Derek Johnson’s Social Media 101
Derek engaged us with an excellent nuts and bolts social media ‘how to’ discussion. Nearly half of the audience owned their own businesses, and were eager to hear this Bellingham local social media veteran’s advice. He outlined and explained the most important things to focus on in your social marketing campaign:
1. Talk with people, not at them.
- Connecting with your customers is a two way street. You add value to the conversation, when you are not just blowing your own horn (which is typical for traditional mass marketing techniques: television, radio, printed publications)
2. Different Networks require different content.
- Each social stream is different and reaches a different audience. Your messages should be written accordingly. Embed photos and videos on sites such as Facebook, where it is an option, and write your Tweets, to reach your Twitter audience.
3. Don’t jump on the bandwagon.
- Don’t waste your time to post on every new social marketing channel. There are dozens of Facebook clones, but many of them will have little or no value to you.
4. Include your social marketing links and tags everywhere.
- Your business cards, advertisements, email signature, and other business marketing materials should all include your Facebook page, your Twitter channel, your LinkedIn page, and other important points of contact.
5. People do business with people. Build a personal brand first.
- If you are planning a social marketing campaign for your small business, build your personal Facebook page first. Include your interests, and hobbies, photos and so forth. You’ll next build a Facebook for your brand (Your company’s page). Clients who are thinking of doing business with you will find you. People like to do business
with people.
6. Don’t create many personal Facebook accounts to reach different groups of people.
- When someone searches, they will find more than one, and it can be confusing.
7. Your return on investment (ROI) is probably bigger than you think.
- Tools like Google Analytics will tell you a lot about where your web traffic is coming from. But due to the very nature of ’social’ each blog post or tweet will also have a residual effect, which you can’t track.
8. Copying someone else’s successful formula is not bad.
- Find someone else in a similar line of business who is really doing it well. Don’t feel bad about using some of the same techniques. Chances are that other person did the same thing.
9. Don’t ask ‘How much time will I waste on this’
– Social marketing IS the new way of reaching your audience. Your efforts will pay back.
10. Your posts should ‘add value’ and be relevant to your customer’s
needs.
– Don’t blog about just anything. What do your potential clients needs? Can you provide some valuable information.
Social Media Conference NW – Evolving Marketing Conversations, March 25, 2010
Social Media Conference NW – Evolving Marketing Conversations, March 25, 2010
