Mike Sommers on why marketers love social media

• Inexpensive publishing/distribution
• Easier to find target audience
• Enables content creation from the audience
• Allows for immediate (actual) feedback
• More quickly understand and respond to problems, deficiencies and annoyances
• Learn firsthand about where competitors are winning

Thoughts from the audience

• If someone mentions your brand, they become a quasi-spokesperson
• See real people

But here's the downside (challenges)

• Corporate rules often prevent them from having true, original personalities
• Authenticity
• Internal ownership
• Defining the rules of engagement
• Metrics are new