Social Media Tips: Online Strategies for Small Business Networking Profits
February 8, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, February 2010, Social marketing
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Small businesses today are using social media to compete with large company’s multi-million dollar marketing budgets. Banding together with other small businesses, they are sponsoring events through sites like Twitter, Facebook and various blogs.
Having problems finding someone to handle all of the social media duties? Queensland, Australia held a contest to find someone to blog and promote tourism in their area. More than 34,000 applied for their dream job. Small companies all over are creating similar campaigns with hundreds of qualified entries and campaigns that are generating massive media attention with hundreds of thousands of articles written or blogged about them.
Since small, locally owned businesses don’t have the ten’s of thousands of dollars needed to build a website and crank up a media frenzy, they are turning to Facebook, Twitter, blogs and the Ning network to prove that small companies can compete with these big marketing budgets using just the free tools that are available online.
Small businesses use social media and social networking to augment their strategy for achieving marketing objectives. But, they also must have a clear understanding of their purpose and possibilities in two realms – social media, and social networking.
Social Media is a means to many ends – greater visibility (SEO), demonstrable thought leadership, establishing market preeminence, and perhaps social networking. It is important in today’s business climate to become an expert in social media plumbing; the delicate science of streamlining social media participation in ways that are operationally efficient.
Social Networking is what happens after social media has performed well; it is the humanistic side of the conversational web. Ergo, you can sign up on Linkedin and you can make 10,000 connections, but nothing will happen unless you produce social media. There are many types of social media . For example, a simple “Hello, tell me about your business.” written on a Facebook wall is a social media artifact. A blog post about the “The New Real-time Web” is also a social media artifact. Both examples might lead to a conversation which is an instance of social networking.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
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Social Media Tips: Using New Media to Publicize the Launch of Your Product
February 5, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, February 2010, Internet Marketing, Product Creation, Social marketing
Social Media Evangelists
1. Social Media Experiment: Create an ongoing event and only promote it via Facebook/Twitter/social networks. In-person networking groups and bars are combining to develop what is affectionately called a TweetCrawl, half happy hour and half networking, where people are brought together in local restaurants across their state. Live tweet rolls are shown on large screens where compatible contacts can see who is doing what and know who to tweet back to for a business connection.
2. Along with helping to get the word out about a new product or service, bring together clients as joint marketers. Each business can publicize the new launch to their contact list in this joint social media marketing effort. This technique is helping organizations build their fan base via very targeted efforts.
3. First and foremost is getting the approval from the higher echelons in n organizations to approve the use of social media sites to publicize a launch. Not everyone is a good fit in the current climate. If an organization does not have the muscle behind the curtain to sustain this type of outreach, or if they just don’t “get it”, then it will fail.
4. Companies are using sites such as Twitter, Friendfeed, StumbleUpon, and Travelblog
Exchange — almost exclusively to market their blogs. Most prefer this to traditional marketing because it allows the development of relationships on a number of levels. They focus on building reputation, helping people, answering questions and things grow organically from there.
5. Many times, you will have access to “big names” in your industry in a way I never would through cold calling, mailing or e-mailing simply by using social networking sites. You will also find numerous business and personal relationships — the line often blurs when dealing with social media– that lead to project development and more marketing and PR.
6. A current project: Are you attending a conference, convention or event? Develop a blog centered around your involvement, create ongoing podcasts and audio coverage from the event, and turn your followers on Twitter, Facebook, and other sites in field reporters to syndicate your coverage. All of the contacts can retweet messages, repost blog content, and send traffic to your main blog site. This is a great way to build a massive niche opt-in list quickly.
Try any of these tactics out and you will soon find yourself with a winning product launch.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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Social Media Tips: Gaining Followers and Positioning Your Business for Success
February 4, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, February 2010, Social marketing
Many companies and freelancers found their initial efforts in marketing via social networks with MySpace several years back. At the time, it was the only kid on the block. Today, that site’s demographic caters to the 16-25 year old group. If that fits your market, keep it in your social media strategic plan.
