Nothing beats a revving engine, the open road and a cold brew to top it all off.

That’s why God invented cup holders, after all (my first car didn’t even have cup holders, so I had to hold beers between my legs while I drove).

Yes sir, drinking and driving go together like ham and eggs.

Combustion and Carbonation…A Wonderful Mix

If you’ve never tried a water bottle full of schnapps or, as a last resort, a Mike’s Hard Lemonade on the highways and byways, let me share the 7 reasons why I drink and drive:

1. Everything Blurs — Not Just the Center Line!
2. You Can Pass on Double Yellows — Two Lines, No Problems!
3. Traffic Lights are Optional!
4. Left Turn on Red? OK!
5. How Else Are You Going to Meet a Sexy Police Officer?
6. Speed Limits are for Losers!
7. Because the English Got it Right. Or is it Left?

Disclaimer: Do not try driving drunk to get home. You may be killed, or even worse.

Alright, let’s get serious for a minute here: DRUNK DRIVING IS EVIL

You can socialize and get drunk — at home. But is social media safer than heading out to the bar without a designated driver? Not so fast.

If you’re not ‘minding the store’ with respect to owning your name on the social web, securing what gets with your name stamped across it and locking out hacks from staining your good name, you’re headed for a crash.

I’m damn serious.

The reason we used a horrible example like drunk driving is because while 99.9% of the population thinks it is ridiculous to drive under the influence, about 1% of the population is aware of how important social media security is. So before you get too far into building a name or business, consider the harsh consequences of failing to protect your online brand.

How well do you share — that’s a question we’ve heard every since we were kids.

“Nice” people are supposed to share what they have with others, and it’s no different for businesses and brands. Our customers, fans and followers want us to share information that’s valuable and benefits us.

So, are you using social networking technology to effectively share where your constituents can find you?

Blogs, Microblogs and Instant Updates

Part of securing your brand is anchoring it as a frequently updated source of relevant information. You can make sure this is possible by using simple tools like Google FeedBurner.

Wait…isn’t FeedBurner just a blog feed tool?

Nope. In addition to sending out new blog content to subscribers, Feedburner now has a socialize application that pushes out scheduled and immediately published posts to Twitter.

Now you can assure your brand is protected from becoming stale!

The bottom line is that there are two elements to building an effective social media syndication network. The first is to secure your name on networks like Posterous and Twitter. Just as important though is making sure you populate your space on these networks with fresh content that fans want to share with their friends.

If you haven’t tried blogging yet, sign up for a free one on networks like WordPress. Got a blog, but not syndicating elsewhere? Try signing up for FeedBurner or Twitter Feed.

We know you’re good at sharing in the ‘real world’ — so go ahead and make your awesome ideas more accessible using social media networks. You can start by leaving us a comment below, or pinging us with an @reply on Twitter.

Outspoken Profiles is fully operational — self-aware, you could say.

We’re here to help you build a secure social media presence and avoid the pitfalls associated with “Brand Jacking”.

Why is this important?

Because there are people out there who want to commandeer your brand for their own gain. If cyber criminals perceive any monetary gain is possible from stealing your name, consider it gone.

Unless you act first!

Getting the Word Out

The Outspoken Team is stoked to help you build a more successful social media brand, so follow this blog for ongoing tips, and make sure to keep in mind the reason you should secure your name:

1. Social Media Networking Websites Rank Extremely Well on SERPs
2. Controlling Your Name on Multiple Websites = Positive PR
3. Even If You Don’t Plan To Use a Network, Someone Else Could Grab Your Name!

Decide how valuable the social networks are to your brand and act accordingly. You can visit the Outspoken homepage to search the availability of your name on the most popular networks (more are being added soon). Don’t have the time, but want to secure your name anyways? Check out our brand protection services page.

Thanks for reading our community blog — we want to hear from you about how we can be of service! Leave a comment below or follow us on Twitter.

Securing your social media brand might not seem that important when you first start contributing on networks like Facebook and Twitter, but nothing could be further from the truth.

You don’t have to be a big business to feel the heat of a ‘stolen’ profile. Think about the value of being recognized on social media networks.

When someone gets to your name first, or intentionally takes it to profit off your brand, you lose the ability to communicate with friends, fans and customers.

Worst case, someone could spread negative messages about the reputation you’ve spent years building.

Here’s the 3 Steps to Secure Your Social Media Brand Today:

Identify Username Availability

How would you like to be able to see which social media networks have profiles matching your name?

We make this step simple. By visiting our homepage you can enter your name into the availability checker to see where your name is open, and which networks it has already been registered with.

If you don’t secure your name on the most relevant social networks, you may lose access to a key branding tool forever.

Don’t Just Build a Profile … Manage It

Creating your profiles across hundreds of the top social media networks requires hours of work entering data and verifying correct setup (that’s why people hire us).

However, the hard work doesn’t end once your profiles are active. Successful brand managers build large audiences by communicating valuable info to their followers — and you can too! Once your profiles are live, choose the most relevant networks you have time to build with deep content and two-way conversation — think Google Buzz, Twitter and Facebook — then dedicate a set amount of time each day or week to growing them.

Never Stop Learning

You’ve signed up for profile creation and management, built a presence on the top networks, and are ready to sit back and relax in the knowledge your brand is secure.

Not so fast.

New social media networks launch every day, so the process of securing your brand name and creating content is ongoing. You won’t need to actively participate on every single network, however you can learn new skills from newer sites that can make your existing profiles more appealing to your audience.

We’re still in the early stages of the social media networking evolution, so join the fight to protect your brand now to gain a more positive, noticeable online presence in the future.