I had intended on my first post being a generic ‘Top Ten Dos and Don’ts of Social Media Marketing,’ but I realised that so many people miss the basic concept of social media and why brands have to tip-toe around them, instead of wildly galloping across users’ screens, sans their permission.

This may seem a moot point, but there’s little point in marketing on the social platform, without having a foundation to work from.

The first thing you need to note is that people aren’t on social media to receive discounts, brochures or humorous advertisements – this is not TV. Social Media is there for personal use, we need to respect this. As a user, I go onto my Facebook or Twitter page and do not expect to be bombarded with the latest toothpaste, guaranteed to bring out the whites in your eyes. I want to know which of my ‘friends’ got married, who attended the Download festival, who can’t string a sentence together because of a hangover - I don’t need or want branding. That’s why we have to offer users something different.

It’s all about building a relationship with your clients and prospective clients. Relationships in the ‘real’ world aren’t built in seconds, with a single line.

You don’t greet someone and instantly tell all your friends how amazing that someone is – that person gives you something you admire and benefit from. The same can be said of Social Media.

Listen to what they’ve shared, commented on or ‘liked.’  If a user has posted how their toothpaste smells like bleach and you know why, tell them. If they’ve commented on a post on your site or on your Facebook page (replied on Twitter or sent you a message), respond.

To stretch an analogy as far as it can go – if you work in the toothpaste industry, the people that have ‘liked’ your page (bar your mum and her bingo buddies in support) will undoubtedly be interested in toothpaste. Post exciting articles about new developments in toothpaste, rants about the cost of whitening your teeth, toothpaste cartoons and interesting videos on toothpaste. Intermingled with these, on semi frequent basis (no more than 2 posts a day), you post your discounts, posts about why your toothpaste is the best and videos about your toothpaste.

One last thing: refrain from posting all your interesting posts at once – a sure-fire way to lose followers is to bombard their newsfeeds with your posts. A certain political group has recently lost my following, as I grew tired of the 5-6 posts they plonked onto my news feed at the dog-awful hour of 11pm.

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