You’re on a mission to use social media to market your business in 2012, but unfortunately you’re just not seeing the results you had hoped for. Don’t feel singled out, millions of others are in the same boat.

To considerably boost exposure and generate conversions (sales, signups, page views, etc.) it’s important to spur social engagements, not throw one-sided communications in the air like a digital version of Johnny Appleseed. Listen and learn about target markets, then find effective ways to connect and communicate about shared interests.

Once a rapport is established, social media users will recognize your brand and such recognition leads to social engagements. For example, a Twitter user is more likely to retweet an article from a person they’ve previously communicated with.

Forming digital relationships is the name of the game.