1. Don’t astroturf – no fake campaigns, made up aliases or anonymous comments allowed! Transparency is key.
2. Don’t mistake what is valuable to your audience with what is valuable to your company – to figure out what the value is, you have to listen to your community (customers).
3. Don’t be inconsistent with your message – make sure that you have a consistent message and that all parts are working together. Traditional and online efforts should work in tandem. People should be able to interact with your product seamlessly. Social media, customer service, and communications should be working with the same plan.
4. Don’t think that social media is Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – while uber-important, social networks make up only part of the social media pie. E-mail lists, web forums, user groups, photo and video sharing services, podcasts, social bookmarking sites and niche online communities are all part of the social media mix. Here’s a more complete definition.
5. Don’t wait ’til it’s too late to build a relationship – social media is all about being social and building meaningful relationships with your customers and/or influencers over time. Don’t wait until you’re in trouble or need something!
6. Don’t assign social media efforts to interns – there were lots of heads nodding (and a few retweets) when this comment was made. It’s crucial that someone who has more overall marcomm experience and an understanding of how social media will achieve your marketing goals is at the helm. If time and resources are an issue and you find it necessary to enlist the help of an intern, make sure they are trained thoroughly (they are there to learn, after all) and supervised closely. Don’t make the same mistake Habitat UK did by allowing an unsupervised and overenthusiastic intern to handle their Twitter account.
7. Don’t overreact – it’s easy to hit the send button with a knee-jerk reaction to a comment or conversation. It’s more productive to think about the consequences, develop a plan, and vet the person or organization.
8. Don’t be afraid to try new things – if you don’t try, you don’t know! Social media is a great platform for experimentation. If it doesn’t work, no problem – learn from the results and improve from there.
9. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that supporters only play in your sandbox – it’s great to set up social media outposts on places like Facebook or LinkedIn, but remember that customers and supporters might be involved in other niche groups as well. Do you have a proactive plan for locating and communicating with stakeholders on their turf?
10. Don’t focus on tactics! - set logical, achievable goals and develop a sustainable social media marketing plan that outlines the who, what, when, why and how of your efforts.

What other pitfalls would you suggest avoiding?