The really unfortunate thing about how most business owners are using the social web today is that they're applying "old" techniques to a new eco-system and results are suffering.

Further, many are also trying to measure and define results from social media with a worn out template. 

"When will my social media efforts be profitable?"  This is exactly the wrong philosophy, wrong question and all together wrong approach.  Sure, I understand the need to make money and generate a return and here's a key influencing factor.

Old School Approach: "Markets" - what we do together became "Marketing" what we do TO each other.

New School Social Media Approach:  Exposes those who do not know how to build rapport, relationships, trust, value, share and hold a conversation for longer than five minutes without saying "PLEASE BUY MY PRODUCT OR SERVICE."

We see this phenomena in many industries, people have lost the ability to communicate with meaning.  In the Real Estate Industry, we see a tremendous amount of "push" marketing.  In order to compete, agents pay the "advertising tax," this is what one does when they have little to offer in terms of real meaning.  Expensive approach with little return as the audience is ignoring this "tired" approach.

Consider challenging every assumption you've ever had with respect to how you build your business and you'll be in the right head space to listen, learn and respond in a social media context.