Social media marketing has been around for many years and according to marketing leaders, it will continue to grow in 2012. As social media sites, like Facebook and Twitter, gain even more of a following, it is important for marketers to understand the ever changing social networks and how they can be made useful for B2B.

So, how can we expect social media marketing  to change in 2012?

- Content Creation: B2B marketers are realizing the importance of content, so there will be a strong emphasis on content creation. It will continue to grow rapidly and spread to different marketing platforms such as Google+, LinkedIn, and Blogs. Google rewards companies that are creating new content by factoring this into a higher search ranking.

- New Marketing Platforms: Google+ was the largest social media based marketing platform to come out of 2011, but as we enter 2012 we wonder what’s next? Niche social media sites such as Pinterest and Push are now being used for business. Look for more of these platforms in 2012.

- Facebook Timeline: Facebook timeline will be rolling out to businesses soon and similar to Twitter feeds, the Facebook timeline will update constantly. Therefore, in order to stay relevant, marketers will need to post more often.

- Cross-Platform Linking: With so many different social sites and media platforms popping up it’s important to stay relevant in each community. 2012 will bring the increase in social media buttons and linking from platform to platform. Cross linking will bring fans of your Facebook page to your Twitter feed, so it’s important to have different and fresh content on each platform!

Every year, CGI sends a unique card  to our friends, family, and clients as a way to share the spirit of the holidays. CGI’s card last year was a fun animated video featuring illustrations of our whole team and a special appearance from our virtual mascot, Frank the Fish – check it out here!

This year the CGI team thought it would be nice to share a personal view of our beautiful world by providing scenic pictures of their travels. The result is a simple but straight forward Holiday Card – wishing you peace + joy wherever you may be. We hope you enjoy it.

As a way to take our wishes with you, a link at the end of the card allows you to access a landing page hosting the photos from the CGI team. All photos can be downloaded to your mobile and desktop system and used as a background or in any creative way you like! Feel free to share our card with your family and friends and spread the holiday cheer!

CGI recently teamed up with TopSprout, a Silicon Valley marketing start-up, to support their product launch marketing efforts for CA. Both of our agencies work with CA — CGI creating the interactive media and TopSprout providing the integral strategic pieces. Help TopSprout celebrate their 1 year anniversary by visiting their blog: http://topsprout.blogspot.com/

Congratulations Miguel!