SMO, networking, sucessful comunities, we all hear these phrases every day. We also use them frequently, sometimes without having a quite clear view on what they actually entail. Therefore, I believe reading more into the core of social networks and community news can lead to a clearer image and to making informed decisions when it comes to marketing and PR strategies. Browse through the below list of information rich articles. A few comments and bringing your own links to get the conversation started wouldn’t hurt either!

• Let’s first stop by Drew’s Marketing Minute to find out more about what makes a vibrant community that’s alive non-stop from an guest article by Liz Strauss.
• If we’re playing a new game, we should first learn more about the rules. The Influential Marketing Blog brings you the 5 rules of social media optimization.
• After the rules, a little on the inside tricks would be nice. HubSpot decided to reveal 10 of these iside secretes of social news sites. And they spice it up with a list of carefully selected such sites and links to more in-depth info on each of them.
• Sticking to site lists, here doshdosh and TechCrunch bring you two different lists with their individual notes and details.
• FaceBook, although still reporting less traffic that MySpace, is still the spotlight sweetheart of social media communities. That’s why InsideCRM put up a list of 100 tools and tips to make the best out of FaceBook.
• If you’re not sure if you should get FaceBook featured in your marketing plan, take a look at it’s demographics, courtesy of MarketingHub.
• Just posting on a social news site is one issue to consider. Another extremely important side of the story is where to post your piece of news or article. Choosing the right category for a story means getting it through those actually interested in reading it. SEO 2.0 further explains how to work with categories on StumbleUpon.

Sit back, read and enjoy! Hopefully, this will also grant you a better week start tomorrow!