Everybody’s waiting for the next big thing. You’ve heard this phrase before. You’ve even seen the proof, but you are hesitant to jump on the social media train yourself. Trust me, it is the next big thing, and it is already here.

We all love rags to riches stories. Perhaps a few kind folks are altruistic and are genuinely pleased when a little guy hits the big time. Most of the rest of us just think, “If that person can do it, surely I can.” Success stories breed more success, so in that spirit, read on for the impact social media can have on your business, no matter what niche you are in.

IdeaPaint is a Boston-based company. They have a website, and on this website they maintain a blog. How do you blog about paint, you may wonder? The answer is that if you are passionate and customer-centered, you can write enthusiastically about anything. This company was smart enough to share their blog on their company Twitter and Facebook pages. They take advantage of the social aspect of this media and take time to interact with their customers via these friend and information generators known as social media. The impact of choosing to market this way? These social media platforms are now the company’s largest source for increasing their leads and traffic. The growth is not only maintaining but ramping up, and that means good things for this business.

There is so much available to business owners now, which was unfathomable to previous generations. Pictures have been around for a long time, but when you have friends on Facebook who also take pictures of your product and post online about how much they like your exclusive merchandise X, suddenly the possibility of reaching more people from the trusted status of friend increases dramatically. If you choose to tweet about what is important to you – not just your product – but you as a person – your base grows and grows as you get the word out and contact more people.

The key to succeeding with social media is to try every aspect of it and give it your concentrated effort. If videos serve your business best, track down a talented script writer and actors who can pass on a touch of wild and crazy, and you will immediately appeal to the social networking crowd. Be active in promoting your brand, in being out there, being real and becoming the person they will look to when they want your merchandise or service X. Just don’t be afraid to stick your neck out a bit – it is really the only way to snatch up that coveted attention and get yourself known.

Guest Author: Margo Smith graduated with a B.S. degree from BYU. She draws from her experiences as a modern day children’s governess, her time spent in New England, her years in the corporate world and an author’s perspective on life when writing articles about all kinds of subjects from communications to online classes to social media.

“Social networking is still a luxury, and I don’t have time to use it for my business.” Does this sound familiar? This is the most common excuse I receive from entrepreneurs and clients. So, since we all have the same amount of hours in a day, how does Dawn Papandrea-Khan, a mompreneur of four kids under the age of six manage to run three businesses and make time to use social networking to grow her business?

I met Dawn on Twitter last year and hired her for a few graphic design projects. Not only was I tremendously impressed by her work, but also by her dedication to make social networking work for her business. A couple of months ago, Dawn mentioned to me that 90 percent of her clients come from Twitter. So, I invited Dawn to share her story with my blog readers.

Let’s listen to what she has to say in this 20-minute interview:

To view Dawn’s work, you can visit her websites below:

DPK Graphic Design – http://DPK-GraphicDesign.com

DPK Virtual Assistant Services – http://DPK-VirtualAssistant.com

Surfaces with Paint (NY Based Decorative Painting Biz) – http://SurfaceswithPaint.com

Painter Mommy (My Everything Blog) – http://PainterMommy.com

Here is also my blog post that Dawn mentions:  Top 50 Social Media Mistakes Made by Small Businesses

I will be posting more case study interviews like this on a regular basis. If you are using social media successfully in your business and would like to be interviewed, please reach out to me. I love hearing social media success stories!

Did this help you to see how entrepreneurs are using social networking to grow their business?  What was your takeaway from the interview?

In this interview, Trinitie Kedrowski, an entrepreneur and a transcriptionist from Minnesota shows us why it pays to listen on Twitter. What’s the pay off? More clients!

A few months ago Trinitie (@kedrowskitransc) replied to my tweet within minutes to offer her transcription services for my Social Web Success Blueprint program, and I became a new client under 15 minutes.

I was really excited to interview Trinitie because with only a little over 160 followers, she proves that you don’t need thousands of followers to get business from Twitter.

Let’s listen to how Trinitie gets her clients from Twitter.

Check out Trinitie’s services at www.kedrowskitranscription.net. I already referred two people to Trinitie, and I will continue to do so.

Thanks for reaching out Trinitie! Keep up your great Twitter tactic!

I will be posting more case study interviews like this on a regular basis. If you are using social media successfully in your business and would like to be interviewed, please reach out to me. I love hearing social media success stories!

You can also listen to other recent interviews below:

Case Study: Dippin’ Dots’ Powerful Social Media Strategy Leads to One Million Fans on Facebook Case Study: One B2B Increases Business One Tweet at a Time

His passion, motivation, professionalism, generosity and success are contagious to the social media world! Ramon De Leon (@Ramon_DeLeon) is no longer “The pizza guy to know in Chicago”. He is “The pizza guy to know in the world.” The operating partner of six Domino’s franchises in Chicago is now a world-known, sought-after speaker due to his social media presence.

Ramon’s passion for social media has not only changed his business, but also changed his life. He certainly does not live the life of a typical franchisee partner. I asked Ramon for a brief interview so you can hear the passion for yourself.

The 20-minute interview turned to 40 minutes, but felt like four minutes because he is so engaging (I can talk to him about social media for hours).  His enthusiasm for social media is magnetic! No wonder people want him to speak in conferences all over the world to share why he lives and breathes social media, and why all business owners should too.

This interview is not to be missed…let’s listen to Ramon’s amazing tips and hear what he has to say about social media…

Read the blog I wrote in 2009 about Ramon: Chicago Domino’s Owner, @Ramon_DeLeon More Than Gets Social Media…He Breathes It!

I will be posting more case study interviews like this on a regular basis. If you are using social media successfully in your business and would like to be interviewed, please reach out to me. I love hearing social media success stories!

You can also listen to other recent interviews below:

Case Study: Dippin’ Dots’ Powerful Social Media Strategy Leads to One Million Fans on Facebook

Case Study: One B2B Increases Business One Tweet at a Time