Twitter and Facebook are the new tools for most businesses today for marketing purposes. Other sites used are YouTube (and several other video sharing sites), OnlyWire (for bookmarking sites), and PitchEngine to gain exposure on the web.
The key to using social media sites is to integrate as many as possible to be automatically updated when you make a new blog post, Tweet, or video submission. This can easily be done today with all of the tools coming out almost on a daily basis.
You want your customers to see a social media presence on your homepage directing them and interested people to several outlets to interact with you: LinkedIn, Twitter, Second Life, Facebook, etc. Also, have links to promotional videos posted on hosting sites like YouTube, which should be one of the top tools for PR.
Once you have been on the scene for a while you will want to learn a lot about who and what to follow along the way. This will be dictated by what market you are in and who the movers and shakers are. You will learn that MySpace may not be as effective as Twitter. You will build extremely beneficial relationships via Twitter and also use it to position your company as a news and info source as well as a platform for your niche market.
They are a great way to expand your reach and create buzz around you and your products and services.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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Social Media Tips: Best Tools for Writers, Consultants, Coaches, and Speakers
February 3, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, Coaching, Internet Marketing, Jan 2010, Live Events, Press Releases, Social marketing, Tools
Are you a Writer, Consultant, Coach, or Speaker? If so, you more than likely always find yourself in a mode of self-promotion. Social media networking sites are great tools to use for informing customers and potential clients of current events.
Here are just a few of the uses for such sites:
1. Letting people know where you will be appearing
2. What you are writing
3. Asking people to sign up for mailing lists
4. Posting pictures of jobs you have completed
5. Posting inspirational notes
6. Positioning yourself as THE EXPERT on your niche.
Great sites to use in order to implement the strategies are Flickr, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and WordPress Blogs as marketing tools. Integrate all of these sites and tips into your social media strategic plan and you too will see your sales up double digits in no time.
Freelancers even use social media platforms such as Twitter as a cyber water cooler, but also to target the people they follow to potentially grab freelance work from them or referrals. It’s a great way to get a inquiries.
Do you incorporate a membership platform into your website or off of your blog? If so, have a social media presence on your homepage directing your members and interested people to several outlets to interact with you: LinkedIn, Twitter, Second Life, Facebook, etc. Check out the value of YouTube in your PR efforts also.
So, in your planning efforts use a blog, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, possibly manage multiple Twitter Handles, Co-Tweet for management, have a “Personality” on Facebook as well as a company page.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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Social Media Tips: Twitter and LinkedIn as Marketing Tools
February 2, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, Internet Marketing, Jan 2010, Social marketing, Twitter
1. Marketing with Twitter
Use Twitter to find leads in a target market well before your competitors do. For example, if you are a wedding planner in San Diego, you could be alerted every single time a Twitter user within 25 miles from your office mentions their fiancé, thus you know they are going to be getting married at some point in the near future. You can then send a direct message to them offering your services. There are so many possibilities underlying Twitter, but this is a pretty simple example.
2. Facebook Pay Per Click Ads
Use Facebook pay per click ads in a similar way to LinkedIn pay per click ads: to get your websites in front of very niche markets. However, Facebook advertising is only good for very specific niches, as there are so many irrelevant ads on Facebook that it is hard to break through the crowd of ads without targeting a very specific niche.
3. LinkedIn Discussion Section
Use LinkedIn to get guest bloggers, people for interviews, radio show quests, and for expert “comments” for articles. Simply post a question and wait for the answers to come pouring in. At the end you can vote for the best answer you were given. This allows the person who submitted the comment to receive a special designation from LinkedIn.
Use these tips for marketing purposes of your business-to promote products, services, radio shows, guest/topics/show times, events/appearances and monthly product specials. Social media sites will also help to reduce research time, get exposure for other’s products/services (and they will reciprocate to you as well!).
These are only a few tips, strategies, and techniques to add to your social media strategic plan. Remember to plan your work and work your plan for online marketing success.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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Social Media Tips: Keys to Developing a Social Media Strategic Plan
February 1, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, Blogging, Internet Marketing, Jan 2010, Social marketing
Social Media Wheel
Social networking as a marketing tools are some of the strongest tools emerging for 21st century relationship-based business and marketing that are currently available. From web sites to email to eZines and now social media, the trends point to automated relationships and social networking’s power to do that.
