We understand why you, big business, might be wary of diving into the social media ocean. Your organization is seen as a corporation, and corporations, in the eyes of most people, are evil. Large companies with a 13% approval rating rank just above Congress and law firms when people are asked to list the most admired institutions in America, according to Harris Interactive.

In fact, if people were to anthropomorphize your organization, your firm would be seen as highly antisocial at best and psychopathic at worst.

But you can change that. The 21st century, with wikis, blogs, and the millions of niche online communities, etc., allows us to create a more level playing field when it comes to customer relationships. It's now possible for us to share with consumers what we as companies are really all about and what we believe, face-to-face, so to speak.

What are the fundamentals you need to master in this new world? There are three.

Phase 1: Architect a Proper Presence

First, you need to identify where your target is and which communities are important to them. You want to be where your customers, and potential customers, hang out.

Phase 2: Gain Credibility Based on Your Target's World View

Help them, dont sell them. Your message and content need to be all about your customer and what you can do to make their lives better

Phase 3: Co-Create Dialogue Where Your Company Reaps the Benefit of Exchange

Once you have defined and built the right presence, along with crafting the appropriate, engaging content, you can begin fostering true exchange of ideas and emotions.

Read more about the fundamentals here.