Social Media Savvy and Marketing your Business

METRO MEDIA CONSULTING GROUP:  Strategic Social Media for the 21st Century

Excellent article from Mashable - one of my all-time favorite blogs  -  about how social media know-how can really give your business maximum exposure and search engine optimization for the 21st century.   Excerpt and link below: 

Here at Metro Media Consulting Group,  we have the savvy and the expertise to help put together strategic social media packages which include professional writing services.  

  It is easy enough to understand that social media venues such as Twitter,  Linked-In,  and Facebook can help with your online business profile and getting the word out,  but for a truly strategic social media campaign,  experts at MMCG are eager and willing to give you that extra  comprehensive and well-thought out package which will give your enterprise the advantage and edge.  

1. Facebook

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Facebook offers exceptional, low cost marketing opportunities for small business. Facebook now has over 300 million users, and while that seems like an outrageous number for small businesses to be targeting, Facebook offers a very powerful platform on which to build a presence. If you’re not already active on Facebook; you should get started right away.

Basic Strategy: If you haven’t signed up for Facebook yet, you absolutely should as soon as possible. Once you’ve signed up, you should also consider securing your company’s username. Be aware, however, that if you reserve your company name for your personal account, you won’t be able to use it for your Business Fan Page (more on those in the Advanced Strategy), so you may want to create a Page before registering your company’s name. Fan Pages have special rules regarding usernames, which you can read here.

You should do one other thing: search for your competitors and evaluate their Facebook presence. What types of Pages have they built? How many fans or “friends” do they have? Spend 15 minutes (per competitor) looking at their posts, photos and/or videos to understand how they’re using Facebook.

Advanced Strategy: You may already have a personal Facebook account, but how do you extend that presence for your business? You have several options. You can register a Business Account – which is designed for a very simple presence on Facebook. There are many limitations on such accounts (read the FAQ here), however, so you’ll most likely prefer to have a Business Fan Page. A Business Fan Page lets you create a page where customers or fans of your business can register as a “fan” — expanding the presence of your business (because your updates will also flow to their pages). You might also want to consider running hyper-local ads on Facebook.

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2. Twitter

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Twitter has grown tremendously over the past year. For some small businesses, it offers an incredible marketing platform. BusinessWeek’s recent profile of 20 ways businesses use Twitter might give you some ideas about how you can leverage Twitter for your business.

Basic Strategy: If you haven’t signed up on Twitter yet, you should sign up today and reserve an account in the name of your business. While you might ultimately tweet in your own name, you’ll want to have the option to tweet from a business account. More importantly, you don’t want your competitors to register your business name. Twitter has put together a simple guide to help you understand what Twitter can do for business. You can also check out Mashable’s Twitter Guide.

Next, you should spend 15-30 minutes on Twitter’s homepage, doing basic searches to become familiar with the type of content available on the service. For example, if you are operating a small gift basket business, do some searches for various terms and phrases such as “gift basket,” “gifts,” “gift basket business,” etc. You should also search for the names of your competitors to see whether they’re on Twitter and if they are, how they’re using it. And don’t forget to search for your small business name – your customers may already be talking about you! Once you become comfortable with the content that’s already available and how your competitors are using Twitter, you can begin thinking about a strategy for how you’ll leverage Twitter for your business.

Advanced Strategy: To truly leverage Twitter, you’ll want to learn and use a few more advanced tools. This includes desktop and mobile Twitter clients like TweetDeck, Seesmic, and Tweetie. Desktop clients give you more flexibility and more control over your Twitter strategy than you’ll have on the Twitter website. Among other things, you’ll be able to pre-define searches (so that you can monitor certain keywords, including your business name) and group people you follow so that you can minimize the noise and focus on the real content. You might also consider using a web tool like Twitterfall, which will allow you to define (and color-code) various custom searches that you can review from time to time, and also to follow trending topics. For example, I use Twitterfall to identify helpful graphic design and industrial design resources to share with the crowdSPRING community.

