Getting Started With Social Networks

Years ago, when I began to learn about how to use blogging to enhance my business, I have to admit, I was quickly overwhelmed.

I was taught that I needed to publish a new blog post daily (at least for the first three months) to quickly build a following and really see any significant traffic, in a relatively short amount of time.  This would help build my list, and generate leads and sales for my business.

Back then, long, 300-1,000+ word articles was the standard length for blog posts.

Being a perfectionist in my writing, it was taking me four hours or more just to get one blog post done.  There was absolutely no way, I could spend this amount of time every day on my blogging.  I had a business to run and a family to raise.

Not to mention the challenges of: figuring out what to write, research, editing etc.

I quickly became discouraged as I kept falling behind in my blogging, which carried over into my other systems of online marketing like Social Media and email marketing.

My despair grew even more as I noticed my competitors consistently blogging, building a strong following and presence online.

What are they doing different?

Where do they find the time to do all that writing?

How can they afford to hire outsource teams to write for them?

What am I doing wrong?

What is wrong with me?

Will I ever be able to compete effectively online?

These were some of the questions going through my mind as I tried to figure out how to make blogging work in my business.

So how do you keep from falling behind in your business blogging?

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Many entrepreneurs I coach, consult, or just plain talk to, are often hesitant to use Twitter for business, or anything else, because they simply don’t know how.  Many just don’t understand how sending a few short updates can grow their business.  They don’t see how knowing that “I’m going to the restroom now” is relevant to their bottom line.  It’s not.

Using Twitter for business is far different than just using Twitter for fun, like some kids and celebrities.

Even so, there is no one right way.

What works for one business may be totally wrong for another.  It depends on your company’s overall objective for using Twitter and your desired outcome.  Are you wanting to generate leads, make sales, improve your customer service, find out what’s being said about your business etc.

See my earlier post, “What Are The Benefits Of Twitter For Business” for information on ways Twitter and other Social Media platforms can enhance your business.

Although the “right” way to use Twitter for business varies from company to company, there are some general things you can do, and not do, to make the most out of your Social Media marketing efforts.

For instance:

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Around three years ago very few people knew what a blog is.  Today, there are over 200,000,000 blogs with new blogs going live every second.

“What exactly is a blog?” you may ask.

A blog is a website, but different from a traditional website in many ways.

The biggest advantage a blog has over a traditional website is that it allows the blog owner to communicate and effectively engage with his/her audience or traffic.

Since the beginning of time, successful business has been built upon quality, successful relationships.  People will do business with someone they first know, then like, and eventually trust.

Maintaining a blog for your business allows you, the entrepreneur, to build relationships with your prospects, and engage them in a way that serves them rather than sells them.  It allows you to maintain engagement with, and service to, your existing customers who then become repeat customers.  This concept of serving vs. selling builds lifelong relationships that grow into lifelong customers and clients.

Piece blogging together with social media and email marketing, and you have a powerful, low to no cost system of advertising that far outshines expensive yellow page and newspaper ads.

Plus, blogs are designed in a way that makes them easily optimized for search engines and have all the pieces search engines are looking for in order to award rank.

We all know that in order to make sales, we need lots of traffic going to our site.  To get lots of traffic, our site must rank high in search results for our market-or keyword(s).

An entrepreneur with a well maintained blog, utilizing the right posting and traffic strategies will not only climb high in the search engines fast, but will dominate search engines for his/her market.

What do I mean by dominate?

Well, most people are doing all kinds of things (some ethical, some not) to secure that coveted first place listing on search engines.

However, it is far better to secure listings 3-10 on the first page, because in the mind of your ideal prospect, who is finding you there, you are the expert.  You are the expert because every time he clicks a link, in some way it points back to you, be it a blog post, a video, Twitter update, Facebook update and so on.

Today, Google is looking for quality content on your site that is varied (text, audio, video etc.).  Google is also looking to see how much engagement is happening on your blog (comments), and sharing (social bookmarking) of your content.  When Google sees this, you are considered an authority and rewarded with high page rank.

I use a system I call, “The Ideal Five For Business“.

This encompasses Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, YouTube and my blog at the center, as the hub of my Internet marketing efforts.

When I publish a new post on my blog, it automatically posts to my Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin accounts so I am getting both new traffic from search engines, and repeat traffic from my following on social media platforms.  Plus, my new post is automatically bookmarked to social bookmarking sites and shared, driving even more traffic.

This whole system costs me $15 per month for hosting, $30 per month for my auto responder, and $12 per year for the domain.

This beats expensive advertising every day, plus the traffic is highly targeted and motivated.  Targeted because of a proper foundation and motivated because I serve them rather than sell them.

