Are you using the right social media networks?

The world of online sales is growing fast.

The Internet makes it so easy to reach out and touch people–and touch more people than you ever could knocking on doors or networking in person. Social media has replaced the networking mixer just as search engines have replaced the phone book. It’s sometimes a lot easier to click a mouse than shake a hand. Because of this more and more business owners are opting to put their mouse clicking skills to work and reach a mass audience through social media.

As the methods for employing social media grows so does the number of social media networks. Every other week it seems there is a new social media network. Every time a new social media network is introduced it’s touted as the newest, next best thing. It’s the place everyone should be and you may quickly log on and build your social media profile. Then the next best big thing comes along and again you follow the crowd of techno-savvy marketers and build your profile there too. Soon your company has more social media profiles than you know what to do with.

• What are the methods for employing social media?
• Does number of social media networks make it to difficult?
• Has Social media has replaced networking mixer?
• How do business owners owners reach a mass audience through social media?
• How do you build social media profile?
• Does Your company have asocial media profile?
• How are you are supposed to play in the social media field?
• How do industries benefit better from certain types of social media?
• Can you keep up social media?
• What industries work best with what social media networking?

You know you are supposed to play in the social media field but when do you stop joining social networks? And if you do stop won’t you be out of the loop somehow or left behind when everyone rushes to join the latest social network? Social media networking sounds like it should be easier than marketing offline but really, the same rules apply. Namely, you want to narrow your focus and target your market. When should you stop joining social networks? When you are no longer able to be social on those sites. How many social profiles are too many? Whatever number keeps you from having the ability to update and interact on them on a regular basis.

Of course that prompts the question, “If I’m not on every social network doesn’t that mea
I’m not being social?” And my answer to that is that not every business should be on every social networking site. Some sites really just aren’t as successful for certain businesses. Partly because like I said before, if you can’t keep up your social media profile then it defeats the purpose of having one, but also because some industries simply benefit better from certain types of social media.

I will stop short of declaring what industries work best with what social media networking because I think that is something that can’t be an absolute. Each company should test out where their customers are most responsive and concentrate on that social network or networks. However I’ve learned from working with clients, helping with their social media profiles and monitoring results, some trends have emerged.

Sites like Twitter work great if you have lots of little tidbits to talk about or if you want to provide information in real time. It’s useful if you have a services-oriented business and can put to use live tweets about a discussion or interview you are conducting. If you have something that lends itself to regular updates that people want, then Twitter works. On the other hand if you are selling products and don’t have a whole lot of timely pertinent information to add on a regular basis, then maybe Twitter is not for you.

Facebook works well if you have a community of customers. That is to say, customers that are loyal to the brand and identify with it. Harley Davidson motorcycles is a good example of this brand community. When you have such a customer base that is fiercely loyal they want to be a part of whatever you do. Facebook gives them the opportunity to share with each other and feel like they are still part of the group because they are all members of the same business page.

Foursquare and other geography based applications are great if you have a physical locations where customers can frequent. While it’s not the best place to spread announcements, it is an excellent place to promote deals or discounts. On the other hand announcing specials on Facebook or Twitter too many times can cost you some of your followers—and potential customers.

So then how do you put it all together? Which social networks should you join? Let us make those decisions for you. We’ll put our social media expertise to work determining what social networks are right for your business and customer base. We’ll help you set up your social media profiles and help you promote them. We’ll help you build your social media following and even begin posting for you.

You want to be social in your online brand awareness campaign but that doesn’t mean you have to be everywhere. Let us help you find the best place to focus your social networking efforts. Call me… 201-305-3303