Social Media – Are You Getting Better or Just Busier?
Today’s blog was prepared by Sarah Cirelli, Interactive Marketing Manager, at WS+B (and the editor of my blogs.) Hope you gain from this blog. If you have any questions on Social Media you can call Sarah directly or me. Ed
You sell sneakers. Awesome sneakers. Would you position them in the potato chip aisle just because Doritos makes enough money to spend 4 million dollars per Super Bowl ad? No, that’s nuts. (Snack pun intended.) Interestingly enough, far too many companies are as quick to copy successful social media strategies that are as equally irrelevant to their brand and message as this. In the social media world, 2013 is the year of getting better – not busier. Due to the popularity of social media, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and frustrated. There’s so much saturation that it can feel like a daunting task. The marketing mediums 
may have changed — but many companies seem to have forgotten that it’s called “social media marketing” for a reason. The basics of marketing haven’t changed. Don’t forget about them.
There’s one question that I get the most, and it is always, “I’m ready to start with social media… but where? Which platform?” The answer isn’t in social media at all. It’s within your company and within yourself as the savvy business professional that you know you are. Before you even get started, you must have a solid handle on who your company is. What are you selling? What is your message? Who are you trying to reach… and WHERE are they hanging out online? Because, they are. We all are. You just have to find your target market. When you find them… that’s when it’s up to you to position yourself there. That’s when it’s up to you to “be first, be unique or be great.” How the heck do you do that? With social media.
If you need a boost to figure out where to start, here are some suggestions:
1. Control Your Online Identity with LinkedIn: Fill out your profile… and I mean all the way. You better have a picture, experience, links to websites and projects you’ve worked on. Build yourself a healthy network – this network will eventually work for you.
Tip: If you do this well, your LinkedIn profile should be one of the first things to appear when someone Googles you. Have you done that lately? You should.
2. For the Research: In today’s world, there’s absolutely no excuse not to know everything about the person you’re meeting with. Scary? Maybe. Being prepared? It just makes sense. All the information you need is online. Hey – you just built that profile of your own for a reason, no?
Tip: Run marketing reports and build marketing “lists” with LinkedIn. Research companies on LinkedIn for revenue information, lists of staff names and more.
3. Recycle the Content You Already Have: You’ve already spent thousands of dollars on your fantastic website and marketing materials. Just extend the reach. Share the information you already have – it works for NY Times.
Tip: Consider sharing and linking from Twitter and Facebook. Social media 101 states that all roads should lead back to your website. Use bit.ly or su.pr to shorten links to share.
4. Are you listening?: Not to me; I know you’re listening to me. But, are you listening to your industry? If you’re not ready to commit to sharing information, consider using Twitter or LinkedIn feeds to gain knowledge. Social media is one of the easiest ways to keep your finger on the pulse of hot topics and “needs and pains.” Do you know what comes from needs? Leads.
Tip: Applications like TweetDeck and HootSuite make it easy to search for topics, keywords and people that are relevant to you… AND keep them organized so you can review when the time is right for you.
5. Hire an Intern: You’re busy. I know! College kids love this stuff. They love this stuff and get this stuff.
Tip: I started as one over six years ago!
You see, you can’t look at social media as “just another thing to do” but rather – a way to do what you’re already doing – more efficiently. And, don’t forget… it’s all in the strategy.
Sarah Cirelli
732.842.3113
@BeSarahMarie
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