From time to time I look at a client’s audience and realize it is far too broad for just one social channel. This often happens with travel, destinations, trending products and seasonal variances that can attract a broad demographic.

I just completed a great run of presentations over the past couple weeks. Each successive audience offered up a new challenge or dilemma I didn’t anticipate. I actully LOVE this! As a recovering co-dependent hell-bent on saving the world, I had to resist the urge to rewrite the deck after every event and subsequent comment.

Where would Bruce Springsteen be without his trusty blonde Telecaster? What would Annie Leibovitz do without her camera? How could Elmer Fudd hunt Bugs Bunny without his shotgun? Whether you are a rock star, a celebrity photographer, a cartoon archenemy … or a trend hunter – you need the right weapon to get the job done. We already established that everyone is a trend hunter to some extent. But your level of success depends on the time, tenacity and tools that you bring to the table.

No one in my industry is going to like what I’m about to share. I'm not a fan of “buying followers” or trading follows in social media. But if you want quantity and you don’t give a damn about quality, then consider this your guide. In the interest of transparency, I’ll tell you straight up that social media (SEO, content, online media buyers) professionals want you to believe there's no way to you could possibly do what we do. But that's a lie. It might be more accurate to say there's no way you could possibly do what we do as WELL as we do it.

If you had a chance to read any business news during the holidays, you probably saw several stories about retail spending being up significantly during Q4. Of course this could be new info to those of you with small children, because you were consumed by the eternal search for more AA batteries in the house, and styling parties for Silly Hair Dolls.

OK, so maybe not my LAST post for the year ;) So sue me, I won't shutup. So you open your package that you've so eagerly waited for and notice that it's broken. So upon review of your surveillance equipment you come across this little gem:

Here's a quick checklist presentation I like to show people when they work with me on creating a logo/identity or brand mark. It gives you a good sense of what you should be asking yourself and (often more importantly) what to be asking OF your design team or agency. Hope it helps.

There's a simple truth in this concept, it is in this moment where we (as creatives) need to look again at the tools we have at our disposal. We get all very excited about 'kicking the tires' on new technologies. I know I do as I'm as #FOMO as they come. But the truth is that we have yet begun the process of exploiting the potential uses of what we have as this video makes clear.

Much like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in psychology, there are various levels in social media that are becoming galvanized within the discipline. Therefore, we’ve outlined each, starting from the bottom and working our way to the top. While this document is a generalization, we know that each client has specific needs and we can work with you to create customized solutions to meet them.

Do you want to be one of the “social glitterati?” Do you want the admiration and respect of the impressionable masses that follow your every post, Tweet, update and check-in? Then pay close attention to this list of social media mistakes you should avoid:

I go ballistic every time I read another blog post from someone who provides this frothy bit of advice: "Have a crisis-management plan in place." Gee thanks. That's it? How about a little help with the plan, pal. Otherwise it's like giving someone a smoke detector, but not telling them they need to take it out of the box, install a battery and mount it in the hallway. You've given them a great tool but they're still going to burn.

There's no chronological order to the countless mistakes that I've made over the last twenty years, nor I'm sure the same will be said for the next twenty years. Many of you will look at this list and laugh and think "what a fool." Others of you know that this industry, having been building site since 1994, had no rules, no manuals, no "best practice," just a lot of us 'winging it' and hoping we would make something great.

I'm not going to lie – building your social empire takes time. It's a marathon and not sprint. But as with all things there are things you can do right and wrong. Why take the time to make the mistakes I've already made, when I can give you some quick tips to get you started!

There are some critical decisions that needs to be made that can effectively make or break a rogue campaign before it even starts. Are you going to be transparent to your user that you're advertising, or not? They both have there pros and cons that break down very simply.

So while camping this weekend with my mother, partner and friends I learned a great deal about people, marketing and social connectivity. You would think that being "unplugged" is the curse of all curses for people like us, and that how could you possibly get anything tangible from twenty people sitting around a fire, falling into tents and comparing RV leveling tricks. But you can – in spades.

Need some juice for that client that isn't certain that social media is for them? This deck is great resource for you. I've taken the time to vet out what I see as key points for me as a marketer and as an entrepreneur. I hope this gives you some great metrics: