraft, aircraft, 2-wheel and 18-wheel vehicles. Not that any of those would be obviously suited to your current needs, however thinking outside the box would create a new line of thought and some possible alternatives in the future you may not have otherwise thought of.

Commuting 2.0

It’s sort of the same thinking about social media. There are the “big-dog” social networks everyone knows – Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. When you think about implementing a social media strategy you naturally think Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. While I do believe most organizations should – at the least – have a presence on these sites I didn’t say most organizations should have the same approach nor the same strategy on these sites.

But don’t stop with the big dogs.The social media landscape is vast and that landscape changes often and fast. It’s important to keep informed on new social media developments and how these new developments can help you meet your business objectives.

One of the new developments I’m talking about with organizations is LBS, or location-based services. Last year I joined FourSquare, not totally sure how and how quickly it would evolve into a business application. Now, LBS is a large part of my discussions with organizations about social media. Currently, the LBS groundswell is among retailers and other B2C organizations. It’s just a matter of time until B2B LBS strategies hit a tipping point. I’m convinced of it and am spending time talking with B2B organizations about ways to leverage FourSquare, Gowalla, Whrrl, etc.

Video production should also be a part of most organizations’ social media strategy. (video blog or vlog; product demonstrations, customer testimonial, plant or office tour, message from the manager, etc.) Do you have a You Tube channel? A profile on Blip.tv? Vimeo?

Another important consideration is smart phone marketing & mobile search. Tip: Be sure your web presence comes across on a smart phone (iPhone, Droid, etc.) Expanded 3G penetration and the new lower-rate for lower use plans are bringing a new, previously less mobile savvy audience to the smart phone world. The astronomical increase in mobile search has just begun. According to comscore.com, over 20 million mobile users searched for something on the internet from their phone in June 2008 – a 68% increase from June 2007. Those statistics are over 2 years ago. Imagine what the numbers are today. (I couldn’t find anything more current – but will pass on when I do. Let me know if you find something.)

In the market for a vehicle? Today, you may want to allocate the bulk of your resources to an automobile from Ford or Toyota. But be sure to keep an eye on tomorrow and stay informed about and open to the possibilities a sea plane might offer.  Hey. I live near the water. You never know.