So, if you are anything like me and have heard the term Social Media bantered around you might be thinking “what the heck is Social Media, and what can it do for me”. The purpose of this post is to educate and inform my fellow wonderers, especially those small business owners, and to show you there is more to social media than just Facebook and sharing vacation photos with your friends.
While sharing photos with your friends can be very gratifying, social media can also impact your business’s marketing, professional networking, and personal life. Let’s take a look at a few popular social network sites and find out “what’s in it for me”.
Let’s start with Facebook,(www.facebook.com) one social media site that at least 900 million people are currently familiar with. If Facebook were a country, it would be the third most populated one on earth, behind only China and India. (Lur, 2010) While you may not have 800 million friends to connect with on-line, your business can be marketing to all of them using Facebook. However, you probably have a certain demographic you would like to target, (most “Tween” girls really don’t care about socket wrenches) and with Facebook you can do just that. With eleven different categories to target your preferred audience, using such factors as age, sex, education, and location, you are sure to touch the audience your business is aiming towards. Just remember, direct sales are not a typical result of marketing with Facebook. Facebook helps you “build an ongoing relationship” with your potential customers. Sales will eventually follow. (O’Neil, 2009)
Foursquare (www.foursquare.com) is another social medium that can help you promote your own business. Foursquare is a geological social tool that tracks where you are and gives you instant updates on local businesses who are offering special deals. Sounds great, right? How do I get in? Foursquare marketing can become very “hands on” so be prepared. Here are a few suggestions to get you started. If you are not showing up on Foursquare you need to add your location. Next, add your friends so they can help spread the word about your business, this is “new-fangled” word of mouth. Now get active on your account and check in to your business as well as other businesses as this helps create buzz. Remember to add in your tips and promotions about the business and remember to reward the other members who check in to your business. Lastly, remember to link your Foursquare account to your Facebook and Twitter pages. (I told you this one was “hands-on”) (Bishop, 2010)
Most of us use LinkedIn (www.LindedIn.com) to network among our peers and co-workers, especially those of us looking for a new employment opportunity. LinkedIn can also help your business. There are a number of different things you can do to promote your business including offering discounts and running direct ads on the site. But LinkedIn is also a great source of information for your business. You can do market research, run polling questions, and research future prospects. LinkedIn can also help you in recruiting efforts for your business.
Digg.com. (www.digg.com) I had never heard about this particular site, but I guess I was late to the party as it is “the biggest social newsite” according to Compete.com. Digg posts news stories and the most popular are featured stories based on member feedback. So how does this work for you and marketing your business? Great question. According to Chris Bennett the President and founder of 97th Floor, a leading edge SEO Firm specializing in Social Media Marketing and Blog Optimization, you can. By constantly reviewing stories that are popular on Digg.com, you can grow to understand what readers enjoy. This can help you understand how to create and position your content within story responses and posts. Sounds like a full time job to me, can we talk about Facebook again?
Lastly, Google+ (www.google+.com) has been called the Facebook for adults. Here you can create circles of friends so that only certain people see certain posts. This could become a great tool for your business as you can create different circles of customers based on their needs. You could have circles of prospects, business partners, employees, etc. Your marketing strategy can then relate to the needs of those particular circles. In essence, you are creating special marketing programs. You can also create “hang-outs” where members of different circles can video chat amongst themselves, which can turn into a direct marketing “commercial”, focus groups, or further in-depth interactions. Here is a simplified look at Google+ that really sums up this new player in Social Media. http://youtu.be/hC_M6PzXS9g
Social Media is here to stay, and if we as small business owners don’t join the party, or “friend” each other, we are sure to lose potential business. Let social media be your marketing partner and see what happens.
Bennett, C. (2008, May 1). How Digg Can Help Market Your Business. Retrieved April 17, 2012, from elance.com: https://www.elance.com/p/node/2805
Bishop, S. (2010, January 10). 7 Quick Steps to Foursquare Marketing. Retrieved April 17, 2012, from Real Time Marketer: 2012
Lur, X. (2010, March 19). If Facebook Were A Country, It Would Be The 3rd Most Populated. Retrieved April 16, 2012, from Tech Xav: http://www.techxav.com/2010/03/19/if-facebook-were-a-country/
O’Neil, N. (2009, July 16). 10 Rules for Advertising on Facebook. Retrieved April 17, 2012, from Business Insider: http://articles.businessinsider.com/2009-07-16/tech/30073056_1_facebook-advertising-target-market
Ray, A. (2010, June 15). Foursquare’s Starbucks Mistake: Five Ways Foursquare Advertising Is Getting Less Interesting. Retrieved April 17, 2012, from Forrester.com: http://blogs.forrester.com/augie_ray/10-06-15-foursquare%E2%80%99s_starbucks_mistake_five_ways_foursquare_advertising_getting_less_interesting
peterjoslin 