Just about every business owner in the universe right now knows that using social media to attract and communicate with customers is essential. For proof, see this and this.

But for businesses that have yet to establish an active presence on social media (and there are still many), coming up with worthwhile content for all those blog plosts, tweets, status updates, videos, podcasts and so forth amounts to a pretty daunting task.

Quality and quantity are key in an effective social media strategy. The messages must be useful and engaging, or people won’t make the jump from following you online to becoming paying customers. The messages must be frequent and consistent, or people won’t keep coming back.

I won’t lie. It’s a lot of work.

So how do you inject value into that stream of content gushing from your keyboard?

The mistake so many businesses make is to hire an intern or appoint an already overworked employee to feed out one-sided sales information. Think of a car dealership that opens a Twitter account and begins tweeting the make, model and price of every car on the lot. Or a restaurant that does nothing but regurgitate its lunch specials day after day.

Worst of all are the businesses that do nothing but repeat the same old, tired call for you to come in and buy stuff. The only thing those businesses are likely to get their customers to do is unfriend them.

It’s social media — not commercial media. People do not want to be told what to do.

So how on earth does a company owner turn the content grind into gold?

The process of creating worthwhile content has two main parts.

1. Listen. Before you can get people talking about your brand, you’ve got to tune into the larger conversation. Plug keywords related to your vertical market into Twitter search and see what’s being said in real-time. Place an ear to the blogosphere through Technorati and Google’s blog search. See if anyone’s built a social network related to your field on Ning. Find experts in your industry on LinkedIn. Just plain Google the hell out of everything.

Whether you deal in semiconductors or hairbrushes, people are talking about your area of expertise online. But before you begin even thinking of talking up your brand, figure out how you can add to the conversation without coming on like that guy — i.e., the one who has nothing of value to add other than “hey, look at me!”

And that brings us to…

2. Create Value. Now, the fun part! Once you’ve gotten a feel for how discussion of your product or vertical is carried out online by experts and amateurs alike, it’s time for you to start throwing in your two cents.

Realize that the real power of social media is in allowing you to tell your own story to the world however you want through your own channel.

If you’re a business owner, then you’re an expert in something. You have information and insights that people can benefit from.

Say you’re a restaurant owner looking to promote your business through a blog. Rather than using that blog as an extended advertising platform or personal diary, cram it with your thoughts on things like food preparation, culinary trends, running a business, managing a waitstaff, dealing with difficult customers, the art of pairing wines with dishes, your thoughts on decor, how sites like Yelp and Urbanspoon affect business … there’s really no shortage of interesting things to talk about. Share your specialized knowledge.

If you’re not much of a writer but still want to produce the content yourself, set up a cheap video camera and record yourself dispensing wisdom. Gary Vaynerchuk used video blogging to turn his site, Winelibrary.com (which was actually an offshoot of his family’s liquor store) into a lucrative online retailer.

Your homework: Come up with 25 ideas for blog posts related to your field of interest to your audience.

Why do this? Because “brand” is no longer just a logo, a company and a product. The rise of social media has deepened and diversified what it means to be a brand. A brand is a story. It has a voice and personality. And now you can create your own channel for sharing that story, that voice, and interacting with other stories and voices online.

If you create worthwhile content, people will consume it and share it with their friends.

Then the next time they or someone they know needs a semiconductor or a hairbrush, guess whose name comes up in conversation?