"Content is king." How often over the last 12-24 months, as social media has really exploded, have you heard that phrase? Probably more times than you can actually count, right? I know I've heard it a bunch. It's one of those "buzz" phrases that causes everyone in the room to roll their eyes. Why? Well, it's easy. We all know that content is important, but what people really want is a road map that helps them identify what content, specifically, will resonate with people. Brand leaders (ones not living under rocks) know that company's are successfully engaging in social media. The ones who are still sitting on the sidelines are doing so because they aren't sure where to get started, and what content they should use to reach their customers. I've spent the last few years studying/helping to implement "next practices" (thanks to my boss, Bob Pearson, for that one) in social media and can say definitively that where brands fall down is in the lack of adequate pre-launch research. Realize, that as much as we talk about doing pre-launch research in social media there are still plenty of brands engaging in a practice known to many weekend golfers as "hit and hope." "Lets launch our Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Flickr channel because everybody else is doing it." Or, "we have tons of content that people care about." And even, "we know because we've used it in press releases, our Web site and in media pitches." Guess what? They often don't care. This, my friends, is where research comes in. Are you doing pre-launch listening? How are you combining those findings with offline research that your market research team has conducted? Are you truly identifying who the influencers are in your space? NOTE: There's definitely some very cool, and more scientifically sound methods to define influence in your space then what Fast Company is doing. More of that to come in future posts. These aren't the only questions that need to be answered, but are likely the primary ones you should be focusing on. So where does that leave us? Well, I think based on the title of this blog, and the first part of this post you'll realize how important I think research is for brands. It's essential. So much so that I think analytics is the true king. Oh, don't get me wrong, I think content is important. But without solid research your content is likely to miss the mark. This blog will be talking a lot about "next practices" in social media research. Sure, we'll be talking a lot about general social media issues as well, but we'll eventually gravitate back to analytics. Hopefully I will give you plenty to think about, and implement in your own programs. If there are things that are eating at you now, just drop in a comment and we'll tackle them one-by-one. Looking forward to embarking on the journey with you!