Client Referral
One of my website clients had referred her to me. I had coached my client with training on social media pointers for newbies and she realized I was the best candidate to do the same for this newer business.
And so I have a training appointment with my now new client to show her how she can use social media marketing to drive business the right way. We will use the free internet Skype program so that she can see my screen as we talk over the internet. And I will start with three easy tips.
In my last blog, I talked about the importance of first having an excellent website because that is the hub of all your social media efforts.If you do not have a nice home to invite all you social media friends to, then you have wasted your time.
But once you have a customer friendly, professional looking website in place, then what do do?
My new client explained to me that she had started her Facebook page and she filled in the profile for her LinkedIn account and she had posted a few things but she still was not sure what her goal was or what she should do next. She even bought a few books on the subject but was still confused.
I explained to her that she was on the right track by contacting me because I was in her same situation myself when I first started. I got myself on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn and had read several best selling books.
Expert Social Media Training
The best thing I did was attend a live workshop by a local expert. With a power-point presentation, I could actually see what other successful businesses were doing with social networking. I could read a well written micro-blog and see how everything interacts. Write a new blog entry-Share it on Facebook-Distribute it with a newsletter-Tweet it on Twitter and Microblog it on LinkedIn. Use software to make it quick and easy. It started to make sense.
And the best advice was to start following similar businesses who were using Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Three Tips
So in three short steps, here is my advice for the "Small Business Social Media Newbie":
1. Hire an experienced social media networker who can show you the ropes so you can do it right the first time.
2. Start up your accounts with Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin and lurk in the background for a while to see what the experienced networkers in your business are doing. Are they posting just business specials or are they interspersing their posts with bits of personal details and helpful observations? 70% helpful insights and 30% business offers is the norm.
3. Now after you have your feet wet and have a basic understanding of how things work, buy your social media books and study them. You will now have a greater understanding of the jargon and techniques discussed. And you can develop a social media plan that will work for your business or your client's. Start microblogging everyday on the sites that work for your business is a given!
Expert Authors to Follow and Read
To further your education, I recommend books and blogs by social media experts such as Chris Brogan, Mari Smith and Gary Vaynerchuk. Darren Rowse is also great for blogging advice. The online Mashable blog is one of the all time great social media resources as well. After a while, you'll be networking with the best, at least until Facebook or Twitter makes a major change.
And you can follow my blog right here for more tips for the social media newbie. Happy networking.
For more tips on social media marketing, follow this blog and visit Karen Teeters' website at FiveStarSiteMakers.com. You may republish this article in full. Just make sure you list this paragraph and provide a link.
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