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Small business strategies for social media 3-11 conference
- 1. STRATEGIES FOR SOCIAL MEDIA IN SMALL BUSINESS “ Nurturing the Entrepreneurial Spirit” Entrepreneurship Conference 2011
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- WORKSHEET AVAILABLE FOR THIS ACTIVITY Allow the business owners to write down their ideas about social media. This way you can find out what they know or think. This knowledge will help you to direct the course in a way that draws attention to the points that are a concern to them or that they need a little help understanding. BREAK IT DOWN FOR THEM Let the attendees know that as the class progresses they will begin to form different opinions on the answers to these questions. There is no cookie cutter answer. And if there was would they really expect it to be SOCIAL?! They must learn to expect the unordinary to be a social media marketer! Also, be honest with them and let them know that because social media is so new there are truly NO experts. There are those people who are involved heavily in social media, but with the media changing and advancing every day – no one is an expert on every option of social media. Your best advice that you can give them is to take a chance (if social media is truly right for their business in any way). Small Business owners are risk takers in general, but may have apprehension about social media and the stigma that is sometimes reflected through mainstream media. This is certainly not a time to give the “answers” you have to these questions away. That’s what this course is about – taking each part of social media and breaking it down to answer these questions on a person by person basis.
- Social Media is Not an Ad or Sales Campaign! Social Media is truly based on your interaction with the world around your business not only about interaction with your customers, but also the information that you can gain as an expert in the industry. With the help of social media you can gather and share information with customers and clients as well as others in your industry. Give the example of information gathered on social media. Herb and Nancy post, email, and tweet social media articles to one another. No matter how hard you try to read and understand every new article about social media – you won’t be able to! By accessing the benefits of social media you can certainly engage your customers in conversation through the knowledge that you have and the assistance that your small business can give your current or potential customer. Remember no matter what kind of marketing you are involved in you are always looking to solve a problem for your customer. It is not “me marketing”!
- You have to know what social media is not before you begin. This is just as vital as learning what social media is. SEO is still a vital part of your small business website and understanding this will take you further. While the search engines change their algorithms that calculate your ranking extremely often…it still is best to keep your website up to date with what we currently see as a beneficial way to gain “points” with the search engines. Ultimately your social media resources should lead the relationships that can be Before diving in to social media, you MUST commit or you cannot expect fabulous results. This is a learning experience for EVERYONE involved. So it may not be easy! There may not be an answer for every question or a guide for every situation. Excitement and common business sense are the two best assets you can have when embarking on the social media endeavor. NUMBER ONE RULE: You must be honest when taking part in social media. A great quote that I heard was – If you are not transparent, people will see right through you. There is no need to embellish who you are or what your company brings to the table. Say what you will do for those listening to you – no more or no less. While it might be a little unsettling to open yourself up to the world of social media, you must or you will be left behind. You can either be a participant or a bystander and from the looks of things if you are a bystander you will be in a heap of trouble in the future. Even if you are not taking part in social media other people are talking about your business be it good or bad – don’t you want to be there to manage it? There are no promises that social media will be successful for your small business. Social media, like any other marketing effort, amounts to what you put into it. You must be certain that all your bases are covered. The five strategies in this session will give you a greater understanding of what is expected of you to succeed at social media marketing.
- As a small business owner you don’t have time to sit down and read a book or wait for a report on your industry. And most of the time the market research that is available is extremely expensive. Now through information from the ASBTDC Market Research team and through the power of Google you have access to up to date industry information at your fingertips. Connect – Social media allows for relationships to be strengthened and formed through Listening is the number one skill necessary in social media. Listening to your clients, listening to your peers, and listening to the economic reports of your business industry. Listening to your customers helps to address any problems they might have or reward them for spreading the good news of your business. By listening you also can learn what your target market is looking for….there may be things that you haven’t thought of! Outreach – while many of your connections online will come from those that you already have a base relationship with, you will find that many newcomers who are interested in your business or industry seek you out. As you become more and more active in your social media endeavors you will see this grow. It will allow you to show your expertise and benefit from your knowledge. This outreach can also be seen as a Public Relations tool. More and more we see media outlets looking for what is going on around town through social networking Exp – Herb’s TV Stations showing up to seminars because he tweeted about them! Push Sales – While I wouldn’t suggest using your social marketing just as a sales tool, I certainly don’t think its wrong to help yourself out! After you have built a following and you want to reward your loyal customers by giving them a coupon, go ahead! Just don’t over do it! They aren’t on social networks for commercials – so be gentle with your sales prodding! Research – Let your fingers do the walking! Find out the new best thing through digging through the social media sites available. Some sites will have information that you can seek out just for your industry. While you must be careful what you take of each article, it never hurts to read and form your own opinion.
