On November 19, 2009, Cheryl Contee and four other social media mavens sat down with 5Across host Mark Glaser to discuss how companies and non-profit organizations are effectively using Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and other social media avenues to increase brand and mission awareness, attract new constituents, and drive traffic to their sites. Cheryl discusses many aspects of effective social media marketing, including the importance of up-front research. "We're so big on being research informed in your strategy," she says, "because chances are you don't need to be in every single social media platform. Instead, figure out where you want to concentrate your energy. Where are you going to get the biggest bang for your buck?" Cheryl and other panelists talk about how social media channels have allowed individuals and organizations unprecedented direct, low-cost access to the people who most want to communicate with them. They discuss familiar social media networks like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and they explain how companies and non-profits can use channels like YouTube to generate interest and donations. For more information on how you can improve your company or organization's social media outreach, watch the video: http://video.pbs.org/video/1336356098