As more brands set out to expand their online business strategies, it may help for them to observe what steps other companies are taking to engage customers on interactive platforms like Facebook. Using this knowledge, organizations can revise their current techniques, or implement entirely new strategies to gain increased social learning opportunities.

Track Social, a social media intelligence provider, recently revealed the winners of its Best of 2011 Track Social Awards, according to a January 5, 2012 press release. The company selected last year’s honorees after careful data analysis.

Following review, Track Social came to the conclusion that Disney was 2011’s big winner. The media conglomerate received the Grand Award for Annual Social Media Audience Growth after achieving 23,135 new interactions for each day of the past year. In addition, Disney took home the Facebook Audience Growth Award for earning 17,716 new fans on the platform each day. The third prize the company received was the Facebook Likes Per Post Award due to the 30,291.9 likes it attracted.

What this reveals is that small businesses are not the only organizations that feel the need to boost their customer engagement levels through the use of social media. According to the press release, winning over customers online remains a daily priority for established brands as well.

The Facebook Comments Per Post Award went to the platform the honor would not be possible without – Facebook. In 2011, the social networking website’s posts received an average of 4,346.2 comments for each of its posts. This high level of interest in posted content helped make Facebook one of the most discussed brands of the year.

However, not every winner was a household name, as a few winners showed that it is possible to increase social engagement levels and not be a major brand. For instance, Holcim, a Swiss engineering firm, received the Facebook Likes Per Post Per Fan Award for the 19 likes it garnered per post per 1,000 followers. Similarly, Casa Monica Hotel in St. Augustine, Florida, secured the Facebook Comments Per Post Per Fan Award, as it received 10.7 comments per post for every 1,000 fans.

Beyond Facebook, Track Social also looked at how companies used Twitter to engage their customers. Vogue Magazine was recognized with the Twitter Audience Growth Award for attracting 810,060 new followers in 2011.