These are ways to start using social media with your employees when you do not have a clear plan:

1. Say its’s as a “pilot” and you are experimenting to test the effectiveness of social media
2. Develop a “lite” social media policy to say it’s OK for employees to participate and determine what your guidelines are going to be
3. Make sure the goals are clear – awareness and branding of company, creation of a “social media” personality, information gathering, etc.
4. Communicate a total time limit for involvement during the day – for instance, 1/2 hour a day is OK
5. Analyze rough results if not a formal program or no official monitoring program or system – new friends, deeper realtionships, location of resources – conferences, white papers, etc.
6. If “moving the needle” and people making friends, expanding relationships and finding new connections keep having them do the program. 
7. Decide relative value and  how to continue, keep time involved the same, increase time, decrease time, etc.  Making “baby steps” in relationships are fine and part of the overall process of social media. Be patient and reward participation.

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