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3. Company Blog

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Although there’s more attention focused today on social networks than on company blogs, blogs continue to offer great value for small businesses.

Basic Strategy: At a minimum, you should consider reserving a domain name for your blog – if you don’t already have a custom domain for your business. If you’re comfortable enough to set up your own blog, that’s generally the best way to proceed – although this requires a bit more technical knowledge (many hosting providers offer a 1 step easy setup for blogs that will automatically install WordPress for you). You can also setup a blog directly at WordPress.com (it’s easier to do, but you don’t have full control over everything that you would on your own site).

One easy alternative is to set up a simple blog at Posterous – a place to post stories, photos, videos, MP3s, and files. There are pluses and minuses to all of these options – you should take some time to compare them and do what makes sense for your business. I caution you only about spreading yourself too thin.

Advanced Strategy: Now that you’ve decided to start or improve your small business blog, how do you build an audience for it? It all starts with great content. Decide on a focus for your blog, and write awesome content that people will enjoy. For example, some months ago at my company, we decided that we wanted to write more about small business issues, so we’ve been writing original posts focusing on issues affecting small businesses. Think about your expertise and more importantly, think about the things that you’re interested in writing about. A blog requires a long term investment of time (and resources), and you don’t want to be stuck writing about things that bore you.

You’ll also want to consider how you can make it easier for your readers to help promote your content. For example, install helpful plug-ins, such as a TweetMeme button, which makes it easy for people to retweet your posts on Twitter. Don’t be afraid to experiment with plugins to add to the functionality of your blog, but keep it simple. You want to keep the blog focused, and easy for your readers to use.

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4. LinkedIn

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LinkedIn is a business oriented social network for professionals, and it’s huge, with nearly 50 million users from over 200 countries.

Basic Strategy: Once again, you’ll want to at least reserve your business name (or your personal name) so that others can’t use it. Similar to the way you might start exploring Facebook and Twitter, you should look around on LinkedIn to see how your competitors are using the service. You might also look up your customers and connect with them.

Advanced Strategy: LinkedIn has some powerful features that most people don’t use. For example, you can encourage your customers, clients or vendors to give you a “recommendation” on your profile. Recommendations are useful because they’ll make you and your business more credible with new customers. If you’re a roofer, for example, ask your customers to recommend you after a successful job. You’ll find such recommendations useful – particularly since your LinkedIn profile will come up high in search engine results. I recommend that you read Chris Brogan’s post from last year discussing the elements of a good LinkedIn recommendation.

Another strategy involves the many subject matter groups on LinkedIn. Find some groups that have a connection to your small business and become involved in the conversations. Answer questions when you can, and help to establish yourself as knowledgeable about specific topics related to your business. There are many small business and general marketing groups that will be very useful resources for you, and if there isn’t a group that interests you, consider starting one.  READ MORE @ http://mashable.com/2009/10/28/small-business-marketing/

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Avoiding SEO/Social Media Errors and Pitfalls

Image via WikipediaIn the internet age,  social media has become the powerhouse of brand recognition and marketing.  However,  if you want to avoid some of the common pitfalls and errors of social media,  having a team of SEO professionals behind you is key.

At Metro Media Consulting Group,  we know how to help you avoid these errors, and steer you into the waters of smooth social media sailing.

Here are some of the errors which may be encountered, and the ways to avoid and resolve them,  as set forth in this excellent and astute piece by Rick Itzkowich,  of Rick Itzkowich Consulting:

Mistake # 1: Not having the right mindset.
If you go into SN with a sales mentality, you will fail. Sales is about closing transactions. Networking is about building relationships. There's a time where selling is appropriate in a relationship. However nothing damages a relationship faster than selling without first building a relationship.

The Referral Institute teaches the VCP model. VCP stands for Visibility - Credibility - Profitability. In simple terms, this means that people need to first know who you are. Then they need to trust you. It's only when they both know and trust you that they comfortably buy from you. Trying to move from visibility to profitability without earning credibility doesn't work.

