So, on which social networks should you build a page and collect friends and contacts? If you already have a mailing-list program, you can use it to find out which social media services your clients use. The program SocialPro employs MailChimp-generated mailing lists to crawl social media sites and return raw numbers of contacts using Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, among others.
From such results, you can learn which media your clients prefer so that you can better target your marketing campaigns. You can then design video and even applications that best appeal to your audience.
Beware of Unintended Risks From Applications
Last fall Facebook disclosed that developers may have leaked personal information about its users; applications such as FarmVille and Texas Hold'em allegedly sent Facebook ID numbers to at least 25 advertising and data firms. A class-action lawsuit regarding such third-party access to data has been filed against Facebook. However, that hasn't stopped Facebook from making a controversial move to formally allow third-party apps to access users' personal information. Facebook did pull this feature due to public pressure, but the company appears certain to launch it sometime in 2011.
Despite the given privacy policies of a site, when creating an application make sure that your developers follow some form of secure software development lifecycle. Building Security In Maturity Model (BSIMM) is an open framework, adaptable for both small and large businesses; it is derived from the secure development practices employed at Google, Microsoft, Wells Fargo, and 27 other companies worldwide. By securing their code at the beginning, businesses can avoid the embarrassment of seeing their application singled out as having "privacy issues" by third-party security products.
Follow the Rules
Whatever method you use to build up customer lists, abide by these few simple rules.
