There are many Fortune 500 businesses out there - 500 to be exact. They all have many employees, a lot of market share, and a lot of "buzz". So do they need to get into social marketing? You might not think so, but they are - in droves.

According to U-Mass at Dartmouth's Center for Marketing Research, http://www.umassd.edu/cmr/studiesresearch/2009f500.cfm, nearly 39 percent of today's Fortune 500s are blogging.

Should you, too? Couldn't hurt, but here's the rub: a Blog (short for web log) is not a blog unless it's constantly updated. And we mean a lot of updates...whew! So what to do?

There are over a dozen more well known social media apps out there. Most are people driven, while fewer are positioned for business. While Facebook and even Twitter are being adopted successfully by many of the big corporations, there are others that smaller businesses can get a better grasp on, and with far less "maintenance".

YouTube may be considered one candidate, if you can easily shoot and edit quick and relevant video.

However, LinkedIn and Plaxo are our top two picks, by far.

Here's what to do:
Even if you have a LinkedIn account (http://www.linkedin.com/), for example, make sure you get your profile to 100 percent completeness. To get from 90% to 100% you may need to give and receive recommendations. That's often it - and voila = you're at 100% complete. This makes a difference because it tells the world you care to be thorough.

Next, create/add (business) people "connections", and grow them over time. Be mindful however that quality rules over quantity, e.g. 90 connections is "gi-normous". (Through LinkedIn you request to "connect" yourself to people you know, one at a time, and preferably ONLY people you know.)

Next, spend 15-30 minutes a day (Monday - Friday) perusing your connections' connections. This is crucial. Also make small but meaningful edits to your profile from time to time, update a company news release, etc . . . so simple!

Now here's the secret key - pure "gold":
You may see a connection's connection you always wanted to meet and do business with, and would otherwise never have been able to meet. Now, however, you simply call your connection on the phone and say, e.g. "I didn't know you knew [name]. Let's go out for some lunch. I have wanted to meet him/her for years." Your connection may likely say "sure!" And so, social marketing with purpose.

LinkedIn is big enough, by the way, that some individuals have become full-time LinkedIn trainers, and some large companies spend 50K per month on ad campaigns (although LinkedIn especially handles adverts in a very tasteful manner).