Social Media Tips

Lisa Galarneau who is a social media anthropologist and did research for Microsoft; explains what she has discovered about social media, this may be helpful for you - http://www.jeffbullas.com/2012/06/05/10-social-media-secrets-from-the-social-scientist/

She is fascinating - have a look at her site - you never know what you may learn from her! http://lgalarneau.webs.com/

Although she discusses sharing and engaging; she uses her Twitter accounts to ReTweet information while I still emphasise that you try build a community on every platform you use.

I understand that most of you use social media to promote your own business, have a look at your content, mix up content a bit more and start engaging with other people ( Use the search feature on each site to find relevant content, valuable information and even people/businesses to follow)

Twitter can be the most useful tool/platform for sharing and exchanging information; I highly encourage you to mix up your content (quotes, resources, your own info, other info, info which relates to your brand/content, images, videos, interesting posts, responding to other people, answering people etc)

I recommend Tweeting at least 1-5 times a day (although you can Tweet up to 250 times a day!) and when there is an event, festival or function which is related to your business/brand - you might find you are Tweeting more on some days and less on others.

Mix up your Facebook content (resources, news, images, videos, your own content, your own services/products, images, quotes and even ask your fans questions/respond to them) - communicate with your fans.

I recommend a Facebook update once a day in the mornings between 9am - 11:30am EST

Try to mix up content on a ratio of 10:1 (for both Twitter and Facebook)

 - 10 interesting, informative, fun, entertaining, educational, inspiring, motivational, links, images, videos, tips, tools, guides, how tos, other resources updates

to 1 brand/business, product, blog post, service, launch,  announcement, event or any other information about your business/brand update

If you need help with Pinterest - let me know. Certainly have a board or a few business boards with your content/products/blog posts but set up a few other boards as well. Connect with others (in other words find, like and comment on other people's content/pins)

Instagram is fast becoming a great photo sharing opportunity for brands to reach their audience. If you are interested in Instagram - set up a business Instagram account with your own images but branch out a little and connect/like/comment on other people's content too. (You can find other content or hashtags via the search feature)

Your business blog is essentially for your business. However think about your audience too and ask if they will be interested in the post. Is it valuable, is there a link to purchase something, to attend something, have they all the information they need?

Is the information timely and relevant? How are people finding you, what tags and keywords are you using? What do they want and what are they searching for? Is the post title relevant? Are the images attractive and does the entire post grab their attention?

I recommend a blog post at least once a week on a Wednesday or Thursday morning between 9-12pm EST - and then pop the link with an introduction (An interesting, valuable introduction to give people a reason why they should be clicking to read) onto Facebook and Twitter.

Search Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook ,sites and blogs for inspiration for your own blog posts (or newsletters, marketing ideas, launches, announcements etc) Find relevant images and content and don't forget to cite the original source and link back to the original content!

Social Media is about building a community and being social and offering engagement/ a different relationship with your customers and clients. Have fun using social media as a PR and communications tool while having fun answering your fans/followers and engaging with people.

If you have any questions about content and how to use different platforms please ask! You can connect with me on Twitter | Facebook | email me on ebbyeryan@gmail.com or even just call 0408 478 224.

source: http://www.toprankblog.com/2012/05/5-business-blogging-tips/

What is your influence?

Klout, Social Mention and all those monitoring your influence sites gives others an idea of what kind of topics you share and what you are influential about. It also acts as a referral/recommendation service and helps people to find you (or your business) online.

Measuring (and knowing) your online influence can be vital for brands. Generating, monitoring and engaging brands is ultimately what social media is all about.

'Understanding how your company interacts with its online community, and knowing which tools are effective in the ultra-specific world of the Internet, is crucial for driving your brand's overall success' Dave Smith - How to Measure Your Brand's Online Influence

Remember the more effort you put into the social media marketing, whether you are an entrepreneur, or you work from home, or run a small business,  or work for a non profit or work for a huge company - there are resources, content, blogs, guides, eBooks, marketing tips, tools and ideas to help you use social media daily and incorporate social media with traditional media, marketing and advertising.

