Social Media / Social Networking The Buzz and the Bull The internet is flooded with information on social media and social networking sites. This presentation will give a brief overview of social media, the tools you can use to help build your business or brand, and what kind of commitment to expect.
There are a few take-home messages to this presentation: • • • •
Maintaining an online presence using social media takes time. If you can’t commit to maintaining your media sites, don’t start! You don’t need to spend a lot of cash to create a great online presence, but you need time, and time IS money. Regardless of what you read in the ads on the Google sidebar, there is no magic bullet for online success.
So what IS Social Networking? Think of high school and the different groups of people there – the jocks, geeks, social butterflies, etc. These cliques are social groups and you may have been a member of none of the groups, of one, or of several. Our world is full of these same networks – high school or college alumni, fraternities and sororities, work place, town or state affiliations. You may not have a lot in common with the people in your network, and some you may never meet in person, but developing these connections will help your business grow. Social media is not just online and includes collaboration with other offline marketing and public relations campaigns. Often, offline social media is a better commitment after considering your budget, market and target audience, and utilizing actual human interactions like community events, in-person business networking groups or chamber of commerce meetings can be a good strategy. Online social media is a collection of modern social networking opportunities and can be used in any occupation – restaurants, retail stores or service-oriented businesses. Online opportunities include: • Facebook • Twitter • LinkedIn • MySpace • TalentBar • YouTube • Blogs Through listening and interacting with your customer base, social media is extremely useful for building your reputation and increasing trust.
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Some Social Media terms to consider… Friend/Connections Regardless of what they are called on various sites, your ‘friends’ are other trusted members of your social network that are allowed to view content and do things that non-‘friends’ are not allowed, such as see your profile, read your posts, or view photos. ‘Friends’ can be someone who is your friend in real life, a family member, someone who has similar interests, someone who lives in the same region, or someone you simply find interesting. Your ‘friends’ are those who you want to keep track of on the network. Groups Social networking sites often let you belong to a group where you can network with other members who have like interests. You can belong to a group that discusses video games, music, movies, books or business. In addition to using groups to connect with like-minded people, such as joining a group on recycling, you can also use the group to learn more about the topic, such as recycling trends and what others are doing in their communities. Return on Investment (ROI) - Why use social media marketing? According to 2009 reports, businesses that create a social media budget and follow through on their projects find their overall marketing budgets decrease. The net result of your social media efforts should be more revenue due to reaching more of your client/customer base. The path to achieving a return on your investment begins with the non-financial impact of your work: • increase in site visitors • positive press • Blog comments • Social mention • Networked friends and followers Before you set out to measure and monitor your social media returns, you need to have a clear idea of what it is you want to accomplish. Is your goal to increase traffic to your site? To simply increase sales? Generate good press about your organization? Putting it simply, ROI can be tracked by establishing a baseline and following growth since the time your social media plan is enacted. You can create an activity timeline to track when each campaign is enacted, including joining new networks, press releases, webinars, etc. Comparing both the growth and campaign timelines should give you clues on trends and will help you determine what is working. There are several free and pay sites that provide tools for you to track these numbers and statistics. • Google Analytics • Omniture for Facebook and Twitter metrics • TweetMeme Analytics • HootSuite Twitter manager and analytics • Post Rank Analytics for viewing messages and comments from other sites/sentiment analysis Sentiment analysis (reviewing comments and analyzing their views) is useful to focus in on positive and negative social mentions and can be a useful baseline to review before implementing or changing a social media strategy. LISTEN to your followers! Don’t just post. Read comments, reply, take the time to listen and respond. Engage where it makes sense – see what is already out there and what people are talking about.
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So where do you start? Social networking works best when you are conversing, interacting, sharing, and being human. Conversation is key to social media. Don’t broadcast about your company – interact. Great social media begins with research and listening, then participation. Only then do you determine how to create your content and come up with a social marketing plan. Here are some ideas on where to begin: •
Business Directories Register with as many local business directories as possible. Most of these services are free. Keep track of who you are registered with and track posts about your business and listen to what your customers are saying. Be sure to respond to posts or comments about your business, and use negative criticism to your advantage by making things right.
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Search Engine Optimization SEO is key not only for your website, but for your social media as well. You need to optimize the content of your website, blog, video, images and audio files so the information can be discovered by search engines. Start by understanding the behaviors and preferences of your audience, which involves research and listening to your viewers.
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Maintain a modern website When creating a website, start with the end in mind. Pay attention to the end goal, don’t just construct a site to have one. Utilize newer technology to engage your visitors and keep them coming back. Be sure to optimize your search engine keywords, including tags on all images, audio and video. Tie your website into any other social media you are using to create cross-links that will help with search engine placement.
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Give the spotlight to others Remember ‘Miracle on 34th Street’, when the Macy’s Santa referred people to Gimble’s department store when they couldn’t get what they needed? On the surface, it seems like a counter-intuitive business move. But being generous and offering the spotlight to your competitors where it is due will build trust with your customers. Creating links and referrals to people or companies that are in your same business will make your site the place to go when people want to find out more information. By becoming the expert and focusing on what you do best, you will outshine your competition.
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Create a space on a social networking site A social networking site like Facebook or LinkedIn is a good place to start your online business presence, IF you are willing to maintain it. Facebook lets you create a business account for free where you can build a fan base, announce new events, and interact with your customers.
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Plan a blog A blog is short for a web log and is a common starting point. However, according to internet reports, many companies are failing at blogging. The reason: the marketplace has become inundated with social media content, and most of it is lousy. Most businesses cannot dedicate themselves to the effort and produce meaningful content regularly. If you can’t commit to good blogging practices, don’t even start!
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Here’s something to try right away: Make some time in your schedule to do a thorough online search of your own business. Keep a log of the sites where you are mentioned and the type of comments, references or feedback. Then research your competitors, both locally and nationwide, and see what their businesses are doing, what their sites look like and what names comes up high in the search engine rankings. Listen, listen, listen. Use this information to determine what is working for your type of business and formulate a plan of attack to make your social media presence even better. Without a plan, you may end up spending a lot of time and see no real results. If you are a new business and do not yet have any type of online presence, see what others with your same interests are doing. Joining an existing group is a good way to learn how sites work, and who’s doing the talking. When you are confident and find your niche, start your own group!
By strategically using social media to build your online presence, you can build your business right along with it! In summary: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Begin by doing research to come up with a Social Media plan. Monitor what others in your area of interest are saying. Begin participating in existing groups by posting comments and joining networks. Don’t try and push your information on others. LISTEN, and offer your expertise. Share your ideas by starting your own network or creating a blog. Begin inviting friends and colleagues to participate in your network. If you like what others are saying, help to promote them! (It will come back around!)
For more information on social media, schedule a consultation with
Natalie Carpenter of Red Humpy Design. natalie@pagosa5.com
970.946.4050
www.RedHumpy.com