“We should all become influencers, and move away from pitching,” said Brian Solis at the PRSA Counselors Academy Spring Conference in Asheville, NC. He suggested that you can start by writing your press release in 120 characters, so there is room for others to re-tweet it. This was just one of the great insights I picked-up at the conference.

Keeping with this theme, I am offering some of the other best tips (under 120 characters or at least 140) I learned.

Blogging and Social Media

• Use your #blog to showcase expertise in particular areas so you can win business. (@bgindra)
• Lesson learned-get the video on 1 take, even if you have to record it several times. It’s easier than editing on computer. (@jaybaer)
• Google wants to provide multi-media search results, so post some video. (@jaybaer)
• Digital is not about knowing the answer; it’s finding the answer. (@jaybaer)
• 4 degrees is the new 6 degrees of separation thanks to #SM. (@Brianna)

Engagement

• Give people something to talk about to help elevate the brand. (@kalbritton) Example is @lenovo photography contest.
• Every company has a 1% Group of core active customers…you need to engage them. (@jaybaer)

Green Initiatives

• The grammar of green: Clear, Credible, Consistent & Compliance.
• Praise companies for doing what is right with being #green instead of looking at all the bad things they have done.

Messaging

• The new KISS: Keep it simple & share. (@briansolis)
• QR (Quick Response) codes are great for sharing information, like at a trade show or games.

Strategy

• The new CEO = Chief Editorial Officer. (@briansolis)
• Don’t give community management to an intern.
• Every company should have a social media crisis plan. (@jaybaer)
• Set goals and objectives before you start social media monitoring.
• Interesting way of looking at the #SM conversations – what are people saying about my company & is it in the right context & with the right influencers?

For more great information from this conference, checkout, my BurrellesLuce colleague, Colleen Flood’s latest Fresh Ideas post, “Are You Shifting Marketing and PR Plans Based on Hispanic Demographic Trends?,” as well as the PRSay blog, Jay Baer’s blog and others.

Have you learned some new ideas you can share from a recent industry event? What do you think makes an influencer?