What are you doing in your business this year?  How is social media going to play a role in your business?

Today is a short and sweet blog post.  What I would really like to know is how has social media effected your business in 2010 and how will you improve on it in 2011?

photo credit: valcanno

Check out Socialnomics!

So what do you do to get going with Social Media Marketing?

So here is what a typical business will do.

1. Set up social media accounts.  This is done by either hiring someone or figuring it out yourself.
2. Making everything look pretty!!  You put your brand and logo on your new accounts and make it look professional.
3. Start following people and connecting with people you know as well as people in your industry or niche.
4. This is where the stumbling begins.

Socialize

Being social is the key to Social Media Marketing!! Sure you can be social one day but what about the rest of the week, month or year!  There is nothing more frustrating to a customer or client, than not being heard!  This is not your typical marketing.  You don’t hire someone to make a pretty advertisement and plaster it on a billboard and wait.  This is active marketing.  You customers want to hear from you.  They want special offers through Facebook and Twitter.  They want to know your listening by responding to their needs!

After you are done setting the accounts up and making them look pretty don’t forget to come back and socialize often.

Time is a factor

I know as a small business owner I wear many hats.  We all do this to grow your business.  Sometimes in order to grow your business you must hand things off to someone else because we just don’t have enough hours in our day to do it all.  This is why there are Social Media Managers like Angie and I.  We are here to spend the time that you don’t have.  We will be social for you and handle your reputation when a disgruntled customer starts “yelling” on Twitter!  We handle these things so you can do the things you love to do in your business.

Bottom Line

Social media marketing is not about setting up your accounts and making them look pretty.  It is about participating and creating a true presence online. Whether you hire social media managers like us or you carve out time in each day to socialize the most important part is to do it. Do it consistently!

If hiring a social media manager is the right step for you check out our services.

photo credit: SierraTierr

photo credit: Chesi – Fotos CC

I’m brand new to using Delicious so we are learning together.  I imagine some of you are asking, “What is Delicious?” and I’m here to give the non techy version if I can figure it out myself.

Social bookmarking: What is Delicious?

Right from Delicious.com

“Delicious is a social bookmarking service that allows you to tag, save, manage and share Web pages all in one place. With emphasis on the power of the community, Delicious greatly improves how people discover, remember and share on the Internet.”

I like the fact that you can store your bookmarks on the web and not on your computer. And you can access them from anywhere!  Share them publicly or keep them private, it’s your choice.

Here is the Delicious getting started guide.

Not only can you bookmark links of sites/blogs you want to read later, you can also share your favorite links.  And this is where social media comes in to play because it’s great for driving traffic to ones site and you can see all sites that people have tagged if they are public.  Everyone loves to have their sites shared with a ton of other people, yes?  Well, all you do is either plug in the link to the website/blog you want to save right in to the Delicious bookmarks section OR you can use delicious bookmarking tools like the Firefox Bookmark add on, Internet Explorer buttons or sometimes you’ll see on websites colorful buttons after a blog post that you can click on to share or save the site.  You’ll see at the bottom of this post the buttons I’m talking about. We use the Sexybookmarks plug in.

Another great thing about Delicious when it comes to social media is that you can network with others.  Add people to your network that might have similar interests.  This would be a good way to find potential guest blogging opportunities, learn new material and the list goes on.

You can also import/upload all bookmarks currently on your browsers right into Delicious.  And you can also export Delicious bookmarks to favorites on your browser if you want.

Delicious has a blog and they are on Twitter too.  Plus here is a pretty comprehensive guide to Delicious social bookmarking.  Add that one to your Delicious bookmarks *wink*

Do you use Delicious for social bookmarking?

Today we are looking for some Facebook page ideas and tips for Lain of Lay Out a Day.  Layout a Day on Facebook is a brand new page.  If you are interested in simple scrapbooking ideas, join her over there.  Let’s help her out!

Facebook is all about connecting, listening to the needs of others and sharing our expertise right?

So let’s please give Lain some suggestions on types of things she could share on her Facebook page to engage with her ‘fans’.  Any suggestions would be helpful.  We have already discussed a few things as you’ll see below.

Facebook Page Ideas for Layout a Day

• Post something to your Facebook page every day if possible
• Start a new discussion (under discussion tab) each week to get readers involved
• Add photos of various completed scrapbooking layouts
• Share links to other scrapbooking ideas you find/help promote others

Those are a few tips that were given to Lain and we would like for you to give your input.

