The Ultimate Small Business Marketing Weblog

Strategies to Get You Started In Social Media: Create Relevant Content and Share Information and Resources

Don’t let the roadblocks get in your way any longer.  Social media can work hard for your business if you get started on the right track.  These sites enable you to manage your message in ways that elevate your credibility and expertise, hence strengthening your brand. 

 

To maximize effectiveness, you must create dynamic content and share information and resources frequently.  Valuable content keeps your contacts and followers coming back for more.  They will want to know what you are up to especially if the information you provide is pertinent; that’s why they are connected.  Make these touchpoints relevant and meaningful:  share recommendations and resources for your preferred business services; offer a favorite business tip in a video clip; include a map of your location; and integrate by linking to your profile to your website, blog or other referral partners including cross referencing profiles from other social media sites. 

 

In addition to keeping your contacts wanting for more, it leverages your expertise even further.  By making yourself visible and amplifying your brand, customers will make you their choice.

Strategies to Get You Started In Social Media: Build A Quality Network

The proliferation of new social networking site users continues.  According to Nielsen Online, Facebook swelled to 29.2M unique visitors in the US, that’s up more than 10 percent from just May 2008. Meanwhile, professional social networking site LinkedIn recently grew more than 20 percent month-over-month to total more than 9.5M uniques. Year-over-year, that represents 77% growth for Facebook, and 187% for LinkedIn, respectively. You can’t hide from it any longer.

 

When getting started in social media, it’s incredibly important to strategically proliferate your presence as well.  Start creating your network by building deliberately and focusing on quality.  Having a large, well-connected network will ensure an effectively delivered message.   However, do NOT sacrifice quality for quantity.  If your network is not established in a strategic way, you run the risk of sending a useless message to a contact not in the mindset to respond which not only wastes you’re time, but also, theirs.  It may also leave a negative perception of you as your message could be viewed as SPAM.

 

Get out there and get connected.  With social media you can quickly and inexpensively reach your audience with a relevant message that will incite customer action and therefore, build business, revenue and CASH!! 

Strategies to Get You Started In Social Media: Creating Your Profile

Social media is everywhere. And though you may use it in your personal life, most entrepreneurs are not sure how to leverage it professionally. I frequently hear the same questions from clients: Can it really work to build my business? What do I need to get started?

Social media can gain you priceless visibility - you connect with your network in a host of different ways to keep you top-of-mind. Especially important, social networking sites enable you to manage your message in ways that elevate your credibility and expertise, hence strengthening your brand. Reaching your audience with your relevant message will incite customer action and therefore, build business, revenue and CASH!! 

The first step in getting started is creating a KILLER profile.  A great company profile can engage and attract the right customers, or it can bore them to sleep and drive them to your competitors who are easily searched for in seconds. Here’s a comprehensive approach: