We can apply this law in principle as it relates to driving brand interaction. From a consumer perspective, there comes a point when the more products there are in the marketplace vying for our attention, the less impact those products have on us. For instance, if there were only two automobile brands in the global marketplace, the marketing messages of those two companies would have a pretty sizable impact on us as consumers, because there are only two.

Alternatively, if there are 20 automobile brands in the global marketplace, we as consumers have exponentially more to process. The return of an individual automobile’s marketing message is much less with 19 competitors than it would be with one.

With more than 6,000 marketing messages bombarding us every day, the Law of Diminishing Returns is definitely in effect. So it’s important as business owners, brand managers and marketing directors to continually drive our customers to interact with our brands. We can build it, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they will come.

Granted, a successful brand will usually attract consumers on its own accord—that’s the whole point of doing brand development. But we can’t rely solely on the attractiveness of our brands. We have to be intentional to invite and encourage interaction—because that is what builds lasting relationships with users.

So how do we drive brand interaction? Well, first, we must understand how consumers are interacting. And this is changing rapidly with the advance of social media platforms. We also must understand how we should position our brands in light of these changes.

This is an excerpt from our new E-Book “Social Media Matters”. Click here to download for free.

“This will have a huge influence on consumers, who will now be able to see what their social network of friends ‘Like’ on other sites they frequently visit,” says Justin Ramb, Covenant’s president.

For example, if someone decides to “Like” a T-shirt on Levis.com, this action will be shared both on the brand’s site and on Facebook as well.

This will also have a big impact on the way businesses market their products to consumers, helping them better understand their customers’ preferences and buying patterns, Ramb explains.

A full-service marketing agency, Covenant has launched successful social media campaigns for clients on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, establishing a relationship between businesses and their consumers. Also specializing in design, print and Web, Covenant plans to incorporate this new Facebook initiative into their custom Web designs for clients.

“This is a huge opportunity for businesses to market directly to their target audience, and redefine their products and services based on customer feedback,” Ramb says. “This opens a new door for marketing.”

So what’s the big deal? Well, what’s to keep hackers, phishers, and other ne’er-do-wells from creating a pop-up window that looks exactly like Facebook’s window? Once you enter your username and password, they would have all the info they need to comprise your identity on Facebook. You’d be able to tell by looking at the URL, but for the average user who doesn’t know enough nor care enough to pay attention to the URL, this could be a very dangerous issue.

Plus why doesn’t Facebook use a secure URL instead of just an open one?

Maybe we’re making mountains out of mole hills, but it sure does seem like this is prime phishing grounds for those who seek to pray on the unsuspecting.

Next up is the services industry. If we were service providers (mechanics, plumbers, consultants, etc), here are a few things we would do:

• We’d provide better information, to present ourselves as experts, but also to help our customers take more ownership on how to fix things and keep things maintained.
• We’d set up customer service channels through Twitter and Facebook to help provide a better and more consistent response to our customers.
• We’d offer coupons and specials to our followers and friends.
• We’d set up an “emergency” channel on Twitter or Facebook where customers can contact us or report issues.
• We’d set up profiles on major and niche review sites and invite our customers to post reviews. We’d monitor conversation about our company and make sure we respond to any negative feedback.
• We’d create DIY videos and articles and post to YouTube, Vimeo, Twitter, and Facebook. Or we’d link to various DIY resources on a regular basis.

Next up are ministries and non-profits. If we were a ministry or a non-profit organization, here are a few things we would do:

• We’d build awareness for our organization through Twitter, Facebook, and other channels.
• We’d connect with like-minded ministries and organizations to help spread the word and connect with more people.
• We’d invite interaction from our friends and followers, and build platforms to better connect with our user-base. For churches, this could be a church management system, or online social media network to help better connect the congregation.
• We’d build additional donation channels to help drive funding support.
• We’d integrate social media platforms with other traditional forms of media (For example, like the Haiti earthquake event, we’d combine Twitter streams with text donations, or Facebook pages with print advertising.)
• We’d create videos and post photos about what we’re doing, and how we’re doing it. We’d post interviews with community leaders, and testimonials from people we’ve helped.

So I was interested when I ran across an article by FedEx’s global communications manager about managing customer relationships through social media. Matt Ceniceros said:

“Social media allows a large company like FedEx to act like a small company – interacting with customers in a personal, immediate way.”

I got a kick out of the big guys envying the strong relational connections possible with a smaller business.

According to stats reported by Matt Ceniceros of Fed Ex, 6 in 10 small businesses use social networks to answer customer questions. Social media networks allows companies, big and small, to gather information about feelings, perceptions, reactions and customer sentiments.

Wouldn’t it be great to have a finger on the pulse of your customer base? Social media can provide that.