Ready, set, GO…….

*Danielle and myself offer social media management packages here at Get a Social Boost so please let us know if you need anything.

Stop the Madness

Have you seen the outrageous use of Twitter hashtags?  Most people don’t even realize they are spamming others on their Twitter stream but it’s very obvious they are so here’s a quick lesson.

Please don’t use single words like #coffee #sugar #tea when tweeting.  The whole point of using Twitter hashtags is to keep up with a conversation. So it would be better in that case to use something like #coffeelovers (which I see there is actually a hashtag for!) where people can talk about their love for coffee.  Or here’s another one I see a lot #workouts.  OK but let’s get more specific.  I think it would be better to separate this in to #homeworkouts, #gymworkouts or even #cardioworkouts.  It’s like we are taught with keyword research, it’s much harder to rank for single keywords in the search engines and it’s better to go for the long tail keyword phrases.  I look at hashtags in a similar way.  Be more specific and you’ll make better connections.

Pay Attention to Twitter Hashtags

Like I mentioned above, Twitter hashtags are there to help you keep up with conversations.  Let me give you an example of why you should pay attention to them.  I have been attending a conference called Niche Affiliate Marketing System 2x a year and all attendees use the Twitter hashtag #NAMS or #nams and have been doing so since the beginning a few years ago. We like to keep up with what is going on while at the conference and be able to connect and network with everyone before the next conference.  Before you start using Twitter hashtags be sure to see if it’s already in use.  Just recently I noticed another conference started using the same Twitter hashtag as we do for #NAMS and I believe it’s going to really confuse their members and they will get lost in the conversation.

I try my best to always search out the best possible Twitter hashtags if I’m going to use one.  I just looked at the #socialmedia hashtag and think it would still be best to be more specific.  How about #socialmedianews, #socialmediamarketing and #socialmediatips?  They are much more specific and I prefer that so I can keep up with each conversation separately if I choose to.

Do you notice the Twitter hashtag spam?

Twitter Follow With Care -Don’t Always Rely on Automation

Do you REALLY know who you are following on Twitter?  I would venture to guess that most of us don’t know everyone we follow but it’s very important that we pay attention to that.  If you use any type of automated follow software be cautious.  When someone follows you and you have auto follow in place you really have no clue WHO you are following back but your followers sure will.

Imagine the surprise of those who might just decide to take a peek at your main Twitter profile page to see who you follow.  They can click on all of those people you follow and if you’re not careful in who you choose to follow they very well might find something that will turn them off immediately and lose all respect for you.

When you follow someone on Twitter, they get an email with a few stats that list some of your current followers.  I have seen tasteless avatars and Twitter handles in these emails not to mention outrageous profile tweets when clicking through to what I think might be a potential new Twitter ‘friend’.  In fact I just got one today. This person had a raunchy avatar and unmentionable tweets so I blocked the user immediately and they can no longer be seen on the list of people that follow me, thank goodness.

Sure it can take time to go through and screen followers but to me it’s time well spent.  I would much rather be cautious and not offend anyone.  Sure some will slip through the cracks at times but do the best you can and you will truly stand out from the rest.

*Note*  Most social media managers use automated follow software and we have personally chosen not to use automation unless we feel that it will benefit our clients and/or it’s something they choose.  We believe that it’s all about quality not quantity.

You Don’t Have to Follow Everyone Who Follows You

It’s important to follow people that have great information to share and who know the true meaning behind social media and networking so PLEASE don’t ever feel that you must follow everyone that follows you.  Some people will be offended but they will get over it.  Sure, you following 50,000 people might look good but how can you properly network with that many people?  I don’t think it’s possible!  And know that it’s OK for you to change your mind over time as well.  If you find that someone you initially followed is just not the right fit for you feel free to unfollow them at any time.

I SPY

I always go through new followers to see if they really are worth following.  I look at the bio and recent tweets and usually I can see within the first page whether or not they are someone I want to connect with.  It’s wonderful to get recommendations from others as to who to follow.  Networking at its best!  Know what your objective is when it comes to your Twitter profile.  Some people that follow me on my personal Twitter profile might be a better fit for our Get a Social Boost profile and vice versa.  A little research goes a long way!

