A business has to be marketed effectively to be successful. A useful marketing strategy is social media networking. There is currently a variety of social venues that will enable you to build a strong relationship with your customers, a respectable online presence, and a competitive business edge in your field. Among these are Facebook, Twitter, blogs, forums, LinkedIn, and YouTube, to name a few of the constantly growing social online frenzy. Social media platforms offer an easy and fast way to communicate with clients. Tune yourself in to the social networking culture and unleash the power of social marketing to promote your business.
To take advantage of Facebook, you need to register a business page, which differs from any personal Facebook account you might have. Next, get people to become fans of your business page by using Facebook advertising, interacting with individuals on this or other social site and directing them to Facebook, or using your own website to invite them to like your page. As you attract more people, your page and organization will enjoy higher visibility. If you’re new to Facebook, take a look at the pages of your competition, so that you know what kinds of Facebook applications they’re using to elevate themselves.
Another popular internet social tool is Twitter. As a Twitter user, you can start posting “tweets” containing links to your business site to keep other users informed. Your Twitter fans will immediately receive these tweets. When they comment on them or retweet you tweets, it creates a virtual tidal wave of publicity for you. Think of the business exposure you are being offered with a website boasting millions of users.
As another social means of boosting your business, build a company blog. Blogs are a more casual, interactive platform than the more formal company website.
Ask your web hosting service for assistance setting up a blog. They may offer that as part of their hosting package, or they may be able to recommend another resource. A how-to guide or sites such as blogspot.com are useful for setting up a blog by yourself. Many user-friendly, do-it-yourself sites will show you how to upload videos, blog posts, and mroe with a few quick lessons. You can also opt to hire an experienced professional to build and manage the blog. As soon as you decide to pursue a blog, reserve your domain name. You don’t want your ideal name to be snatched up by someone else while you’re busy deciding on a theme.
To get people to visit and comment on your blog, you need to become active on other blogs. You can make use of sites such as Technoradi or Alltop.com to help you find relevant blog content related to your nature of business. Visit those blogs regularly and leave your comments, share your experiences, and invite the blog’s owner and the users to visit your blog as well. This will expand your contact network, which can be extremely valuable for future transactions.
While the social media craze began on computers, it is now extremely mobile via the high capacity, technologically advanced phones available on today’s market. Two of the more popular social media formats for mobile devices are Yelp and Foursquare. Those looking for city guides to the best eateries, shops, and other attractions commonly refer to Yelp, which features online reviews and ongoing discussions among the locals, or Yelpers. Foursquare is primarily for finding out where your friends are and what they are up to. These apps are still in the early stages as far as marketing opportunities are concerned.
Flickr and YouTube are examples of sites that have developed into social media marketing opportunities. Through videos on You Tube you can establish a link to your site. Similarly, you can lure people to your site through the use of photos on Flickr. These sites are already marketing boons, but they still have many more opportunities available for new companies.
Social media can be used in many formats to fulfill the needs of your budding business. You don’t usually have to pay anything to join these sites, but you will have to put in some effort to set your marketing strategy into motion. With so little at risk and so much to gain, what is stopping you from maximizing your presence through social media marketing?