1. Social media isn't free. It is cost-efficient when planned for and managed appropriately, and like any investment that comes with a price, what you will yield is proportionate to what you invest.
2. The tools are merely a means to an end.  What you do with the tools, and how you integrate them to improve the base business are what  really matters.
3. "Trust" and "Influence" are relative and fluid. However, they generally belong to people that consistently deliver positive, remarkable experiences -- across channels and over time. Deliver on every promise, exhibit high level of ownership / stewardship and be a "mensch." Do this, and being an influential trust agent will come naturally.
4. "Authenticity" is a terribly abused word. There are plenty of authentically bad companies and products out there. Strive to be authentically good and constantly improving and you'll win.
5. "Transparency" is an illusion. While conversational media increases visibility into your operations, you can maintain enough opacity to protect your sensitive underbelly.
6. Senior engagement is critical.  If your senior leadership wants to relegate social media to an intern, agency or middle manager, resisting the notion that these tools may transform the enterprise, consider changing jobs.
7. The tools require a high level of proactive readiness. Engage in these channels and you're a friend, confidant, real-time service agent, facilitator, guide and publisher. Be prepared in advance. Get the right hooks in place and the right teams involved. Establish policies and processes that expedite resolution and response.
8. Results must be measured against a solid plan. If you are not using conversational media to drive some specific and measurable objectives you are probably wasting your time
9. Success is (still) about the Customer Experience.  If holistically, your base-level customer experience stinks, using social media tools probably won't help much. That's why this blog is dedicated to CX rather than preaching the virtues of any one specific channel.
10. Good help is golden. Strategists who can't execute are as dangerous as "one-trick ponies who only know how to use a single tool ... or generalists who speak at conferences a lot but don't actually deliver any work!  Find resources that can develop a solid strategic plan, execute, help your organization prepare, educate and stand by to help, if needed. Look for dirt under the fingernails... and don't be social media sharkbait!  

Add your truths!  I'm all ears!

Spring is almost here and with it comes the birth of many new things, including the new The Age of Conversation 3, which is scheduled to be released in April. I am honored to have been selected as a contributing author with an esteemed group of incredible thinkers, writers and thought leaders. All of them are active in a variety of areas, working across industries on the "bleeding edge" of social media. This will be a great book for anyone looking to practically implement social tools into next-generation customer management.

Here's a list of contributing authors and links to each!
 

Adam Joseph	Priyanka Sachar	Mark Earls
Cory Coley-Christakos	Stefan Erschwendner	Paul Hebert
Jeff De Cagna	Thomas Clifford	Phil Gerbyshak
Jon Burg	Toby Bloomberg	Shambhu Neil Vineberg
Joseph Jaffe	Uwe Hook	Steve Roesler
Michael E. Rubin	anibal casso	Steve Woodruff
Steve Sponder	Becky Carroll	Tim Tyler
Chris Wilson	Beth Harte	Tinu Abayomi-Paul
Dan Schawbel	Carol Bodensteiner	Trey Pennington
David Weinfeld	Dan Sitter	Vanessa DiMauro
Ed Brenegar	David Zinger	Brett T. T. Macfarlane
Efrain Mendicuti	Deb Brown	Brian Reich
Gaurav Mishra	Dennis Deery	C.B. Whittemore
Gordon Whitehead	Heather Rast	Cam Beck
Hajj E. Flemings	Joan Endicott	Cathryn Hrudicka
Jeroen Verkroost	Karen D. Swim	Christopher Morris
Joe Pulizzi	Leah Otto	Corentin Monot
Karalee Evans	ME!	David Berkowitz
Kevin Jessop	Lesley Lambert	Duane Brown
Peter Korchnak	Mark Price	Dustin Jacobsen
Piet Wulleman	Mike Maddaloni	Ernie Mosteller
Scott Townsend	Nick Burcher	Frank Stiefler
Steve Olenski	Rich Nadworny	John Rosen
Tim Jackson	Suzanne Hull	Len Kendall
Amber Naslund	Wayne Buckhanan	Mark McGuinness
Caroline Melberg	Andy Drish	Oleksandr Skorokhod
Claire Grinton	Angela Maiers	Paul Williams
Gary Cohen	Armando Alves	Sam Ismail
Gautam Ramdurai	B.J. Smith	Tamera Kremer
Eaon Pritchard	Brendan Tripp	Adelino de Almeida
Jacob Morgan	Casey Hibbard	Andy Hunter
Julian Cole	Debra Helwig	Anjali Ramachandran
Jye Smith	Drew McLellan	Craig Wilson
Karin Hermans	Emily Reed	David Petherick
Katie Harris	Gavin Heaton	Dennis Price
Mark Levy	George Jenkins	Doug Mitchell
Mark W. Schaefer	Helge Tenno	Douglas Hanna
Marshall Sponder	James Stevens	Ian Lurie
Ryan Hanser	Jenny Meade	Jeff Larche
Sacha Tueni & Katherine Maher	David Svet	Jessica Hagy
Simon Payn	Joanne Austin-Olsen	Mark Avnet
Stanley Johnson	Marilyn Pratt	Mark Hancock
Steve Kellogg	Michelle Beckham-Corbin	Michelle Chmielewski
Amy Mengel	Veronique Rabuteau	Peter Komendowski
Andrea Vascellari	Timothy L Johnson	Phil Osborne
Beth Wampler	Amy Jussel	Rick Liebling
Eric Brody	Arun Rajagopal	Dr Letitia Wright
Hugh de Winton	David Koopmans	Aki Spicer
Jeff Wallace	Don Frederiksen	Charles Sipe
Katie McIntyre	James G Lindberg & Sandra Renshaw	David Reich
Lynae Johnson	Jasmin Tragas	Deborah Chaddock Brown
Mike O'Toole	Jeanne Dininni	Iqbal Mohammed
Morriss M. Partee	Katie Chatfield	Jeff Cutler
Pete Jones	Riku Vassinen	Jeff Garrison
Kevin Dugan	Tiphereth Gloria	Mike Sansone
Lori Magno	Valerie Simon	Nettie Hartsock
Mark Goren		Peter Salvitti

I'm excited to read all the fabulous insightsin this book... carrying forward the tradition from two greatly successful editions. Stay tuned for more!