- Not just a webpage, but a work page Social media sites work much differently than your traditional webpage. While you must change content on your traditional webpage and be certain that it has been optimized for search engines, the work involved can be somewhat minimal after the initial outlay of the website. If you have produced an exquisite page that includes all the meta tags, headers and alternative text required of the web spiders to ping your page the addition of a few different items and changes on your page can be as simple as a copy and paste. While many business owners who are wholly online based require more attention to their sites. Assurance People are looking for assurance from you and their peers . The stats certainly spell it out for you 20% of people trust ads 60% of people trust editorials 80% of people trust word of mouth Personalization Not only can you personalize your social media for your business, but it can and should contain a certain bit of who you are as a person. You should let your personality show your passion and knowledge about your small business. Brand Management If you aren’t on social media – the comments – GOOD and BAD – will continue. The question is will you be there to manage what they say? You have the chance!
- BEFORE YOU START THE VIDEO ASK - How many people in the room feel like social media is a fad? Does anyone think that social media is just for teens and college kids? Do you think that one video could change the way you see social media? AFTER THE VIDEO STATE - Social Media is an ever expanding option for small business owners to gain ground in the interaction and marketing efforts that they use to familiarize their clients with their business. While you may here social media is a low cost way to engage your customers, as a small business owner it takes human capital and commitment.
- Locating your target market is key … you most likely already have a really good idea of who your target market is, but just in case you aren’t exactly sure there is a lot that can be done. First and foremost the ASBTDC and our team of consultants - which many of you already work with - can help you determine exactly who you should be marketing to. Show them the benefits the ASBTDC market research can offer them. The market research which is available through the ASBTDC can help you determine who your target market is and where they are located. While we can offer an abundance of information and guidance on your target market. There is also information on the web that can help you research who is using certain social media applications and why they are using them. Unfortunately, because the art of social media is rather new…sifting through the information can be rather time consuming, but I will share a few websites that I find to be trustworthy and have relevant information that you are looking for.
- Locating your target market is key … you most likely already have a really good idea of who your target market is, but just in case you aren’t exactly sure there is a lot that can be done. First and foremost the ASBTDC and our team of consultants - which many of you already work with - can help you determine exactly who you should be marketing to. Show them the benefits the ASBTDC market research can offer them. The market research which is available through the ASBTDC can help you determine who your target market is and where they are located. While we can offer an abundance of information and guidance on your target market. There is also information on the web that can help you research who is using certain social media applications and why they are using them. Unfortunately, because the art of social media is rather new…sifting through the information can be rather time consuming, but I will share a few websites that I find to be trustworthy and have relevant information that you are looking for.
- While you may hear how many people worldwide are on a social network, don’t worry – you don’t have to reach everyone. You can narrow down your target market by the information that you present to the social networking sites or they will narrow down to you. You can choose to seek out people in your area that you know are interested or are current customers in your business….try to get permission first or lead them to you through your email marketing which I know you are using *wink wink* and if you aren’t using an email marketing service to lead your clients to what you are doing you should be – Inbox Impact seminar. Don’t be a stalker! Exp. There is a company that continually tries to befriend me on Facebook….unfortunately, I choose not be a fan of their business because it not something that I am personally interested in and now they have just made me angry by continually messaging me. Facebook has now implemented a way for you to not be bothered by these pesky repeat stalkers with more privacy settings and a question process after you ignore a request.
- When you are looking at who your target market is you must also address what they are looking for. This “what” can certainly determine where you will find your customer as well. Your customers may not be looking for just your product or service, but could be looking for what you know about the environment they live in. Exp: A family photographer that I use sends out emails each month to her clients. The emails contain only (about 25%) snippet of information regarding her services and then covers a range of family activities according to the season (75%). She knows that her client base is predominately family based and is looking to solve a problem for them. Since people usually don’t get pictures taken too often, it is a way for her to stay in contact with her clients without being over bearing or sales pushy. Exp: A client in Conway who owns a children’s boutique often markets with a photography studio in the same shopping center to offer discounts and deals in both shops. By offering a supplement to their initial interest they can bring in more clients.
