The real estate crisis hit Jeronimo Hirschfeld in 2007 with what felt to him like furious hurricaneforce. At the height of the boom, Hirschfeld, 31, amassed an impressive array of commercial property through Florida. And before the real estate market imploded, Hirschfeld had plans to develop those properties, including shopping malls in Palm Bay, Fort Myers and the Florida Panhandle.

``The real estate market collapsed, the recession hit, and I didn't know what to do,'' said Hirschfeld, a native of Mexico City. ``I knew I had to switch gears and find something that would generate revenue.''

A self-professed love of food led Hirschfeld to open a deli-style restaurant in Coral Gables stocked with reasonably-priced gourmet sandwiches made with fresh, delicious ingredients. Super Deli, at 2207 Ponce de Leon Blvd., opened on Jan. 19. Business has been brisk, according to Hirschfeld, but it's been mainly through offline word-of-mouth.

``When we opened, I went to all of the office buildings nearby with coupons for 25 percent off a deli sandwich on a particular day of the week,'' Hirschfeld said. ``That got a lot of people in the door. I want to get people talking about Super Deli online, and I know I could reach more potential customers through social media.''

To help Hirschfeld create a social media strategy for his new business, BizBytes enlisted the help of Alex de Carvalho, adjunct professor of social media at the University of Miami's School of Communications.

``For a small business, employing smart social media strategies can translate into more customers walking through the door,'' de Carvalho said. ``In the world of social media, it's all about trust. If I trust what you're telling me, I'll follow you, buy your product and be your friend.''

For Hirschfeld, de Carvalho recommends establishing a presence on Twitter for Super Deli. ``But don't just create a Twitter page for the business and hope people will come,'' de Carvalho said. ``Instead, get creative.''

De Carvalho suggests that Super Deli host a Tweetup and announce it on their Twitter page. Tweetups are events where people who use Twitter come together to meet in person and socialize with each other. To find out about Tweetups in the Miami area, search Twitter or follow

@MiamiTweetups.

``Hosting a Tweetup is a great way for a new business to generate buzz in the social media realm,'' de Carvalho said. ``It's going to get people talking in your local area, especially if you [motivate] them with giveaways and special offers.''

As part of Hirschfeld's long-term strategy, de Carvalho recommends posting deals of the day on Twitter and Facebook. ``Update your Twitter feed and Facebook often,'' de Carvalho said. ``It keeps your followers and friends interested in your business.''

Case in point, New Orleans-based Naked Pizza, was a start-up that took off by offering gluten-free crust and pizza dough fortified with probiotics to improve digestive health. ``Naked Pizza used Twitter to bolster their sales,'' de Carvalho said. ``Now the company has over 7,000 followers on Twitter and lots of repeat customers.''

Hirschfeld could also benefit from the use of geo-location services like Foursquare and Yelp. ``Whenever I go somewhere new or I'm looking for something in an area, I go to Foursquare or Yelp and check it out,'' said de Carvalho. ``Millions of people are doing it and business people today need to make sure they have a presence on those kinds of sites.''

De Carvalho also wants Hirschfeld to branch out beyond the social media big boys like Facebook and Twitter. ``Facebook and Twitter dominate the social media space,'' de Carvalho said. ``But as a small business owner, don't just stick to the major ones. Find niche social networking sites that can bring in the customers just as easily.''

De Carvalho suggests that Hirschfeld create a presence on social networks for foodies such as FoodCandy.com, Friends

Eat.com and Urban Spoon. ``Today, there is a social network for just about everything,'' said Carvalho. ``Small business owners should tap into the ones that are relevant to their product or service to find potential customers.''