C.C. Chapman, grounded futurist, is a very well known social media expert and podcaster. His experiences in the social media world are deep (six years make him a true veteran out here) and extensive. Now the former crayonista is out on his own and he is one of the keynotes (joining Valeria Maltoni) at next week’s New Media Marketing Day: Era of Conversation conference in Washington, DC. In advance, he dropped by and had a chat with the Buzz Bin.

BB: How do you like Podcasting versus blogging: Which do you like better?

CC: They are two different beasts. I’ve been blogging for over six years now and I’ve always treated it as a personal journal. As more people began to know who I was and pay attention it was strange to have to censor myself a bit. It was a weird evolution, but at the end of the day I blog because I want to, not to get readers or for any other reason.

Podcasting is the same. I do it because I love doing it. If it ever becomes not fun I’d have to stop. I hate post production so that is why I always do live recording using CastBlaster because it makes it easy and fun for me.

BB: What matters most to businesses trying to engage in social media?

CC: Figure out the space and why you want to be there. Don’t do it just because everyone else is and it is the latest hot thing. Work with someone who knows the space and who can guide you through the first mistakes. Anyone who thinks they won’t make mistakes is in for a rude awakening. This space is changing too fast for anyone to be an expert in it, so don’t be afraid to experiment and fall down. Just make sure you learn from the mistakes and never make them twice.

And please be honest with the community. Honesty will go a long way with everyone. If you lie or try to be something you are not, people will sniff you out and not give you a second chance. But, if you come right out and say what you are and what you want to do people might still not like it, but at least they know up front and will move on.

BB: Social networks are all the rage right now. Will this continue?

CC: Sure. They’ve been the rage for longer then most people think. We’ve been forming tribes since we learned to walk upright and these are another example of that drive.

Will they be as hyped as they are now? Who knows. I think it’s going to shift to even closer networks that focus on niche content or locations. I’d love a social network for just my local area so that I could find out what people are doing and liking in the community. Sort of a virtual small town. Granted, I grew up in a small town and know the drama that can happen when everyone knows what everyone is doing, but in the end I think an open community is a happy one.

BB: What are businesses biggest challenges in social media?

CC: Staying on top of it all has got to be the most obvious challenge.

Every day there is something new out there that people are getting excited about and you could spend every hour of every day checking them all out and still not get anything done.

Personally I’ve gotten into a routine that works for me, but it does involve a lot of time connecting with people and services to find out what is important to keep an eye on and be part of.

BB: What was it like working on Virtual Thirst?

CC: It was my first project working with a brand the size of The Coca-Cola Company so I learned a lot. They were so into learning the space and working with us to develop strategy and outreach. They were not afraid to try new things and when mistakes were made they did learn from them and we course corrected. What we learned is that any campaign like this has to be very organic and allowed to change and evolve as it goes on in order to be successful. When the community didn’t like some things, we looked at it and found ways that we could change to take care of some of those complaints. Not all companies work that way.

BB: Boston seems to have vibrant social media community, probably second most active next to Silicon Valley. Why is that?

CC: Second you say? Hmmm….I like to think of New England as one of the most vibrant ones and prefer not to compare. *grin*

That being said I think it has a lot to do with just how people are raised in this area. People actually say “hiâ€? to each other on the street and will help a complete stranger in need. Add to that the large number of colleges in the area and thus a huge talent pool of young, smart and energetic people. Take all that and bring it to the web and you’ve got the makings of social networking from the start.

The people here are great. I’ve said over and over that I did some time outside of New England and I never want to do it again because I have not found the vibe and community feeling that I have here anywhere else.

BB: What’s next for CC Chapman?

CC: World domination? *laugh* No, I don’t quite know yet to be honest. I am working on a book right now that I’d very much like to see finished and out there. I’m also extremely excited about being freelance at the moment and the opportunity to help a variety of different companies and individuals to figure out this space. I’m hoping to work on some self branding type projects, movies, music and other great organizations who are trying to make a difference.

I also think it would be fun to get involved with a political campaign in some fashion. None have come knocking yet, but there is so much more that politicians could be doing and it would be a blast to help them.

C.C. Chapman is all about community and helping others. That’s what I’d like people to think of me and I hope that I can continue to build that in the future.