Columbia University’s chief digital officer Sree Sreenivasan advocates the “ABC approach”: “Always be collecting”. He didn’t mean artwork or other nicknacks–he was referring to a collection of digital tools and content. Here’s an example: Speaking at the Brite ‘13 conference hosted by Columbia Business School’s Center for Global Brand Leadership in New York on Monday, he recalled that at last year’s event he highlighted Tout, a video tool that streams fifteen second videos. The recent buzz is about Vine, which streams six second videos. And so it goes.

Social media’s array of shiny objects may ebb and flow, but as a category it’s gained so much traction that more companies now actively monitor platforms’ metrics–and consultants have developed social media models. Speaker Ric Dragon, CEO of Dragon Search and author of Social Marketology, presented an interesting framework outlining five different social media strategies companies may use.

Dragon’s “big five” approaches represent a way for brands to think about their social media goals, and they’re not mutually exclusive. Below are his five options, along with selected brand examples.

1.Brand Maintenance: With this reactive approach, brands play a limited role in social media just for the sake of having a presence. They monitor the social space and reply to those who mention them. This passive method is more the domain of brands late to adopt social media, as well as companies in highly regulated industries like healthcare and financial services.

2.Community Building: In this case the brand is involved in creating communities of like-minded customers or groups who share a passion for the category. The forums foster interaction between these brand ambassadors. Harley Davidson exemplifies this activity, as it mobilizes its hardcore motorcycle enthusiast fanbase. Tribeca Film Festival is another brand that keeps film buffs informed all year long.

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Tomorrow is the last day to get the early bird rates for mediabistro’s Startup Boot Camp, taking place July 12 through August 30.

This online conference and workshop will offer attendees keynote speeches, networking opportunities, and how-tos for creating a business plan for a startup company. Among the speakers are Buzzmachine blogger, instructor, and author Jeff Jarvis; Columbia University professor and DNAinfo contributing editor Sree Sreenivasan; and mediabistro’s own Laurel Touby.

Register now and save! Plus, get a free gift. Click here for more information.

This just in from mediabistro.com’s education department: we still have some seats left for this Wednesday’s Advanced Social Networking for Media Professionals class in New York.

It’s taught by Sree Sreenivasan, professor and dean of student affairs at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. We’ll also feature special guest speaker Soraya Darabi, product lead at drop.io and former manager of social-media marketing at The New York Times.

Learn about:

-The best ways to increase your followers, fans, and connections
-How to get the “right” followers, fans, and connections
-New tools you must absolutely know and use
-Metrics: why you need to understand them and how you can do just that
-Sustainable social media — how to keep from drowning in information and make time to participate efficiently
-How to make the business case for Twitter at your company

Sign up here!