To ensure the success of any social media marketing campaign, it is important to have a strong network of friends who support you. When you build up connections and friendships online, you establish credibility as a user. User-generated content encouraged by companies typically garners more trust than traditional advertising. Brand evangelists develop their presence by establishing friendships online. Their content recommendations hold more weight and are considered incredibly valuable.

This network of relationships that they have established will help push content across many platforms. Simply, these friends will twitter posts, Digg submissions, stumble stories, and provide support to the brand evangelist. This relationship should always be mutual and reciprocal. I have always advocated that people you connect with shouldn’t be considered “contacts” but friends. When you invest the time to build that relationship, it will be rewarding on a personal and business level.