Companies considering social media often ask us, “What if people say nasty things about us?”

Our answer is, “If people want to say nasty things about you, they are already doing so on other channels. Having an official social media presence allows you to respond.”

Getting started in social media is like showing up at a party where you don't know anyone: daunting at best and humiliating at worst. Add to that the additional challenges of accessing social media for business -- where it's so easy to mess up the balance between social norms and market norms -- and it's no wonder so many companies are even today delaying entering the twitterverse and the blogosphere.