2. Plan a crowdsourcing eff ort for your brand. What does the organization need done that is traditionally handled by a small group of people inside the organization? To ensure a successful crowdsourcing eff ort, James Euchner, of Research Technology Management, suggests starting with: a well- defi ned problem, a large population of experienced problem- solvers, feedback to the crowd for ideas to evolve, a policy for intellectual property, and a person or group to fi lter ideas.32 The last action should especially be considered. Some aspects of social media are free, like media costs, but the real cost to an organization is time. Before launching a crowdsourcing content or campaign, allocate dedicated resources for analysis and implementation of hundreds or even thousands of ideas.