Don’t Annoy

And lastly, please don’t send Twitter DM’s (direct messages) with your link or other promotions.  A lot of people can’t stand spam and will quickly remove you from their list just as fast as they added you.  Not only does it waste peoples time having to get notice in their email but it fills up their direct message Twitter stream which can be annoying.  I would much rather see someone tweet with a quick, “Thanks for the follow, tell me something about yourself” and maybe offer up a link to a freebie there on Twitter instead of filling up my inbox.

These were just a few tips that I have found necessary and although they could be a bit complex, over time it will be worth it!

What is your #1 Twitter follow tip?

High School Reunions and Facebook

Danielle posted a video the other day about the effects of Facebook and I wanted to share a quick story to expand on some of her points.

Over the last year my husband has been connecting with some of his old grade school and high school buds.  We signed up to attend his 30th high school reunion after a few of his classmates started planning it.  They set up a Facebook group for their graduating class and started sending out invites on Facebook (and via postal mail).  From there it just snowballed and people were making connections left and right.  There were some classmates that were hard to find but with a bit of searching even some of those people were found.

THE High School Reunion

A few weekends ago we attended my husband Kevin’s 30th high school reunion and Facebook was hopping throughout the entire weekend keeping his classmates who couldn’t attend in the loop on what was going on PLUS keeping those who did attend excited about the festivities and connecting each other together for information.  Kevin and I not only had our regular cameras but we had our iPhones and were able to post pictures on the fly from the entire weekend’s festivities starting with the high school bon-fire, school parade with floats, reunion dinner and the Sunday breakfast social.  I thought it was genius and everyone enjoyed the time he took to share the weekend events.  “It was almost like you were there”, some say.  I especially enjoyed it because I knew I would be missing my 20th high school reunion the very next weekend and thought for sure a few in my class would do the same and share some highlights throughout the weekend.  I was wrong and totally bummed that no one took the time to snap a few photos from their smart phones and put them online during the reunion (and if they did I guess I wasn’t following the right people ha ha).  Kevin’s friends to this day are still talking about how special he made it and I think it was great.  We also made sure to get everyone’s Facebook info while at the reunion and now you should see all the tagging of pictures going on.  What started out as a pretty small world just got much bigger.  Facebook really made an impact on their 30th high school reunion, that is for sure.

I have heard some say that there really isn’t a need for reunions if everyone is already connecting on Facebook but it’s just not the same as getting together face to face.  And before you think you might already know everything about your high school friends from Facebook even maybe more than you wanted to know at times you would be very wrong.  Connecting in person you learn much more.  I personally feel that over time, some of the connections will dwindle down a lot but Facebook has really made an impact and can be a big influence on high school reunions.

Have you found Facebook helpful for connecting you with old classmates?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HdsHtNkRjs

I have had so much fun on Facebook because I have connected with people I thought I would never see again.  I know what is going on with my family in other states and countries because they post it their walls!  I can see up-to-date pictures of my nieces and nephews that live hundreds of miles away.  Not only that I get great coupons from my favorite companies.  I can enter sweepstakes (another hobby of mine).  Facebook has become very versatile. We have recently started a Get a Social Boost Fan page!  This is another way we can connect to people that are in need of our services!

Angie and I would love to find out how you use Facebook?  Please let us know how Facebook effects your day-to-day life?  Have the changes been negative or positive? Give us all the dirt!!

Here is the Social Media news from this week:

Pedigree was offering free dog food to bloggers who blogged about Pedigree’s adoption program.  Looks like a win-win to me!

I love this blog post by Billy McDonald called 6 Dinner Table Setting Steps for Optimizing Your Blog Posts. Those of us that are visual people it is a great visual on how to optimize  your posts to get the most out of them! So how do you set your SEO dinner table?

Do you feel like you have a voice in this world.  If you say no you need to read this post: How Social Medial Influence Reinstated a Popular Facebook Page. We can gather together and make a difference and let our voices be heard, after all this is Social Media!

In any business it is so important to stay on track.  How do you stay on track?  Use some time management skills and here are 5 Useful Time Management Tools that our really helpful!

Remember last weeks Social Media News? There were some really big announcements on the Twitter front!  Here are two great posts featuring the changes: Twitter to Release a Real Time Analytics Solution This Year and A Comprehensive Look at the New Twitter.

This wraps up this week in Social Media News.  This will keep you up-to-date for at least a day or two

photo credit: Frinthy