OK, YouTube is great for parties, vacation videos and has some utility for business, but is it the perfect platform for a company’s multimedia social engagement?

There are a few other video/social platforms that are better suited for an in integrated interaction with audiences. Enter vSocial, a dynamic platform that allows companies to post, share and build communities. As we uncover with vSocial CEO and co-founder Mark Sigal, other tools on the vSocial platform let you build microsites that can be filled with user-generated content.

Boston Acoustics and Denon Electronics currently have such integrated campaigns with vSocial. Denon has launched a site called the Makeshifters, where home theater enthusiasts can provide their own stories of building their home entertainment centers.

In addition to typical sharing of these personal reflections, the microsite informs users about new products, best practices, and acts as a host for other information in an entertaining way. The site was created by the interactive agency The Loomis Group.

Now take this interaction one step further because, after all, hearing is believing when it comes to audio. And the Makeshifters have an answer by tying in retail resellers like Circuit City. Now you have a comprehensive, interactive experience that entertains shares, informs and maybe even sells a few products, right at the finger tips of the users.

Sigal is also a visionary thinker on digital media applications in the social world of the Web. Other interesting items on his blog, called The Network Garden, include an article about creating a path of breadcrumbs and Sigal’s commentary on partnering with CBS Interactive.

SOCIAL MEDIA SEMINAR IN TWIN CITIES

I will be hosting a seminar on social media on Tuesday, June 26, at the Pool & Yacht Club in Lilydale, MN. My colleague Mike Keliher and I will provide an overview of the new changes in business communications while answering questions submitted by attendees at time of registration. Register at www.providentpartners.net/answers.

You know, questions are the first form of user-generated content. The seminar’s focus is to help business owners and professionals understand new media trends and how to effectively incorporate them into their business communications.

Coming from the broadcast journalism world, I find these tools amazing. We’ll tackle practical uses of these tools to help address daily challenges you face.

We invite you to comment on this posting or email us at [email protected]. Every comment generates a food item donated by Provident Partners to a local food shelter — So what’s on your mind will put food in someone’s stomach.

Old-school advertising: Madison Avenue makes the rules. New school: Main Street makes the connections.

In the growing trend to reach beyond traditional messaging, corporate America increasingly taps the unlimited pool of user-generated content as advertisements. Doritos is sponsoring the “Crash the Super Bowl” commercial contest in which they’ve received hundreds of 30-second spots from regular Janes and Joes armed with video cameras –- definitely not your traditional Madison Avenue types.

The final group of five videos promoting the super cheesy, crunchy snack is now up for a vote. The winner will be shown during the Super Bowl. It’s a classic use of social media, user-generated content, and a major consumer product tapping the talents of their customers.

Are they savings millions of dollars? You bet. Are they getting tons of free publicity? Yup.

And they have done it all without compromising an inch on creativity. In fact, they’ve expanded the idea of creating a compelling message and will surely have one of the most memorable commercials in Super Bowl history.

In this episode, we interview Brett Snider, one of the creators of “Mouse Trap,” a finalist in the Doritos “Crash the Super Bowl” contest. Brett and his “Mouse Trap” co-creator Billy Federighi, both 25 years old, are pursuing their dream of breaking into the advertising business. Both have worked in production companies, and they recently won a similar content for Converse. Still, they are certainly outside of the mainstream advertising hierarchy, but that seems to be changing.

We talk about how user-generated content is breaking barriers in advertising and how, despite that fact, there are still traditional power brokers with heavy hands in the game. We also discuss how social media is being used to generate continued buzz for this contest and how other companies could use some of these same ideas.

Their “Mouse Trap” commercial is one of the best Super Bowl commercials I’ve seen – and I’ve seen them all. Watch “Mouse Trap” and other videos – and vote for your favorite – at www.crashthesuperbowl.com.

Technorati Tags: advertising, social media, user-generated, Doritos, Crash the Super Bowl