1. Legitimacy
2. Currency
3. Documenting Work
4. Interactive References
5. Hooked into Communities
6. Know What Google Knows

Social Media might be a buzz word, but one thing it is not is a get rich quick scheme. Those trying to use it as such are quickly dropped, unfollowed and unfriended. So what makes up a good social profile?

1. Legitimacy only comes from continuous participation and conversations. Yes, you can drive a ton of connections on LinkedIN, and you might even get a bunch of people to "trade" recommendations with/for you. But the legitimacy comes from ongoing participation and contribution. It cannot be faked. And this is a good thing.

2. Currency. What have you created, written, managed lately. Most people don’t want to hear about "back in the early days." Everything is about now, here, and this moment in history. And watch for the question, "And what was your actual contribution on this project." Cause Sr. titles and uber-cool monnikers are only good for identifying you not bringing any currency to the discussion.

3. Documenting Work is the process of building process. While you were doing all this cool work, were you also putting process into place? At Dell process was valued over people. I’m not saying that’s a good thing, but I did come out of my two years there with a healthy "process mind." And I don’t think you can build business without it. If you can’t scale here in the US with a local team you have no chance of scaling in Latin America or India. Process is king when talking about execution and content.

4. Interactive References go hand in hand with currency, but they are a little different. So you’ve got some friends and followers. And you have a few good references on LinkedIN who have actually worked with you. Now what? Pay attention to the people you have done "interactive" work with. Make sure you keep the contacts warm. And even better, make sure you offer to support them often and long before you need their support. When you need the job reference, it’s too late to ask for one.

5. Hooked Into Communities equals participation. Where do you belong? Where do you comment, where do you write? (You do write, don’t you?) In the same way you cannot build a LinkedIN profile over night, you cannot build a history of content and social participation over night. You have to start now. And if you don’t blog, or comment, or participate,  you’d better be prepared for me to ask why. And if you have nothing to say, well, maybe you should go into a different line of business. The "interactive" part of interactive media is being online and communicating your voice.

6. Know What Google Knows about you. This final law should be a weekly activity. The expression "Google Yourself" may sound funny, but if you don’t know what the web is saying about you, you might be missing some opportunities and perhaps even some barbs. I have a Google Alert set to email me a link anytime it comes across my name or my unique Twitter ID. And if I control the top 50 listings about myself in Google, my detractors are going to have a hard time putting up anything of value to degrade or contradict me.

John McElhenney

@jmacofearth