NBC Placing "Multiple Bets" on Social Media – Do They Lack Focus?

NBC Universal’s not quite sure which social networking tools will have the stamina to stay the race, so it has decided to “place multiple bets,” says Beth Comstock, president of integrated media.

Coming this September, NBC.com will add social networking capabilities such as profiles, online communities, widgets, blogs, photos and video. Phew! That should take care of just about everything.

Reuters has a sneak peak of what you’ll see this fall…

On August 27, NBC will begin streaming episodes of “Conan” on the site. Daily episodes will be available the next day at 5 a.m. PDT.

Also in late August, NBC will unveil a corporate site for Dunder-Mifflin, the fictitious paper company at the center of “The Office.” Users will be able to log on to this site, join branches and complete challenges relating to the show.

The network will ratchet up the online presence of “Heroes” this summer, as well, presenting sites dedicated to specific characters. NBC also will introduce Season 2 characters from the drama on the portal.

While I like their effort to make their site more social media ready, I’m concerned with their “throw as much stuff at the wall and see what sticks” approach. It takes a lot of hard work to build a community around any aspect of social media. I’d rather see NBC pick one or two offerings and focus on making them a success, than putting it all out there and having their attention splintered.