Next up is the hospitality industry. If we were a hotel, spa, golf course, or any hospitality-oriented business, here are a few things we would do:

• We’d set up profiles on Twitter and Facebook and post information about locations and services we provide.
• We’d invite interaction on these profiles from customers at those locations or using those services.
• We’d post pictures and videos from various locations or from our facilities.
• We’d set up customer services channels and invite our customers to post feedback, reviews, and suggestions.
• We’d offer specials and deals to customers through location-based applications such as Foursquare.
• We’d integrate with existing travel applications like TripIt and Dopplr to help customers better plan their vacations or experiences and integrate this with major platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

First up, the restaurant industry. If we were a restaurant, or any food-service business, here are a few things we would do:

• We’d Tweet about special dishes, upcoming events, and news related to our restaurant.
• We’d Tweet and post on Facebook coupons and specials.
• We’d setup profiles on major location-based applications such as Foursquare, and build specific marketing campaigns for those communities.
• We’d setup profiles on major review websites such as Yelp or Chowhound and monitor reviews and conversation about our restaurant.
• We’d open up channels for better conversation and customer service before and after dining with us.
• We’d encourage customers to talk about our restaurant, invite open feedback, and make suggestions for how we can do things better.
• We’d integrate social media platforms with other traditional forms of media For example, building a Facebook campaign with a television commercial, or a Twitter channel with print advertising.

6. Location

As if it weren’t enough to Tweet about anything and everything happening to you throughout the course of a day, there’s another element to the web that is changing the game. Location is the new layer of the web (via Pete Cashmore), which is profound in and of itself. Think about it. On the web we have information, we have images, we have video and media. But up to this point the internet was akin to another planet – this complex network of floating information that exists somewhere but isn’t something we can really see or touch.

That may be changing now. The addition of location as a new layer of the web now means we can associate a tangible sense to the web. There is a real person, providing real information, at a real place. That’s profound. Keep an eye on location applications such as Foursquare, Gowalla, and Brightkite, among a myriad of others. These apps will continue to grow in 2010 and so will the location layer of the web. Twitter and Facebook are already developing a location layer to their platforms, and it will be very interesting to see how businesses interact with location.

7. Privacy

Say the words “privacy” and “internet” in the same sentence and see what kind of response you get. It will probably be something similar to a sarcastic snort. That’s because in an age of digital media, and social media privacy is all but extinct. But the amazing thing is, we’ve given up our privacy voluntarily. Think about how much information exists about you online. If you have a Facebook or Twitter profile, website, blog, flickr account, or YouTube channel, you have a digital thumbprint. And as location-based services and online video continues to grow, we can expect what privacy we have to continue to erode.

Is this a bad thing? Perhaps, but the bottom line is we are volunteering more information about ourselves and our lives than ever before. Expect 2010 to be much of the same – we’ll continue to share information about our lives because that’s the foundation of social media. Whether that’s a convenience or a concern remains to be seen.

This is part three of a three-part series on what to expect in 2010. You can also subscribe to our RSS feed, join us on Facebook, or you can  follow us on Twitter.

4. Mobile

One of the reasons I believe social media is not just a flash in the pan is because social media has developed in the mobile age. People might still use various applications while sitting at their desks or on their couch, but so many more use social media because it’s mobile. Think of Foursquare, a relatively new location-based social media application that is creating a lot of buzz. The whole purpose of Foursquare is to “check in” at various locations around a city or area. The app would be virtually pointless if it didn’t have a mobile component. Who cares to check in at a Starbucks if you’re not at Starbucks.

Devices such as the iPhone, smart phones, smaller laptops, and cutting edge technology allow us to bring our social world “off” of the internet and into real life. And that’s what makes social media so powerful. It’s not just limited to the four walls of our desktop monitors. Expect social media applications to continue to flourish and push the boundaries of mobile technology in 2010. And businesses and brands that utilize mobile initiatives combined with social media initiatives will find great success in the upcoming year.

5. Information Filters

Pete Cashmore of Mashable has said that the Web’s biggest challenge of recent years is that content creation is outpacing our ability to consume it. Information overload is no longer just a euphemism, it’s actually a pretty common reality for most of us. We really don’t need all of the information we have access to, and more often than not the amount of information that bombards us on a daily basis is more of a hindrance than a help. So how do we best consume information in this attention economy? Well, in order to do so, we need to be able to manage the level and amount of information we consume, and we have to find a way to keep the information relevant, so we’re not mindlessly shuffling through information we really don’t care about.

Enter 2010 and the need for passive and active filters. With technologies like Facebook Connect and Google Social Search just now starting to gain traction (and both of which are major game changers in my opinion), expect these and other passive filters to help weed out unnecessary information via our friends and social networks. To reference Pete Cashmore again, he says that “Increasingly, your friends are becoming the curators of your consumption, from web links to movies, books to TV shows”. Without you really having to do anything, how you interact with your friends, and what social networks you are a part of can filter content so that what hits your “inbox” is stuff that’s generally relevant to you.

But we don’t just need a passive filter. If you’re anything like me you likely actively seek out information as well. My method of choice is an RSS reader where I can pick and choose what information sources to link into, sort of like choosing which channels I plug into to achieve the best sound as a musician. RSS applications such as Fever, and customized Google Reader programs have some great features that increasingly allow you to customize how you receive information. In 2010 expect more innovations to be made in this area, and expect mainstream applications to tap into these technologies to produce a better social experience.

This is part two of a three-part series on what to expect in 2010. Stay tuned for more. You can also subscribe to our RSS feed, or you can also follow us on Twitter.