Zero to 100,000: Social Media Tips and Tricks for Small Businesses

10. Step 1: Listen First, Engage Second

Many define an interactive marketplace as a modern-day phenomenon, based on the uptake of social media marketing tools that have shifted the way marketers find and engage with their customers. But in fact, interactive marketplaces have been in existence for as long as communication itself. However, there has been a shift from direct, face-to-face transactions to the indirect interactions of the Internet that enable our businesses to span the globe and virtually manage thousands of accounts without needing to employ thousands of staff members.

Some will argue that this, too, is far from new. After all, interactive ...