To correct Mistake #1 shift your focus from selling to building relationships.

Mistake #2: Not having a strategy.

Going into the SN arena without having a strategy is like going to the grocery store without a list, and to make matters even worse, going when you're starving. Odds are you will forget to buy some of the items you truly needed, and you will bring home some junk instead.

Using the VCP model, you must have a strategy to increase both your visibility and your credibility. When you accomplish this, generating business will be much easier. So what would be an example of a strategy to build your visibility? At Biznik.com you can easily do this by writing articles, hosting events, posting comments, answering questions, welcoming people and more. It means getting involved in the SN community. The more involved you are, the more visibility you gain.

One easy way to build credibility is to have people who already trust you give you a testimonial or third party endorsement. Look for people you know who are already members on the site and ask them for a testimonial. Better yet, offer a testimonial for them first. If you don't have anyone you know on the network, invite them to join. Once you start building your relationships with others on the network, they too will be able to give you testimonials.

To correct Mistake #2 come up with a strategic plan to gain visibility and credibility.

Mistake #3: Not having patience.
We live in a fast-paced society--one with very little patience. We eat fast food. We drive fast cars. We multitask. We all have been conditioned to expect immediate results. So we usually give our social networking a few weeks or months. If we don't get any sales, we quit.

Steven Covey tells a story about what it takes for the bamboo plant to grow. He states that there are certain types of bamboo plants that take up to four years before they come out of the ground. Prior to them coming out of the ground, the plants are growing by spreading their roots underground. If you didn't know this, it looks like nothing is happening. On the other hand, once they break ground, they surge upward from 12-36 inches in a 24-hour period!

Networking is very similar to this. I'm not saying that it will take four years before you see results, but it certainly won't be immediate. So building your visibility and your credibility takes time. It is like the bamboo plant spreading its roots. Eventually you will start generating business. You just have to be patient.

To correct Mistake #3 give yourself twice as much time as you think you will need before you evaluate whether your efforts are paying off.

Mistake #4: Not having any free products to give away.
My wife is from Sweden. In her country it's very common for people who visit other people's homes to always bring a gift. It's not about bringing a gift on a special occasion. It's about the principle of gratitude. If someone is inviting you to their home, you express your gratitude by bringing a gift.

In networking this principle is very powerful as well. Showing someone gratitude and appreciation is a great way to build the relationship. However, nowadays free does not carry the punch that it once did. This is because very seldom is "free" truly free. My dad jokes that "free" is the most expensive word in the dictionary. So offering a free gift is often viewed with suspicion - especially when the gift is connected with the product or service you are selling.

On the other hand, if the intent behind the gift is to truly express appreciation for connecting, it brings you closer to the other person. When it takes on a "pay it forward" approach, the results can be remarkable.

One of the best tactics you can use in your SN strategy is to find or develop a gift you can offer to prospects for free-one that's not directly related to what you sell.  After trying different things myself, I finally created a product that accomplished the above goal. Since I've incorporated this product, I've been generating 8-10 new qualified prospects every week.

To correct Mistake #4 develop a product or service that has value in the eyes of your prospects. Make sure that it's not related to your core offering and give it away for free. If you can't come up with a product of your own,  I'll be glad to share some ideas.

Mistake #5: Focusing on numbers vs. relationships.
Joining many sites and adding lots of friends or people to your network is not a strategy. It may be good for your ego, but it will not result in you doing business. Remember networking is about relationships--not about numbers.

You're better off building a smaller network of people with whom you have a relationship, than a larger group of people you don't know or interact with. Remember in order to gain visibility, you will have to get involved and participate in the community.

To correct mistake #5 limit the number of sites you belong to.  Ideally choose no more than three or four -- depending on the amount of time that you are willing to devote to your overall strategy.  Deeper is better than wider. Try a site, get involved and see how you like it. Most networking sites give you access to a free version so that you can try it out before you commit money and start paying for additional features. New Social Networking sites are being added every week. Don't go chasing for the "latest, greatest" or the one that your friend invited you to. Stick to a few and work them. If one doesn't work, then go ahead and add a new one.

