Barry Libert is the CEO of Mzinga, a company that provides social software to businesses (most famously OmniSocial). Libert’s book, Social Nation, released this fall, stresses the need for companies to go social in every facet: sales, marketing, R&D, customer support, and product development.

His seven steps towards implementing a social media strategy are as follows:

Rule 1: Develop Your Social Skills.

“You can’t expect your organization’s Social Nation to be successful if you as a leader don’t think about the needs and wants of your employees and customers,” Libert said in a statement. “I’m reminded of Andrea Jung, CEO of Avon. She strives to make Avon a ‘company for women,’ and feels that it’s very important to empower the company’s saleswomen by talking with them about what matters to them as well as to Avon. And guess what? Avon was one of the few companies to chart growth during the 2008-2009 recession.”

Rule 2: Let Culture Lead Your Way.

Libert emphasizes the DNA of a company, encouraging organizations to let their own culture determine how they appear to customers. He cites Zappos as an example and its ten core values.

Rule 3: Mind Your Online and Offline Manners.

Libert reminds organizations that social media can also make people, as well as their motives, more transparent. Be mindful of what gets posted/tweeted and how those posts/tweets could be interpreted by others. Libert includes the example of Telstra, an Australian telecom company, mentioning that, “… at Telstra, social media participation is mandatory! However, the company trains each employee on how to appropriately participate, basing its guidelines on responsibility, respect, and representation. Very, very smart.”

Rule 4: Listen, Learn, Adapt.

Put your ear to the ground and listen to everything: customers, employees, and market demands.

Rule 5: Include Others in Everything You Do.

Libert maintains that relying on others in every part of your company is the only efficient way to alter policies, products, or marketing strategies to generate new revenues and increase profits.

“Ducati really personifies this strategy,” Libert said in a statement. “In 2003, the company did away with its traditional marketing in high-end magazines and the like, and re-centered itself around community members, their needs, feedback, and conversations. Ducati made sure that fans and owners could attend plenty of rallies, races, parties, and bike shows, as well as become involved in an online community. Now, Ducati has become even more popular due to fan enthusiasm—and its products and services have improved due to customer feedback and suggestions!”

Rule 6: Rely on Others for Growth and Innovation.

Focus groups are now a thing of the past. Use friends, fans, and followers to achieve growth.

Libert mentions how PepsiCo created a “DEWmocracy” campaign to decide what the next Mountain Dew flavor would be. Customers could log on to Mountain Dew’s website and play a multi-leveled game, through which they could rack up points toward their preferred soda being chosen.

Rule 7: Reward Others and You Will Be Rewarded Too.

Libert encourages companies to reward customers  emotionally as well as financially for being advocates of a brand.

“Apple is the poster child for rewarding fans,” Libert said in a statement. “Anyone can develop an app for the iPhone or iPad. Now, just three years after the release of the iPhone, the app craze has become a $2.5 billion yearly earnings extravaganza for the company—and that’s just Apple’s share of the rewards. In fact, individual developers are offered a 70/30 profit division—in their favor!—to create apps based on their individual views of the community’s wants and needs. You’d better believe that these folks are emotionally and financially connected to Apple, as well as socially connected to each other!”