This was sent to me via email, and the subject of the email was “Even the Dept of Defense got into social networking!”

The Chairman may have established accounts on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, iTunes, Flickr, have a blog, and have thousands of followers. He may have had content – and lots of – uploaded to each site and account, with videos, and photos included. But that alone is not a social media presence, as you can see here: Chairman’s 2010 Social Media Strategy.

People want interaction. They want a human side to your business. They want truth. That’s the purpose of Social Media. “Let me see who you really are.” That said, we all need to maintain a level of privacy, as we are, for the most part, judgmental. But we’re also more forgiving to those we see as human. So be a little transparent in your status updates: answer questions honestly (be honest if you can’t), show your fans what you like to do, let your hair down a little, briefly tell them what you and your family did that weekend, be you. It’s what your followers need.

Here is a short list of what they intend to do. You can read more in the link I provided above.

Goals for the next six to 12 Months
Having looked at how the Chairman got to this point and identified some of the shortcomings of his existing social media efforts, the following four goals will guide our efforts over the next six to 12 months.

1. ENGAGE – Begin engaging in interactive conversations with our followers and post more personalized content about the Chairman.
2. ALIGN – Align the content creation process for social media with the Chairman’s Top 3 Priorities, assimilate social media content creation into the existing Joint Staff processes and products, and involve the entire public affairs shop, speech writer, editors, CAG, and Aides.
3. DRIVE – Use social media content to get in front of events, trips, and testimony to lead the discussion and focus questions.
4. EXPAND – Continue to grow the Chairman’s online audience and identify new social media platforms to engage from.

Consider these steps when choosing your social media platform(s). And remember to have 5-10 canned responses available to your social media marketers.

However, keep in mind, canned responses can be a double edged sword. Sloppy or poorly worded responses can come across as a quick fix or with a “we don’t care” attitude. So exercise caution when creating your canned responses, and always include someone your customer can contact to discuss the situation further. Dave @GriffinTech does a great job of this on their Twitter account.

So if the Chairman (and Griffin Technology) can do it, why can’t you? ;)