Conclusion

Social Networking can be a very effective tool to build one's business but it can also be a huge drain of energy and resources. It takes a long time to build both Visibility and Credibility online. Being aware of the above-mentioned mistakes will keep you from losing one or both of them. Source http://www.focus.com/briefs/small-business/5-deadly-mistakes-you-cant-afford-make-while-social/

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MMCG can help with all your social media needs: Strategic Social Media for the 21st century

Image via Wikipedia

Metro Media Consulting Group can help with all your Social Media Marketing Needs :  "Strategic Social Media for the 21st Century" 

As set forth by Web Hosting Masters,  these are the top 5 strategic methods of social media to give a mega-boost to your business SEO:  

5 Top Social Media Marketing Strategies You Should Be Using

1. A Facebook fan page

If you have a business, whether it is all online or not, then you need to have a Facebook fan page. This is how you can communicate with your current clients daily and build more business. Plus you can add an icon to your website andblog to help you get more fans on your page.

The Facebook fan page is one of the best ways to keep all your clients in one place and let them know what you are doing. You can get repeat business from announcing special pricing, sales, and new products with your page as well. It is one more reminder for your clientele that you are out there and ready to work for them.

2. A Twitter profile

Have you become a part of the Twitter craze? If not, then you should be building your profile as soon as you finish reading the rest of these tips. You could even stop right now and go get a profile up and ready to go, and then come back to the final three tips here. Twitter is a very powerful website and you need to be using it.

Twitter will allow you to create a profile for your business and as you get followers you can gain branding, exposure, and traffic to your website, Facebook fan page, and blog. This is a great way to keep in touch and let your followers know what you are doing as well.

3. The outsourcing strategy

If you really want to use one of the best social media marketing strategies and gain exposure and backlinks, then you need to consider outsourcing or hiring a service to help you get more backlinks fast. Not all of the social media sites are like Facebook and Twitter. Some are considered social bookmarking sites and they are very powerful.

You can hire a service or a person that will bookmark all of your webpages, blog posts, your Twitter page, and even your Facebook fan page on these social bookmarking sites. This can give you a ton of different backlinks that have a good amount of power. This will help you rank better on search engines and get more traffic.

4. Adding icons to your website and blog

Another one of the top social media marketing strategies is to add the icons for each social media and social bookmarking site to your blog and website. This will allow all of your visitors the opportunity to share your posts and information on all of the different social websites.

Imagine if just 10% of your visitors shared your blog posts or webpages on their Facebook and Twitter account. This could bring you in a ton of traffic. Plus if they share it, then their friends can share it, and their friends, friends can share it, and so on. This can become very powerful if you use it correctly.

5. Combining all the different social media marketing strategies

If you really want to gain backlinks, traffic, exposure, and branding for your company, website, or blog, then you may want to use all of the different social media marketing strategies together in a full social marketing plan. This could help you get a ton of exposure and backlinks, which will make your site more powerful for the long run.

Why are Social Media Marketing Strategies so Powerful?

Many of those that are on the internet are on Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Stumbleupon, FriendFeed, MySpace, and many of the other social sites that are out there. Some people actually get all their news from some of the social bookmarking sites and some people spend hours upon hours every single day on sites like Facebook.

This means that if you are in front of them in any way on these sites they will remember you better and your brand can be built. This will make your business, your website, and your blog more powerful. Social media marketing strategies are incredibly powerful and you need to have a plan to use them.

Another thing to consider is that nearly half the people carrying a cellular phone have a smart phone now. These phones have instant access to the social sites that are most popular and apps for the ones that are not as popular. This means that if you send out a Facebook post to your fans many of them will get it instantly right on their phone.

Could you imagine the business you could get when you announce a huge sale or a new product this way? Many have seen huge returns on launching a product over social sites and have used this to boost profits right from the beginning. This is why social media marketing strategies are so important and powerful.SOURCE

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