How about a fun exercise, find out what you Facebook or Tweet about the most and then share?

Find what words you use the most, what do you like the most and what do you share the most - you'd be surprised,  I certainly was - I use the words like and love the most!

Here's mine! Social Status 

Connect

Social media is not just about marketing, promoting, business, feeds, ROI and all the other marketing terms I am sure you have heard of, read and used yourself.



Social media is about connecting and this has been especially apparent on Twitter and Facebook. People use social media to reach out to each other and connect with each other.


There is an incredible amount of sharing on social media sites. People write about everything and share so much about their lives and themselves. It truly helps us to connect, to embrace, to have empathy, to show compassion and you can see this by how many people reply or comment on updates or blog posts or statuses and send or share links with others.


It shows me, that people in the world can learn from each other and mourn for other peoples' losses, deaths and tragedies and support each other and communicate with each other in a way we never could before.


We can also celebrate with people, congratulate people on their accomplishments and achievements and be happy for someone who has witnessed, seen or done something.


On the 3 May 2011, Derek K Miller died of cancer at 41 and wrote a last post to say goodbye to his family. His post reached hundreds of his followers and his friends, who said goodbye to him in their own way and cried tears for him. It also reached out to hundreds of strangers, to people who have or have had cancer and did what I believe social media does best, makes us closer to each other, helps us learn about others and really reaches us, wherever we are in the world, no matter our own individual circumstances.


In the same way, Jenny writes a diary for her son Cooper who has leukaemia and shares her love for her son and again, blogs like these teach us about Jenny, her love for Cooper and both their experiences of cancer.


And a 5 year old boy, whose sister sold his artwork which paid off his cancer treatment, again shows us how we can connect, can reach out to each other, can reach out somehow in ways we never could.


I cannot express how beneficial social media is. Not only for business, for marketing, from building a brand, from putting a business online, from a making money point of view, from building a community - which are some of the reasons that individuals, businesses and corporations are using social media for.


Businesses, entrepreneurs, small businesses and corporations have seen how they can benefit, how we can all benefit by communicating with each other, by connecting with each other in a number of ways.


We no longer just look at websites. We watch YouTube videos, we use Facebook, we communicate on Twitter, we read blogs, use discussion forums, click on likes, share links, we make business connections on LinkedIn. We use email marketing, surveys - we are truly being more socially active online.


And the benefits are astounding. We can connect and make contact with people who love the same things we do. We can find people in our industries. We can find jobs, resources and ideas. We are truly sharing.


We can respond to queries, clients and customers in a hundred different ways. The work we do is different. We look for, find, research and use information which is immediate on the Internet and we can benefit by reading, observing and listening to each other.


But the essential most crucial part of all the social media, is that I as a stranger can mourn the loss of a man who loved his children, I can learn, read about and understand about illness and family life.


We can teach each other and learn from each other. And we get a glimpse of love. We see empathy and compassion. We can wish each other well, help each other, give and receive advice.


I truly love social media but it goes further than that for me. I love learning from people. I love the way I can get information, any kind of advice, assistance, tips, hints which helps me with my business, with marketing and deciding how to teach my clients. I love the way I can find information and news and stay so up to date about anything that is happening in the world.


But when social media shows us that we simply can connect with each other and get a glimpse of love -  then we watch and see how people respond, full of empathy and compassion for each other; that's when I truly get a glimpse that we all just really want to hear each other and be heard. (It's quick, people make thousands of Tweets a minute and hundreds of Facebook updates - so you cannot possibly read everything)


Sure, we want immediacy, we want businesses to respond quickly when there is an issue or a crisis. We want to have our say, have the freedom to express (whatever, TV shows, cooking skills, business meetings, funny things that happened through the day, complaints, news, and opinions)


But social media really is about communicating. Not just communicating, but learning about each other. And being very, very grateful that we can.

Make time to integrate and update

http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-You-Should-Integrate-Your-Email-and-Social-Media-Marketing&id=5965150 – Integrate your email and social media marketing, keeps you on track and reaches all your clients, customers and potential clients/customers.


