My class is filled with bright young men and women who hold all the potential in the world to go out and change it. It has been cool to see the light bulbs go off in their heads as understanding takes root. I have to say I am learning as much from them as they are from me.

We have brought in some great speakers so far too! Jeff SanGeorge, Mitch Miles, and Vanessa Boynton were gracious with their time and knowledge to share with the class.

Jeff discussed blogging and how he has applied what he has learned to social media. You can check out his presentation [Jeff SanGeorge Blogging 101]. Jeff has a great understanding of how design, technology, and content marketing fit together. It was great how he mixed the fundamentals of blogging with social media application.

Mitch came in and rocked LinkedIN. You would have thought Reid Hoffman himself came in to teach the how to’s and why’s of the professional social network. Mitch is the only guy I know that brings props to talk about web apps. He is the Gallagher of social media speakers. You can check out some of Mitch’s presentations [Mitch Miles Presents].

Vanessa presented on the business case of social media. She is one of the linchpins at M Creative and talked about how they work with non-profits in developing “value-driven” communication strategies in social media. Her interaction with the class was very conversational and I hope the class learned as much as I did. In addition to being a marketing practitioner, Vanessa is an award-winning artist. See what she is up to [VanessaBoynton.com].

Of course we are only half-way home this semester but things are shaping up nicely. Greensboro College Social Media Brand Review is progressing and I can’t wait for the students to start their class projects. They will be getting their hands dirty developing content, launching social campaigns, and marketing awesomeness for a few Triad companies.

As always, if you have any suggestions for the class please hit me up in the comments.

photo credit: greensboro college

Socialmediabrandreview.com is one of the projects my Greensboro College students are doing this semester. They are reviewing top brands’ social media participation and engagement and posting their critiques on a blog we set up.

Each student will post three reviews over the course of the semester. They are picking two from a list we gave them and one of their own choice. Do you have any suggestions for them? The other component is a five minute in class presentation on their findings. This, we are filming and embedding in their posts.

Check it out and support our future marketers: Greensboro College Social Media Brand Review

My hope is that this project will be fun, give them an opportunity to contribute to a case study, and start blogging. What do  you think? How can I make it a better experience for them?

photo credit: Robert S. Donovan

photo credit: Greensboro College

A couple of weeks ago I spoke about personal branding and social media to faculty and students at my alma mater, Greensboro College.  Thanks again to everyone who attended, I enjoyed talking with you and it was a pleasure to meet you.

My presentation focused more on philosophy (what, why, who) and less on the mechanics (how). The new media tools we use to connect to our communities, engage in conversations, and tell our stories will change (probably sooner than rather than later), therefore I wanted to communicate sound thought process instead of how to upload a profile image to Linkedin.

I believe things went well, only one student fell asleep during the hour and half I was there. I am sure he would have been lights out for anyone save Megan Fox.  My biggest takeaway from conversations with faculty and students was how many folks try to over complicate branding and how it integrates with the web. Too many people are stuck applying old marketing mentality to new business environments. This results in a failure to launch or a disjointed message which lacks connection to the community.

Here are a few things I have learned that help me simplify the philosophy of utilizing social media to build your brand.

Know what you are trying to accomplish.

Know your story a La Tim Ferriss and Rick Smith.

Be unique a La Josh Madden and Hugh MacLeod.

Be passionate a La Gary Vaynerchuck and Chris Laney.

Be authentic, listen, and give value to your community a La Chris Brogan and Mitch Joel.

Reach the right people (not all people) a La Seth Godin and Cali Lewis.

How are you going to build your brand in 2010 ?

If anyone is interested and would like to receive my speaking notes you can contact me here. Please put “you 2.0″ in the subject line and I will send them to you.