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Talk about buzz. The Internet has seen an explosion in the use of social media sites and technologies in the last year. While Internet users have most readily adopted social media such as blogs, video, wikis, social networking and podcasts, business – especially private companies – are catching on quickly.

"New media options such as online search, blogging, email, texting, video, streaming and social networks such as MySpace and YouTube have expanded the Word of Mouth universe and made traditional advertising less relevant for many," said Joe Pilotta, VP, Research of BIGresearch

What’s intriguing about social media is that it relies on user-generated content (UGC). That means that you can create an interactive environment to announce the buzz and let the conversation begin. You can even go so far as to have the audience create your ads for you.

But how do you get the online community interested in your company enough that they’ll share links, bookmark your site and promote your business to their networks? Creating buzz takes some serious planning, but with the plethora social media options now available, you can pick and choose which sites will best serve your brand.

How do you start a conversation without interrupting as typically happens in traditional advertising? You’ll need to dig deep and ask what it is that makes your company buzzworthy. Is it superior customer service, beautiful products, new or improved facilities, being environmentally conscious, solving an age-old dilemma, being featured in a slew of unsolicited press, or having passionate, community-oriented customers?

To locate and maintain new site visitors, identify which social media sites best complement your site, products and services. Then, join sites that make sense for your business form a content, audience and campaign maintenance standpoint. Some of the most popular social media sites include MySpace, YouTube, del.icio.us, Wikipedia, Digg and Squidoo.

To properly engage this community, you need to get out of the typical advertising mindset. You’re not advertising, you’re engaging. For instance, if your company has made a commitment to preserving the environment, you might choose to create a MySpace page that highlights a particular environmental issue and subtly note that your company donates a portion of its revenues to this cause. Invite other MySpace users to comment on the issue; you might be surprised at the passionate response engendered by people far and wide. You’ll create awareness for the issue and for your company. These types of impressions stick long after the browser window is closed. You’re creating a community of people that identify with something noteworthy and relevant that your company stands for. This means that the next time your MySpace friends need what you offer, they’ll most likely think of your company. So be ready to engage them on your website.

To ensure that your website is prepared for this focused traffic, update your on-site search results to include all the buzz words and issues your social site excursions are generating. Freshen up your home page with links to campaign-specific subpages. Incorporate simple word-of-mouth features such as “Email to a friend/colleague,” Digg-enabled blogs and articles, a RSS feed option, video and MP3 downloads if applicable, a send to mobile feature, and so on. Give the visitors the option to connect with and share your brand on their terms and watch how they’ll help spread the word about your business. Positioning your company as an expert can open up the door to content sharing. In the “Terms of Use” for our website, you can allow properly annotated reproductions of your articles by other sites, blogs, etc. which can also create inbound links without much effort.

Of course, this article addresses the best of social media, but there can be a downside to all that attention: negative press, comments and reviews. Be prepared to deal with the negative in a positive way – if something about your products or customer service needs fixing, you’ll need to address these issues genuinely and appropriately. Sometimes some negative pressure can actually be a boon when people witness real-time that you’re actively involved in improving the way you do business.

Engaging people via social media can mean establishing proponents of your brand and loyal, long-term customers – something no business can ever get enough of.