Here's how -- and why -- to make the social media leap

This just in: Social media are hot.

I realize I'm preaching to the choir here. If you're reading this blog, chances are you're already sold on -- or at least interested in -- Web 2.0. Still, a lot of folks dismiss things like blogs, podcasts and social networking as corporate fads, things that won’t ever catch on in the business world.

They’re dead wrong. Social technologies and Web 2.0 are changing the rules of the business game. In fact, the analysts at Gartner say Web 2.0 technologies are on the verge of significantly impacting the business world. I would argue that's already happening.

Some businesses have already made the leap. Others are curious but don’t really know how to start – or for that matter, why they would even want to. For them, Jeff De Cagna has some words of advice.

Jeff, pictured above, is chief strategist and founder of Principled Innovation and one of the leading evangelists of innovations like Web 2.0 technologies for associations. But his advice on how to get started applies to everyone. He calls it "PREP," an acronym for:

• Purpose: Web 2.0 has to be connected to a business strategy, so before you start, ask youself, "Why are we doing this? What do we hope to achieve?"
• Readiness: Are you ready to dive into the Web 2.0 pool? Have you done your research into what works, why it works, and whether it will work for you?
• Experimentation: Try some of these things for yourself so that you know what they are and how they operate. Learn to do them -- and to do them well -- before applying them to your business.
• Practice: Once you start, make sure you're using the technologies well. Read blogs about blogging. Listen to podcasts about podcasting. Collect tips and advice. And above all, make sure you are integrating your Web 2.0 efforts back into your business.

"These things are crucial for all organizations to be thinking about," Jeff said, "so that (businesses) are approaching the use of social technologies in a more strategic way and not just throwing things up and seeing what sticks."

Jeff spoke at a recent conference in New Orleans, and I was fortunate enough to sit down with him afterward and ask him how Web 2.0 fence-sitters can get started on a track that will help them use social media in ways that benefit their companies and the audiences they serve. Listen to what he has to say in this MACPA podcast.

• Subscribe to our free weekly podcasts here, or open your copy of iTunes and search for "CPA Spotlight."

If you're interested in getting started, visit CPALearning2.com. That’s the home of the CPA Learning 2.0 Project, which is designed to educate CPAs and the folks they serve about Web 2.0. But really, anyone can take part, so get in there, get your feet wet and your hands dirty, and find out what works for you in the social media world.

And for you veterans out there, tell us which Web 2.0 technologies work for your businesses -- and which ones don't.