With more than 41 million Facebook fans and over 537 million Google results, it is no secret I am not the only one mildly obsessed with Lady Gaga. And while admit that I enjoy her as an entertainer, I am equally as fascinated with how she has developed her brand in a few short years.

In less than 4 years, Lady Gaga has grown her net worth to $110 Million. She is responsible for shaking up an industry that has been struggling to adapt to technological advances since 2005 when digital downloads gained mainstream acceptance and labels struggled to combat piracy. Her strategy started with taking advantage of the power of social media to connect with her target audience through YouTube, Facebook and Twitter and has grown to include partnerships with MAC Cosmetics, Polaroid and Google Chrome.

Gaga's "Born This Way" album cover. 2011 Interscope Records.

Businesses can learn a lot about social media from the Queen of Pop. Lady Gaga uses emotion, engagement and interactivity to connect with her audience (little monsters) and in exchange builds trust. Her little monsters trust her, her brands and her partnerships – all contributing to her net worth.

Here are 3 quick practices that can help your company be more successful when using social media to engage with prospects and customers.

1. Cultivate your Audience by making sure your content is relevant.
2. Embrace Technology and use it to communicate and interact with your audience.
3. Keep it Simple and provide a clear path for your audience.

Social media has been key to the success of Lady Gaga and can help grow your business too! How is your business using social media to interact with clients and prospects? If you need help executing a social media plan, contact @canyoncomm – we’d love to help!

The Social Media Monthly is the first printed publication to exclusively cover social media. Published by The Cool Blue Company, the magazine is available nationally from Barnes and Noble and internationally in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Germany Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark.

The first issue of the magazine is out and you can download the digital version for $2.99 or pick up the printed copy for $4.99. A year’s subscription runs $29.99 and comes with digital access.

The debut issue’s cover was designed by Yiying Lu, the artist responsible for the infamous Fail Whale on Twitter. The magazine features articles by social media heavyweights such as Simon Mainwaring, Beverly Macy and Shelly Kramer. Some of the articles you can expect to read in the first issue are Shifting Social Media into Social Transformation, Data and Context — The Road to Good Decisions and Connected Engagement is the Key to Social Media Marketing.

At a time when print publications are shrinking, it seems counter-intuitive to have a social media print magazine. In fact, it seems to go against everything Social Media stands for – the social aspect. Social Media connects people, brings them together cross-platform, and allows them to connect by self-selecting where (and when) they want to be heard. A magazine does the opposite – it’s a very isolating, a one-on-none experience. But it does offer information, which hopefully you can share within your social network.

But what I can’t argue is that the magazine comes at a time when social media has a tremendous impact on the modern business world and shows no signs of slowing in the near future. I am curious to see, how will the magazine fare? Is this the publishing world’s next attempt to remain current, or a legitimate effort to build and communicate a whole new social media audience?

Do you think the magazine will be successful? Are you planning on purchasing the first issue?

In my last blog post, I discussed the recent emergence of Quick Response codes (or QR codes) and how these new digital ciphers have the ability to make traditional marketing pieces, such as print ads and brochures, more relevant by bridging the gap with online mediums.  QR codes provide users with a way to respond quickly to an ad or piece of information (hence the term “quick response code”).

But after having just recently come into prominence, have QR codes already jumped the shark?  That is, are they becoming counter-intuitive?  After re-reading my last post, it struck me as to how silly it seemed to place a QR code on a webpage.  I mean, is reaching into your pocket, grabbing your mobile device, snapping a picture of the QR code on your screen and waiting for the page to load on your mobile device really faster than just clicking a simple button or link?

Take this QR code below for example.  This bad boy links directly to my previous post, both by scanning it or clicking it.  Which method would you use?

I’ve read that advertisers are going to start placing QR codes on TV shows and commercials.  It’s an interesting concept that might work in bridging the gap between TV and online, but will viewers really scan the codes?  Or will they ignore them and get frustrated that it is in the way of their show?

What about placing QR codes at the end of movies or movie trailers?  It’s not so far-fetched.  But will movie-goers really scan the QR code at the end of a killer trailer to immediately check out more information on that upcoming flick?  I thought mobile phones supposed to be turned off at this point during the movies?

Or how about this?

Guys, try and stay with me here. Apparently, Britain’s female beach volleyball champions are going to be flaunting a stylish new bikini bottom that includes QR codes to a gambling site.  This may seem like a good fit for a gambling company most likely targeting the male population, but honestly, how are people supposed to snap a picture of a volleyball player’s fanny while she’s constantly diving around the court?  Someone wasn’t thinking that one through.

In my opinion, marketers are going a bit QR code crazy!  Don’t get me wrong; QR codes can be very useful tools for both B2B and B2C marketers, and at times they can generate more excitement and anticipation than deciphering a Dan Brown novel, but maybe we as marketers are taking it a bit too far.

Do you think QR codes are becoming irrelevant in these new mediums? Do you have a QR reader on your smartphone? How can I explain to my wife that the photo above is merely research?

Remember the good old days of advertising, when what we now call “traditional forms of media” (print ads, brochures, etc.) were the only forums for communicating marketing messages to consumers, B2B and B2C alike? What ever happened to those days?

One word – technology.

Traditional mediums are still very relevant today as they allow marketers to engage their audiences in creative way. However, they are limited in their ability to provide consumers with the opportunity to act soon enough. Unfortunately, the time between when a customer views an ad and when he or she decides to act on it causes a high percent of disengagement, leading to less actionable responses.

Scan or click the QR code to see some really cool QR code designs!

A majority of this problem was addressed when the internet came along and with it, banner ads and text ads (here’s looking at you, Google Adwords).  Online messaging allows users to click through to the exact location where they can act immediately on an ad’s message. And because there are endless amounts of data and analytics available to marketers, the messages can be extremely targeted to specific segments, and even individuals. People are self-selecting where they go to get their information, and now marketers can too.

So where does that leave some of the more traditional B2B marketing methods of print ads, brochures, even trade show booths?  Well, with the somewhat recent rise of mobile technology, a new way of bridging the gap between print and online mediums has emerged in the form of Quick Response codes (or QR codes).

QR codes can be incorporated into any kind of advertising medium and address two very important flaws that are visible in the more traditional approaches.  First, they have the ability to place a consumer directly on a site for them to take a final action without making them sift through other clutter first.

Second, and more importantly, QR codes allow consumers the chance to take action at the exact moment that your message has piqued their interest.  Using mobile devices, consumers can snap a picture of a QR code and be allowed to take action before talking themselves out of it, whether that action is purchasing a product or service, or providing information.

This is a vital part of the marketing process that is non-existent with more traditional approaches.

Has your firm started using QR codes in your marketing communications? Do you think it is relevant to your business? Where’s the most interesting place you’ve seen a QR code?