kp's blog

As ironic as it may seem, unemployment is the ideal time to build up your personal brand. One way job seekers can do this is to create and maintain a blog⁺.

Get Started: Before you create your blog, make sure you read up on the top blogs relevant to your industry．Which types of stories do the bloggers cover? How do they construct their posts? How do they distribute their content - on a syndicated Web site? Or perhaps via Twitter⁺? You'll want to have fresh content and a unique voice on your own blog, but mimicking the best practices of lead bloggers in your field will provide some much-needed guidance if you are new to the blogosphere⁺.

Social media⁺ is quickly emerging as this year's hottest trend in marketing. Nearly 60 percent of top-performing brands say they plan allocate more dollars to social media outreach this year* - all while ad spend on other channels continues to shrink.

One social network⁺ that has felt the social surge is Twitter⁺. Companies are harnessing the powerful microblogging tool to drive sales, evangelize potential customers, connect with brand loyalists and improve customer service. Here are ten brands whose sweet tweets are worth checking out:

1. Dunkin Donuts
# Followers: 12,477
In 140 characters: The @dunkindonuts Twitter stream is friendly and helpful. They sure kin do it.
Sample Tweet: "This Iced Coffee has been helping me through current meeting & it's almost gone... http://twitpic.com/2gvf8"

Earlier this month, Google CEO Eric Schmidt called Twitter a "poor man's email system" and a "note phenomenon" - an impressive innovation, yes, but lacking a "full offering" of services nonetheless.

What Schmidt fails to understand is that Twitter's beauty lies in its simplicity, brevity and immediacy. People use Twitter to learn about events in the lives of family members, friends, colleagues, celebrities and other key influencers as they happen.

And for such a simplistic model, Twitter has evolved into a multifaceted social media⁺ tool with almost as many uses as P Diddy (@iamdiddy) tweets per day.