Even Hillary Clinton uses Yahoo Answers. She asked Americans how they would improve health care in the United States. More than 25,000 people answered for a total of more than 1200 pages. Is there any other social media marketing tips that would generate this kind of user response in only 72 hours? I don’t think so. I can’t imagine a response like this on Facebook or MySpace or Digg.

If you are an internet marketer you shouldn’t overlook Yahoo Answers. It’s the #2 reference site on the internet right behind Wikipedia. It doesn’t work for every niche so you’ll have to experiment and see if it works for your business. One of the great things about Yahoo Answers is that they allow links to your website. From the Yahoo Answers site: “There are many professionals and business owners providing valuable knowledge and experiences on Answers. By identifying yourself as such and providing great answers, you are building credibility and positive brand image.”

Here’s a short primer on how to use Yahoo Answers:

* Fill out the profile and include an avatar and all the general information.

* Choose the category that’s the most relevant for your business and check that category daily for questions that you can answer accurately and informatively.

* Here’s a little trick: do searches in Yahoo for the keywords in your niche. If a Yahoo Answers question appears on the first page you should answer it because you will get extra traffic.

* Yahoo Answers has a social network. All the people asking or answering questions in your niche should be added as friends.

* Link to your own website when answering questions when it’s appropriate. Don’t do this 100% of the time, however, or you will be perceive as a spammer. Link to other websites from time to time.

* If other people answer a question more completely or more accurately than you did, vote or their answers. This is a good way to build friendships.

* Sign your name when you submit an answer. You should do this because spammers DON’T sign their name. It will give you credibility.

Spend an hour or two a week doing the above steps and check your website stats to see if you’re getting traffic to your website this way. If so, keep doing this every week. Keep in mind that Yahoo Answers posts are indexed by Yahoo for a long time so this is more than just a quick fix. Yahoo Answers ranks well in Google. Sometimes a Yahoo Answers post will rank better in Google than it does in Yahoo. So Yahoo Answers has the potential to give you traffic for months and even years.

Some people consider traditional marketing and internet marketing as too challenging. Wait till they try Social Media Marketing, which is like herding cats.

Facebook is now gaining more traffic compared to Google, while TripAdvisor reviews are influencing the decisions of millions of travelers each month. At last, Social Media marketing is having the upperhand as a way to reach and engage with customers.

In order to help you get a deeper understanding about this latest media phenomenon, it is best to break it down into something that is easier to digest.

Social – finding enjoyment in the company of others in a friendly and expressive way, which often comes with exchanging views on the same wave length
Media – a means to communicate (such as television, radio, newspapers, magazines) that has the ability to reach people and influence them
Marketing – what a company does to gain more customers and establish a relationship with them

Social Media Marketing aims to have companionship with customers that share common views and interests by means of social sites, in order to build a long-lasting relationship, which in turn gains more revenues.

Regular marketing can be thought of as a one-way street, where you can posts ads on a newspaper or television to let you deliver a message to targeted audience, but with limited ability to engage with your customers. You have control over majority of the mechanisms such as message, creative implementation and frequency, among others.

Keep in mind that Internet marketing enables you to efficiently deliver a message, which is tailored to your targeted audience and allows you as well to engage with your customers. You have control of the same abovementioned mechanisms.

On the other hand, social media is a 2-way platform that enables you to engage with your customers in different ways like a one-on-one basis or one-to-many. Still, it is comparable to herding cats since you have no control, and once you try to control it, you can possibly get scratched and bitten.

Social Media comes in a vast assortment of tools, resources and websites that range from the very popular and visible ones like Facebook and Twitter to the niche communities like Digg or StumbleUpon, of which each has their own touch and requires a distinctive flair. To achieve success, it would help to use a Social Media strategy, as well as a partner who can help in guiding and applying this element of your wide-ranging marketing plan.

What will work and how can you remain up-to-date?

To tell you honestly, it is actually hard. This is the reason why Social Media companies were created. These companies are experts and experienced in this field and have the resources to remain up to date with Social Media sites, tactics, strategies and trends. Moreover, they consolidate and incorporate them into Social Media programs modified to fit any business, no matter if we’re talking about small niche market segments or wide-ranging products and services.