@$:[AT]bylinerg:By Alex Wright[AT]bodyindent:Knowing your Facebook from your Twitter and helping businesses improve their social networking profile will be just some of the services on offer from Troncossi Public Relation's newly-launched social media programme.With the social media network growing at an exponential rate in today's technologically advanced world, it is a perfect opportunity for companies to take advantage of the vast range of websites available from Facebook and Twitter to LinkedIn and Zoom, as well as blogs, forums, podcasts, video-sharing sites and instant messaging to get their message across.And the public relations firm is capitalising on the situation by providing the programme to clients to make the best use of the tools available to them to promote themselves, get information out there and to engage with their target audience."Ithink social media is just growing at an exponential rate and it is something that we have been watching for a number of years now," said Liz Tee, managing director of Troncossi."What is great about social media, Ithink, is that also consumers are taking in the information, they are more engaged with it and it is a two-way process, so this is an area that companies can capitalise on."There is so much information out there - people are on information overload and they want to cut through the clutter. So by joining all these various groups there are so many different types of opportunity and they are very targeted in their approach, which is very different from the traditional mass media."Companies can capitalise on that by speaking to consumers that are interested in their product or service or type of industry."People are also a lot more laid back on social media sites, so Ithink it is really a great opportunity for companies to get involved to see what is being said about their brand and join in on a conversation or counteract an opinion."The term social media means online outlets where content is generated by the user rather than a journalist or editor and comes in many forms, including traditional websites where public comment is enabled or simply group e-mail, by facilitating the immediate and democratic ability for audiences to produce, as well as consume information and commentary. Indeed the popularity of social media has been driven by the fact that it is cheaper and more accessible to use than traditional media.According to the latest statistics 30 million people joined Facebook in recent weeks, but on the flipside, an independent survey of the top 100 CEOs in the USrevealed that only one or two have Twitter accounts, 13 have LinkedIn profiles - only three of which have more than 10 connections, 81 percent do not have a personal Facebook page, and almost a quarter have no Wikipedia entry - with 31 percent of those that do having limited or outdated information. Ms Tee reckons that companies which do not engage with the world of social media are put at an immediate disadvantage with the demand from consumers and emphasis placed on instant news and information, rather than having to wait to see a story or letter to the editor in the next day's paper. One issue with social networking is differentiating between fact and fiction, in terms of formal statements being put out in an informal environment, while the task of getting to grips with the latest technology can be quite daunting for the older employee - but it should not be feared according to Ms Tee."Ithink that this whole social media thing is a little overwhelming for a lot of people, particularly for anyone over the age of 35 and that will change as this phenomenon grows," she said."Social media should not be considered new age and for only the younger generation, because that is a missed opportunity for many companies with people listening to so many different voices from all kinds of media these days."Ms Tee also believes that businesses need to draw up or put in place their own social media policies to ensure staff members do not tarnish the good name of their company."They need to have a social media policy and inform their employees of what is acceptable and not acceptable, because you don't want to have a situation where an employee is saying online 'Gosh things aren't that great in the company', which could change the value of a stock price or put off an investor if they see it," she said.Ms Tee, who said that Troncossi was an active social networker itself, with a page on Facebook and posting regular 'tweets' onTwitter, was already working with some of its clients on developing their capabilities online based on demand and interest. Troncossi's social media programme will include an audit of a company's competitors in the social media arena, development of a social media strategy and monitoring and posting on social media sites. It will also offer information and advice on best practice guidelines governing the use of social media for corporate communications purposes, and can be used as a stand-alone programme or as part of a wider public relations programme for integrated communications management.Along with the introduction of the social media programme, Troncossi additionally offers reputation management and strategic communications planning across both traditional and new media to ensure integrated corporate positioning.For more information on Troncossi's social media programme call 292-5838 or visit the website at www.troncossi.bm