A way to do this is via articles or newsletters updates or news via email and then linking readers to blog posts, Facebook, Twitter etc.


Then can even be a click on option to Like Facebook, comment on blog posts and subscribe to newsletters. Another option is surveys/polls especially if you are selling a service.


If it is community based, link to an event or happening within the next few months.


Ask people what they want to hear about. Do they want updates, events, education, news? Do they want to attend workshops? Do they want prizes such as cards, books, information packs on websites or social media? Ask questions, ask what they think, follow up with a question ... encourage communication.


Another option is to send important information and updates regarding websites or events happening in your industry which you are not directly involved with but which you would recommend.


All kinds of information can be used for updates and blog posts. The more you say, the more content you give out, the more you engage and communicate with your customers and clients via email marketing, social media, education, updates, news, content, other links and recommendations, the more you will drive users to your blog and sites.

Try to update as frequently as you can. Make social media a part of your marketing strategy and use tools to your advantage. Ensure you have relevant content and link to your social media sites, your website upcoming events or sites and information you have come across.

Now is the time to communicate and engage and build your social media and make it part of your business.

What are your key words?

Go to http://www.wordle.net and find out your key words and what words you use for your business, marketing and communication with others. You can even put the words on your website or blog to remind yourself of what you are doing and can do more of and allow others to see what you do.

Being social ...

Meet with clients and networking.

Social Media is about being social and making contacts.

I explained to a new client today that using social media is about reach. You never know who will be interested in your business and why.

It could be a work at home mum, a graphic designer, a CEO of a huge business, a person who wants to start their own small business and any of these people (and thousands of others!)  who just like what you do or the kind of business you have.

It could be anyone from anywhere and if someone asks them, do you know a business who makes cards or does social media for small businesses or does PR, then you can say yes I am a fan of theirs on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, I read their blog posts and I really like what they do. Or I like their blog posts, their Tweets, what they say, their passion for their work ... it is surprising why people follow each other.

Social Media is about communicating and making connections. It is about building up a profile and making contacts. Some businesses use social media to attract new customers and consumers and others use it to reach as many people as they can.

The money will come, it's more about being authentic and genuine and building up fans and followers. You will learn how to write updates, how to submit links to social media sites, how to add photos and do all the networking, promoting and marketing under the social media platform.

You become the master of your business, the captain of your business's soul.

And the reach of social media is extraordinary.

Being aware ...

Social Media is brilliant for raising awareness. Of your business and your business profile. Of events and industry events in the city.

Of coffee meetups where you can meet people who love working in the same industry as you do. And who can recommend a great graphic designer, or painter or shop fitter or blogger and talk about their own experiences.

Social Media makes you aware of how quickly this has become part of our lives. It's been maybe 3 years that social media has become so huge on the Internet and most people view Facebook regularly, Tweet at least once a day and check out social media sites for all sorts of information, facts and insight.

I learn about events in Sydney, get social media advice, read blog posts, connect to writers, read the latest book reviews and get so much information the second I switch on my laptop in the mornings. I follow people I love hearing about and I look up to people who are genuine and seem to be constantly on the go.

Social Media also helps build community awareness, you can find charity events and foundations to support. It's a business tool especially LinkedIn which is used by proffessionals who have connections with other proffessionals and used LinkedIn to keep up with their own industry and employ people who they feel have the know how and experience.

If anyone asks if social media is a good business tool, my answer is a rather loud and excited, yes. I learn everyday, I am in touch with the book industry and the social media industry. I know which coffee meetings would benefit me and I am building up my knowledge of networking events to attend.

It builds and raises industry awareness. And it is far from a time waster, everything I am curious about and learn about on social media sites; I put it into practice in my own business and follow, connect with and find people who have similar interests and experience.

It is a tool. It will help in a job interview. It will help with your business. It can be free marketing if used authentically. It can raise awareness.

Social media is all about what you can learn and gain by having the knowledge and ability to find out what works for you, what benefits your business and how you can use social media sites wisely and effectively.