Dear CEO,

I am really happy to hear that you're getting excited by the concept of social media. There's no question that the principles of social media—in short, embracing a candid and ongoing dialogue with users—constitute an unstoppable trend.

Meanwhile, the tools of social media (blogs, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, etc.) are becoming ever more important components to the marketing mix.

The fact that you want to get personally involved bodes well for your company's chances of successfully navigating these unknown waters.

I can understand why you, as a CEO, would be interested in "joining the conversation." It's an interesting conversation: After all, it's a conversation about topics of interest to you and to your company, and the people you'll interact with will self-identify themselves as being interested in what you've got to say.

And, for what it's worth, here's some more good news: It takes a lot of talent to rise to the CEO spot; you need to be confident, charming, smart, and articulate—and these are excellent qualities in a blogger, too! Done well, your foray into blogging will afford you both personal satisfaction and bottom-line results. So we're off to a good start.

So, umm, how do you really start? How do you get started blogging, and do it well? Let's avoid the technical requirements (you're the CEO, you've got people who can figure that stuff out!) Instead, let's focus on creating the right mindset.

First off, you need to explore your motivations and time commitments before you consider a dual career as a CEO-blogger.

Too many would-be CEO bloggers treat their new toy as little more than a weekly newsletter: a way to broadcast their thoughts, rather than a way to create a dialogue. These execs expect that simply because they are the CEO, people will be magnetically drawn to their words. But then they are crushed to see "Comments: (0)" after each post and their acknowledged industry expertise in the "real world" not reflected in their wan "Technorati Authority" ranking.

And then they give up, pooh-poohing the ballyhooed blogosphere as they munch on sour grapes. Because they couldn't tame the blogosphere, they lose interest.

Now, all other blog-related projects at the company become suspect—after all, if the CEO couldn't hack it, who dares think that they could do better? And thus a company loses a golden opportunity to engage with its customers and prospects.

But you're not like that? You are one of those rare CEOs who not only will make the time to do it right but truly wants to engage?

Cool. Start by not blogging.

Don't blog for at least one full month following your decision to start blogging. Instead, spend that time finding other blogs in your industry. Read them. Comment judiciously. Leave your "agenda" on the coat rack. Just get to know a few folks. Introduce yourself.

Who's doing a good job? Whom should you emulate? There's a great list of CEO bloggers from companies worldwide at the NewPR Wiki, and you should feel free to peruse this list. Some of my personal favorites:

• The Video Professor himself (he's ubiquitous via CNN commercials), John Scherer, whose long-running blog is quite candid and not nearly as salesy as you'd expect. 
• Jonathan Schwartz, Sun Microsystems CEO, is also a well-known blogger. His posts tend to be long and very Sun-specific, but you can feel his passion. 
• Craigslist's Craig Newmark clearly is just being himself at his low-key but always-interesting blog. 
• Ross Mayfield of SocialText is also a terrific blogger; his posts are unique and his overall presence online is impressive. 
• Likewise, Tony Hsieh, CEO of the online shoe-seller Zappos.com, is all over the place online. In addition to his candid and thoughtful blogging, Tony's a big presence on Twitter, as well. (CEOs on Twitter? That's a whole other article!) 

One thing you'll likely notice about these blogs is their personality. Each of these CEOs comes across as a humble soul. That seems to run contrary to our collective version of a hard-charging CEO, but you get the sense that these are "nice guys."

As the CEO, regardless of whether you're as nice or famous as the CEOs listed above, you're probably accustomed to being noticed when you walk into an industry function. You may even have handlers to squire you to the centers of power in a conference hall.

But, even while social media contains millions of people interacting each day, the overall climate in these channels is far more intimate than in a conference hall. A better analogy suggests that you think about the process of moving into a new house. You wouldn't presume that level of recognition and clout if you walked into a block party in your new neighborhood. You'd hang back a little, wedge yourself mildly into a conversation, and try to fit in. You'd be a gentleman.

And yet there might still be moments of awkwardness. All the neighbors already know each other. There are cliques. There's context, politics, and in-jokes to figure out. You wouldn't expect to be the life of the party right away. But, you knew that going in... so, to help grease the skids, you brought some nice bottles of wine and some of your killer BBQ ribs.

Same with blogging, Chief. Think of blogging as an extended block party. You're certainly invited, but please don't expect to be Mr. (or Ms.) Popular right away. Giving freely of your attention in the form of commenting and linking liberally to your peers' blogs is the equivalent of handing out your BBQ goodies.

It could take years, but sooner or later your neighbors will come to respect, expect, and love your contributions.

Up for it? Awesome. Cover up the keyboard, lay aside your ambitions, start reading, and join the fun.

Eager to learn more? Wrestling with the best approaches to integrating social media into your Marketing plans? Download this e-book (pdf) by SHIFT Communications chief Todd Defren for a comprehensive perspective covering basic principles to advanced techniques.