If you are a savvy Internet marketer or business owner entering the online marketing waters you need to be actively using Twitter and Facebook in your marketing augmenting your blog, email and web sites.
The first step any business owner should take prior to using social media tools, is to develop a distinct social media strategy plan that outlines which sites and tools you will use and for what purpose
Following are some steps to add to your social media plan of attack:
1. Marketing With LinkedIn
LinkedIn’s pay per click ad service will enable you to show your website to people within a very specific niche. For example, if you have a product that is meant only for lawyers that practice family law and are based in the San Diego area, then you can tell LinkedIn to only show your ad to users that fit this niche. The result is that your exact target customers are seeing the ad and visiting your website. It makes really focused marketing possible really easily.
2. LinkedIn “Answers” Section
You are able to go through LinkedIn question/answer forum and answer questions that are relevant to your business. For example, someone might post a question asking how internet marketing could be a part of their law firm that specializes in family law. You can answer that question and show this person various examples of tactics they could use to market their firm online.
These strategies are great for marketing purposes to promote your products, services, websites, guest/topics/show times, events/appearances and product launches. These sites will also help cut down on research time, assist in obtaining an online presence, and marketing joint venture partner or affiliate products.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
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Social Media Tips: Financial Services Firms Use Twitter to Directly Interact with Customers
January 28, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, Internet Marketing, Jan 2010, Social marketing, Twitter
Since the growth of social media sites online, financial services firms have started using Twitter as means to:
· Comment on valuable news stories
· Bring greater attention to press releases or websites
· Advertise key products, services and rates
· Respond to customers who comment about their firm
Customer service is probably the most intriguing, since it represents a new method for companies to communicate with customers.
Financial companies use Twitter as a strategy for answering consumer questions and address anycomplaints - even setting up calls with customer service to ensure the user’s issue is handled well. It is inspiring to see organizations find an important use for social media sites as it is expected that other firms will follow suit.
In addition to directly responding to follower questions, companies have been able to use their Twitter profile to highlight information regarding mergers and acquisitions.
Financial firms who are afraid to step into the social media waters approach it almost as an experiment. They load up their LinkedIn profile and communicate to their network often and also experimented with Twitter. however, they use social media platforms more as a personal tool than business promotion.
Many consultants find that on LinkedIn if they stay connected they will usually get a good response. If they post a note that they receive from a new customer, at times, they will receive a lot of “congrats” from the database and a few inquiries. “Who is the customer?” “What kind of work are you doing for them?” etc. LinkedIn can be one of the most powerful social media tools if used properly. Where else could you have 350 direct connections and 100 times that on a second level? Altogether, there could be nearly three million two levels away. Mind boggling.
As for Twitter, some companies find great use in it for attracting clients and updating current customers on current events. Others try it for a couple of months just to see if they could find some value. Eventually, they cancel as they consider non-relevant tweets as spam. Although, most who fall into this category will also be those who still cannot figure out the relevant use of Twitter a business tool. But, they will also ask “WC?” Who cares?? They come back with the typical statement that those come back with who do not understand Twitters true value and how to use it properly.
Many in this camp feel Facebook is the place to be. While they feel LinkedIn has too much structure and Twitter has none, Facebook, they feel is the middle ground that will appeal to business people.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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January 27, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, Internet Marketing, Jan 2010, Social marketing
Your current set of Facebook friends may not be your target market. If you take a personal Facebook account and transition it into a marketing tool for your business, you will experience a transition period as you move to add people that may be interested in your business and may lose some friend links due to them not being interested in hearing about your business.
Here are some experience you may encounter when transitioning your social media efforts:
1. Twitter - Gaining some traffic generated from links posted. Some traffic from links on your Twitter home page from people checking you out. Primarily, Twitter should be a tool to locate potential customers, provide relevant information, and build relationships. Use Twitter also to links to articles, tools, and possible interview candidates.
2. Myspace - Use it to post your blog post links to automatically. So far, this is not a power house for business use as the demographics do not fit most business models. If you are targeting the 16-25 year old market, the Myspace is prime virtual real estate for you.