Utilizing this system brings revenue into your business you wouldn’t have otherwise, plus allows you to reach millions around the world with your message, brand, passion etc.

So how do you begin to use blogging to enhance your business?

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As a business owner, you know by now that building a strong, powerful, dominating presence online is essential to long term business success.

Staying competitive in your market these days requires well established Internet marking, Social Media marketing, and email marketing skills.

Are you paying too much for advertising that is no longer effective?

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As I mentioned in a previous post, more and more large corporations are turning to Twitter and other Social Media platforms for effective, inexpensive alternatives to conventional advertising.

Originally, Twitter was created and used as a virtual water cooler, a place where it’s creators could gather, without leaving their desks, and share ideas.

Obviously, Twitter quickly caught on and people everywhere started “tweeting”.

Not intended for business at first, marketers soon discovered that the unique ability to build relationships with potential clients makes Twitter (and other platforms) great for business.

As of April, 2010, 105,779,770 Twitter users were reported and there is room for enormous growth.

Also, 51% of Twitter users follow companies, brands, or products on social networks.

These kinds of statistics let us know that, if done correctly, amazing things can be accomplished on Twitter for business.

What Can Twitter Do For My Business?

1. Grow your business/Dominate your market.
2. Establish and/or extend the reach of your brand.
3. Raise the profile of your business.
4. Build publicity for your products, services, events.
5. Build deeper relationships with customers, clients and other entrepreneurs.
6. Gain wisdom and advice from experts.
7. Gain additional streams of web traffic.
8. Give alerts to previous visitors of new content on your websites.
9. Promote blog posts.
10. Turn followers into visitors/visitors into paying customers.

Referring to an example I’ve used before, Twitter makes it possible to totally revolutionize your customer service.  When set up correctly, you are able to respond instantly to customer service issues, or simply follow up with customers and prospects.

So how do I effectively set up Twitter for business?

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As a small business owner in the early 1990’s, methods of advertising were not what they are today.  I remember, agonizing over how to most effectively invest the limited business capital we had.  A Yellow Page ad, in our industry (Transportation) was an absolute must, but oh, so expensive.

In order to compete, we really needed a full page ad.  Limited resources, however, allowed us only a half page ad.

It was obviously better than nothing.

Unfortunately, the high costs of advertising, coupled with the drastic changes in the market, led to us having to close that business and get regular jobs, not something that anyone with a true entrepreneurial heart wants to do.

Later, in Real Estate, newspaper ads and direct mail marketing were preferred, along with the more pricey radio and television ads.

Then we discovered the Internet and Internet Marketing.

Suddenly, more and more Realtors had websites.  Virtual tours were popping up everywhere, and a new breed of home-buyer was emerging.  Young, up and coming professionals who had no problem viewing a virtual tour of a home on a website, then contacting the Realtor to see more-or even make an offer.

These exciting changes were not just for Realtors.  Marketing online became a huge, promising, and economical alternative across all industies worldwide.

I’ve seen three major shifts in the ten years I’ve been involved in Internet Marketing.

1.  Google vs. Yellow Page Ads

Internet searches have virtually put an end to conventional advertising like Yellow Pages and Newspaper Ads.  A company without a web presence is miles behind it’s competition.

2.  Blogs vs. Websites

Just putting up a website on the Internet is not enough. Blogs are proven to be significantly more effective for marketing online because of the interaction and engagement with prospects you don’t get with static websites.

Because of the built in search engine optimization of blogs, they climb high in search engine rankings quickly. Plus, they are inexpensive to set up and free to maintain and update.

3.  Social Media

Pepsi Cola pulled out of the 2010 Super Bowl, electing to invest in Social Media Marketing rather than over $1 Million for a 30 second commercial. While many large corporations gladly spend $40,000 per year on a Social Media Manager to handle their accounts, small business owners can capitalize on this type of marketing with little to no investment.

With Social Media Marketing, any business, large or small can quickly and inexpensively market to their prospects and service their existing customers more efficiently than ever before.

Example

An Internet Marketer I know created an ebook and sold it on his blog.  In his marketing he offered,

“Tweet me if you have any questions or concerns”

One day, a customer purchased his ebook but could not download the product.  Frustrated, he went on Twitter and sent a tweet to the Marketer about his issue.  Receiving the tweet directly to his I phone, the marketer was able to instantly reply to the issue, giving immediate, glowing customer support that everyone on his follower list witnessed.

Not only did this savvy marketer successfully deal with one paying customer, but he also displayed excellence, honesty and integrity in business to thousands of warm prospects without tooting his own horn, so to speak.  Plus, Twitter, like all other Social Media Marketing platforms is free to use.

So how do you use Social Media Marketing to grow your business?

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