I am collecting just a few items for you to consider as you think about using social networking tools: blogs, RSS aggregators, Wikis etc.( all of which are component parts of the C0nversationBase toot set. The tool set is shown in this slideshow at slide 30 and afterHere from David Armano's blog are some great diagrams depicting how to design impactful blog-websites You can watch the whole show, but Slides 40 to 45 are the most important for those interested in social media design. The image above is a copy of slide 40 . Just move your cursor over the slideshow and a small pointing hand will appear so you can go forward or backward. If you want to see the slideshow in larger images, click the slideshow link at the bottom right of the embedded slideshow and you can then get a larger size view of this presentation. In either case point to the end of the show and go back to slide 40 for the most useful section.
For my money, David is as good as it gets in interactive design.
here is how he presents the team approach to the process ( we represent the left hand side of the diagram and your chosen creative guys represent the rights side.) You can get a larger view by clicking on the image.
Here is a link from Marc Andreesen on his blogging experience - worth reading blog.pmarca.com: Eleven lessons learned about blogging, so far
I have a lot more tutorial material on the blogosphere and Critt and Sam at ConversationBase are working up a killer app for driving the blog to segmented markets and creating conversations with your target clients - and providing a way to orchestrate the process so that you don't get bogged down in blogging - which can happen.
Once you go this route you can;t really turn back - it is important to consider this advice from another source. http://goodcontent.wordpress.com/2007/06/06/writing-for-the-web-is-less-still-more/
I think we can really outfit you with some great social networking tools, but as a first step, realize it's really cheap to get started, and you can beta your way to where you want to get, and for the most part it's a lot of fun. Here's an old but maybe useful contrarian view from a guru inthe field that most people call him Mr. Web1.0 Jakob Nielsen Write Articles, Not Blog Postings (Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox)
In any event it's not about driving traffic numbers to your blog - its about connecting with the people you reallywant to communicate with and stimulate conversation with - You can do it, and we hope to help.
Bye
