Companies should keep it fun to get the creative juices flowing, researchers say. An atmosphere of laughter and joy create a more open, energetic and playful work environment, making it more likely that employees will take on and tackle problems with creativity. "Humor can be valuable as a de-railer -- its disruptive, intrusive quality ringing out over frustration or fear," according to a British Psychological Society research summary. Check out more from INC's 'One Bug You Want Your Office to Catch'.

It's easier for mom-and-pop operations to close a sale while remaining friendly and personable, explains Paul Chaney, author of "The F-Commerce Handbook." Also small stores can be nimble and quickly change to the trends in their niche or industry.  Also key is that smaller companies are able to give their customers a feeling of being treated as individuals through social media engagement.  Large companies struggle with this aspect when they deal with fans into the millions versus into the thousands.  So if you are a Small to Medium Size Business, strike now while you have the advantage!

Read more at 'Facebook commerce a hit for small retailers.'

'Don't send it to my email, I only check that once a week.'  This type of statement is more and more common lately and some are predicting that Email, as we know it, may be a relic of the past in not the too distant future.  There are so many other ways to communicate in the growing Social Media world.  Just a few of the methods now available are Twitter, IM, Texting, and all the other instant communications wrapped into Social Media platforms like Facebook and Yammer.  So going to your email inbox is now like having to stop what you are doing and go check your mailbox at home. 

And it is not just with individuals. Large companies are starting to notice this trend. For example, in early 2011, the CEO of a French IT company issued an unusual memorandum. He banned email. Employees were discouraged from sending or receiving internal messages, with the goal of eradicating email within 18 months.  Read about that and this topic in general in Fast Company's article titled 'Email Is the New Pony Express--And It's Time To Put It Down.'

Google+ now has 343 million active users compared to a little under 300 million active users for Twitter and YouTube. But all have a ways to catch up with Facebook’s 1 billion users.

Although many probably thought Google+ was just a blip on the radar and would go away, it seems highly unlikely that it will.  It has too many good things going for it.  Here are the main four reasons Google+ has, and will continue to be a force to be reckoned with in my opinion:

Users are active

Google+, unlike Twitter, encourages group discussions.

Communities are forming

There is a lot of excitement about the 'communities' being formed in Google+. The setting up and administration of a community is quick and easy.

Google+ has strong support from influential people

Within the communities you will find well known personalities who are active. Thomas Hawk, Ashton Kutcher, Guy Kawasaki and Sarah Hill, just to name a few.

Google+ is more useful

There are just so many different ways to use and interact with Google+. It has the regular postings, similar to Facebook, Communities, Hangouts, works within Gmail and the list goes on and on. There seems to be no limit to the different ways to approach using Google+ because the platform is designed to be flexible for almost any approach.

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