- Fun sites: http://Popacular.com/gigatweet http://www.checkfacebook.com
- Demographics – as new social media arrives, the demographics of the social media you are currently using may change. You need to be ready to reevaluate over time to ensure that you are taking advantage of the social media occupied by your target market. **This being said, don’t believe that you need to jump on every social media band wagon that arrives! You can’t and will not successfully manage your social media efforts if you are involved in too many activities. ** Change – While you can’t dwell on the fact that social media is changing, you must know that as technology advances so will social media. Not only the media itself, but the way it is accessed and the way your consumer uses the media. In many cases the new additions will be easily understood and helpful for the user. Remember that these sites want you to use their services and are going to make adjustments as necessary when approached by you – the user. Exp: Currently one of the new trends in social media is geotagging or the process of adding geographical identification to various media. This could be helpful targeting location specific information. Transparency – Remember: If you aren’t transparent they will see right through you! Exp: Customers and coworkers will bust you out! If you call in sick, it’s probably not appropriate to post on your Facebook page that you are out shopping or going to work out! Exp: JP Morgan Chase recently ran a social media campaign that allowed its Facebook fans to vote for their favorite charities. Unfortunately, Chase didn’t finish their program as planned. The problems – Chase chose not to support some charities. They changed rules in the final days of the campaign. They had not - at the time this was written - published anything in regards to the final tallied votes for the charities.
- When looking for information regarding social media you must be certain that you are considering the source. These are two very reputable websites with information that can be useful to the small business owner. These websites offer information free of charge and should be considered a resource in your online research.
- While beginning the process of social media can be a little overwhelming, as you begin taking part in the everyday activities the comfort level will come. By establishing your presence you will feel confidence in your place online and you will strengthen your business in the long run. Where – Are all the sites right for you? What – How much info do you display? When – All at once or a little at a time?
- While we are talking about your social media presence….maybe we should take a quick step back and make sure you have a basic internet presence on the available search engines. This site will let you know if you are listed for FREE with the search engines – Google, Yahoo, Bing, Best of the Web. If you find that your business is not listed, take the time to register your business with these sites. No matter what your business is someone is searching for it online. I have heard many misconceptions about everything from drycleaners to zoos being researched on the internet. SHOW THEM! – Go to getlisted.org and ask for a volunteer to see if they are listed on the search engines that are viewed by the site. Remind them there are other sites to view as well like the others listed on this page. By adding their business to these sites they are gaining traffic to their business name and website. **Remind them to put as much information and accurate information as possible!** Exp. - I Lived in 3 States in 2 years….no house phone which means no phone book….I only located businesses and entertainment activities from the internet. My biggest problem was not being able to find local businesses. Worked for small family owned business and now ASBTDC – I want to be able to find local businesses.
- PULL UP A LARGE COMPANY ON A SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE – Ford, CocaCola, etc. Companies like CocaCola are beginning to abandon their traditional websites to concentrate on social networking.
- When you first dive into the social networking medium of the internet you will be inclined to spend hours connecting and researching, the problem is you are most definitely sacrificing some other part of your small business. While social media will help your marketing – traditional marketing efforts can’t be totally forgotten either. And more importantly neither can the management and face to face contact that you have with customers and potential customers. There is so much to look forward to with social media, but if you begin to overinvest your time and resources you will never see the return on investment Exp: I find it extremely hard at times to pry myself away from my Google Reader. I can’t take in as much information as it gives me, but boy do I try. By looking for more specific articles, I can be more efficient in my research time. I also have a very hard time cutting off a conversation through social media. When you can see an appropriate point to end the conversation you must! Or you will be there forever!
- Realizing your true reason for using social media can help you determine how much time and what you should be reviewing on a daily basis. Know that you must have a reason for working with social media and YOU MUST recognize this is the reason you are spending your precious time taking part in these marketing activities. If you still aren’t certain what your goals are for accessing social media you most likely need to take a step back. Don’t rush and certainly don’t think you have to do everything at once! Take your time – maybe you want to eventually use social media for all the reasons on this slide, but there is no rule saying you have to do it now! Jumping in could mean you drown – take a little wade through the social media river!
- Create a