3. Linkedin- Use both status updates to notify people of new blogs posts and Linkedin Answers to generate material for blog postings. Since LinkedIn is primarily a business networking site, it is perfectly geared to marketing a business.
All of these sites are needed for a well-rounded marketing campaign and social media plan and can be leveraged by adding software tools that update all of them at the same time to reduce the time involved.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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January 26, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, Internet Marketing, Jan 2010, Social marketing
New social networking sites seem to be sprouting up almost on a daily basis. It is difficult to even keep up with which are the appropriate ones for your own business interest. Although, what some companies are doing today, if they are unable to locate a networking site directed towards their niche or any that service their specific niche, they are creating their own network sites.
In January 2009, one company launched a social network to help moms return to work and for working moms trying to do it all. The company was a privately-funded, women-owned start-up with no advertising or PR budget at hand. Given the partners both came from advertising backgrounds, they understood the importance in harnessing the power of tools such as Twitter and Facebook to aid us in building their brand and gaining awareness of their new venture.
To begin, prior to launch, they set up a Facebook page as a means to begin to get the word out using a teaser campaign on our Fan Page – COMING SOON! … LAUNCHING JANUARY 15th! In so doing, they were able to gain hundreds of members for their new venture before even launching our company. They regularly updated their fans as to the progress of their site, and what the members could expect. This was a huge success given that they were able to convert those fans to members of their community within the first days of their network site opening.
Secondly, upon launch, they created a twitter page using their company name. After researching, they followed all the major players in their niche, media and job/career-related firms with hopes of them following back. Many of them did. However, not more than a month or two after, it was clearly recognized that without having the benefit of their keyword in their Twitter name, they were not being found.
After two months of tweets, they elected to change directions and start using their keyword along with their company name in their Twitter ID, which quickly took hold. After two months, they had 2500 followers. And this being in a highly niche-oriented business.
The best part is that they were able to convert most of their Twitter followers into paid members of their monthly membership site.
Following this social media plan, in just 5 months, they were a global social network seeing 70,000 views/month, 6+ minutes/view, 40% unique visitors and close to 2700 members.
Without the benefit of Facebook, they would still be in their cocoon.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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Social Media Use Skyrockets with Businesses as a Guerilla Marketing Technique
January 25, 2010 by DrDaveHale
Filed under Blog, Internet Marketing, Jan 2010, Social marketing
In a recent survey by Sage North America and AMI-Partners on social media use among small businesses show that small businesses are increasingly using social networking to drive promotion, cost savings and better business results in an economic environment that is pressing these companies to stay more competitive than ever:
The use of social networking tools among respondents in the study has gone up 33 percent from 2008 to 2009. More than half (51%) of respondents say they have acquired new customers and retained existing customers by utilizing digital social media. Fifty-seven percent found that tough economic conditions were very or extremely important in their decision to use electronic social media as part of their business strategy.
Nonprofit as well as for profit organization have been using Twitter and Facebook very intentionally to build up or increase awareness of events, products , and general online presence.
One simple strategy is using Twitter to tweet pertinent lists linked to an information page. These types of tweets are often retweeted. They also given a lot of conversations on Facebook and other social media pages you may have a presence on.
Many companies also reported setting up networks on ning as a place where influential people who Twitter about specific issues can gather and exchange information and help, as well as be a place journalists or companies that want products reviewed, books, etc. can come and quickly find people will to do reviews and Twitter/blog about them.
Find it tough to get all of the information out on Twitter? Respondents in the above study mentioned using tools such as hootesuite to schedule tweets. You can build up a quantity of messages, then schedule them to be posted as often as you like.
Lastly, to keep followers informed and connected, tweet a lot of articles of interest, news, etc. so people feel like they are getting quality information.
By the way, do you want to learn more about Social Media?
If so, download my brand new free white paper Social Media: A Primer Click Here
By the way, do you want to learn more of my “tricks of the trade” of using social media to boost your online profits and exposure?
Do you want to learn how to build a big online subscriber list fast? Click Here
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