Tag : Small business

  • Are You Making These 10 Social Media Business Blunders?

    Posted Aug 26th, 2009 By in Social Bookmarking, Social Media, Social Networking With | 10 Comments

    Small business owners are discovering the power of social to promote their products and services every day. While tweeting or stumbling can be an excellent method of getting your business name out there and gathering fans, it is really only powerful when used correctly.

    Unfortunately, many small business owners are eager to take part in this free method of promotion but fail to understand exactly how to make use of it. Here are some of the most common blunders made in social media.
    1. Bookmarking every single blog post. Stick to promoting the best content you have and people will pay a lot more attention. As a side note, you should be bookmarking other people’s great content, too, not just your own.
    2. Asking for help to promote a website or blog post. This is usually done once the post has been submitted to every social bookmarking site under the sun. Again, stick to only your best posts or people will quickly become jaded.
    3. Add everyone as a friend. Having the most friends doesn’t mean you’ll get more clients. It does mean you will sort through more spam and if you spam thousands of people, you could destroy your business reputation.
    4. Advertising in blog comments. Everyone loves a comment on their blog, but when you leave a business ad instead of a legit comment; many blog owners will just delete it or mark it as spam.
    5. No image branding. Not only is your profile picture important on social media sites, but some allow you to have a background image that can be put to good use, as well, such as Twitter. Make sure you use the opportunity.
    6. Leaving holes in your profiles. Completing all your social media profiles with all the important information (hobbies, your business info., etc.) helps you attract like-minded members but it also shows people that you’re not only here to spam.
    7. Not interacting. Social media, by its very definition, requires interaction. If you are just posting and ignoring everyone else, you will end up with fewer interested followers.
    8. Taking on too much. There are hundreds of social media sites, but you won’t be able to effectively use them all, or even a percentage of them. Stick to just 2-3 quality sites or get some help.
    9. Hard selling. Direct marketing can work in social media, but you need to create the relationships before you try and call on them. If you immediately start selling, no one is going to listen. You will be know as spammer and damage your reputation. Trust me, you cannot afford to do that with social media because the news spreads fast online.
    10. Not measuring your results. You need to review your strategy and know what your goals are. Then through your metrics you have to see if you are meeting these goals. Otherwise, there really will be no reason to jump into social media.
    Social media can make or break your business. With more and more consumers online these days, it is the perfect opportunity to present your small business as a human business and offer your services to a willing audience. Doing things the right way will pay off.
    What other social media blunders you have seen businesses make?
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  • Can Twitter Retain More Users and Businesses?

    Posted Aug 14th, 2009 By in Twitter With | No Comments

    Twitter, the fast growing social network, has gained a lot of traffic recently – According to Nielsen, nearly 2,000% growth in the U.S. over last year. Approximately 21 million monthly unique visitors and 628 million page views.

    Twitter is gaining so much traffic recently. Does this mean that there are more people who better understand how to use it effectively? Nope! Countless numbers sign up for a Twitter account and either never use it or try it for a week or two and decide that they aren’t interested.

    A Nielson study showed 60 percent of Twitter users stop using the much-hyped service after a month. This study did not include people who use Twitter via third-party apps. The main reason people leave Twitter is because they just don’t get it. They might see it as only another gossip forum or a haven for soccer moms to brag about their kids.

    Not only is the retention low, but common folk surveyed still have little idea of what Twitter is. According to a new LinkedIn Research Network/Harris Poll, out of 2,025 U.S. adults surveyed, 69% said they didn’t know enough about Twitter. Compare that to just 17% of advertisers who admitted to not knowing much about the website.

    This only says two things: First, Twitter is not doing the greatest job at explaining its benefits to consumers and businesses. Second, it’s not doing a good job at promoting any changes they are making to help consumers and businesses understand Twitter better.

    In the last few weeks, Twitter revamped their home page to help newcomers decipher the point of the website. The new home page enables visitors who don’t have accounts or aren’t logged in to try out the site before signing up.

    Also, to help boost the “stickiness” of Twitter and keep new users, Twitter has just issued an online guide titled Twitter 101. The guide is designed to teach new users the absolute best way to use the social media site for the good of their business. While it might be a little late in coming, this could be the key to the site boosting the number of recruits that they retain.

    Covering everything from explaining what Twitter is and how it can be used for the benefit of business, this guide is quite informative. It includes best practices, case studies and even suggested techniques to help business owners turn the social marketing tool into something beneficial for their business, thus encouraging them to use it.

    After speaking at a few events and asking dozens of people about if they know about the new Twitter guide, I’ve discovered that still not too many people know about it. Twitter definitely needs a better strategy of informing its users.

    Even if you use Twitter on a regular basis, the guide is a good read (I read every page) and worth checking out. You could pick up a few tips and learn how brands and small business owners are using Twitter successfully.

    Also, if you have not seen the CommonCraft Video explaining Twitter in plain English, you can watch it here.
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  • What Is Social Media and How Does It Help My Business?

    Posted Feb 17th, 2009 By in Social Media, Social Networking With | No Comments

    We are getting many calls and e-mails from small business owners asking us: What is social media and what can it do for our business? So, we thought this deserved a blog post.

    What is Social Media?

    Social Media is a collection of online communities that enable us to connect with people socially, share stories and experiences as well as publish and promote content. Blogs as well as many social networking sites including Facebook, Twitter, Flicker, YouTube and LinkedIn have help us connect with people across the world in ways we never thought possible. Engaging in social media is similar to business networking events or social cocktail parties without the restriction of time and space. On a personal or business level, social networking is about:

    • Building relationships
    • Starting online conversations
    • Creating word-of-mouth
    • Answering questions or helping others
    • Asking questions
    • Trusting recommendations
    • Taking Advice

    Why is Social Media important for your business?

    More than likely, your business, products, services, or industry is being discussed somewhere online. When you actively participate in social communities with your customers, you stand out greatly by being a company that people want to interact with. You are able to include customers on your decisions, ideas, and thoughts. Social media is an excellent PR tool which sets you apart from competition as well as increases visibility and accessibility of your business. It allows you to:

    • Manage your reputation online
    • Build recognizable identity or branding of your products or services
    • Create “Buzz” or online conversations about products or services
    • Form relationships with customers, prospects, employees, business partners, investors, colleagues, or friends
    • Invite positive or critical feedback, dialogue, and discussion
    • Speak directly, openly and honestly with your customers
    • Articulate your viewpoints, knowledge & expertise pertaining to your industry
    • Reach millions of people globally who could potentially become customers

    The truth is that it is only the beginning for social media, and it is not going away. So, you cannot afford to ignore it for your business.

    The information we shared is a good start and will get you thinking about your business. Stay tuned for more posts about social media. We hope we answered your basic questions. Please leave your comments and feedback, and we promise to respond back and assist you in any way we can. We are here to help and we would love to hear from you!

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  • Building Web Presence for Small Businesses

    Posted Dec 10th, 2008 By in Internet Marketing With | No Comments

    While browsing through online forums, I noticed one question being asked over and over: I have a small business so why do I need web presence? This is a great question because many small businesses often do not have a clue why they have a website.

    The Internet is an affordable, convenient, and effective medium which has become the best source of information for many computer-savvy consumers; therefore, it is very important for even the smallest of businesses to have web presence. It is not necessary for all businesses to have a website, but some sort of presence (i.e., online local directory listings, an e-mail address to communicate with customers, etc.).

    In my opinion, there are seven reasons why businesses of any size can benefit from being active online:

    1. Visibility: With a click of a mouse, millions of people are turning to the Internet to research products and services. If you want them to find your products/services, then you need to be on online.
    2. Reach: A small business is no longer limited to marketing its products or services to its local area and can expand to national or international markets. The Internet is a great way to announce to the world that a business exists! Your business may be in California, but you may have potential customers in Japan.
    3. Increased Revenues: Since you are now reaching more people, the chances of closing a sale are much better. On the Internet, there are no geographic boundaries to keep you from selling to potential customers across the world.
    4. Increased Savings: An online business decreases administrative costs, telecommunications costs as well as marketing costs. Research shows that Internet Marketing has one of the best returns on investment (ROI) then any other form of marketing.
    5. Customer Service: With online presence, your business is available to customers 24/7. If your website is operating on auto-pilot, there is no need for your customers to wait for you to open your store, they can log onto your website and find the information or products they are looking for anytime (We all know how many insomniacs there are out there!).
    6. Credibility: The Internet can assist in building a strong corporate identity. In addition, having a professional looking website will add to your reputation and increase customer confidence in your business.
    7. Competition: The Internet has given an opportunity to smaller businesses to compete with larger corporations. If potential customers cannot find you online, chances are they will find your competitors.

    A small business can build its web presence with a minimal budget. The creation of a web site does not have to be outsourced. There are software programs such Adobe Dreamweaver or Microsoft Expression Web that will assist in building a professional looking website for a few hundred dollars, or you can use the free software provided by your web hosting company.

    A well designed site will communicate your vision and display your products and services. Once the site is built, optimized for the search engines, and ready to be introduced to potential customers, you can use the major search engines, such as Google and Yahoo! Both have very effective local search capabilities.

    You do not have to be listed in 20 search engines, only the major players because that is where the customers are going. There are also many marketing tactics on the Internet that often do not require a financial investment, but can produce amazing results. These include article writing, forum marketing, viral marketing (i.e., Email, instant messaging, blogs, social bookmarking sites such as del.icio.us and digg, and media sites such as YouTube and flickr. etc.)

    So, regardless of the size of your business, establishing online presence can only offer a world of benefits for your industry.

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