Archive for October, 2008
I Joined Twitter Now What Do I Do?
Twitter is a microblogging platform and it’s a little different from any other online or social media tool. When people first begin using it it can seem overwhelming and confusing. How can you really type anything of substance in 140 characters or less?
The first thing I usually advise is that you take some time getting familiar with how it all works. Put up a picture of yourself find some others to follow and “tweet” some updates. It may seem a little like you are talking to yourself to do this especially if you are not being followed by anyone else. But it helps to see activity when someone comes upon your page and is making a decision whether to follow you or not.
Once you have observed and participated a little there are a few things you can do to help you build relationships. Why is that so important? It all goes back to establishing that know like and trust factor. People like to do business with those they know like and trust right? Here are some of the ways to use Twitter to create rapport and get more visibility for your business:
1 Give value. Share links offer advice and answer questions. I usually suggest a balance of 85 nonpromotional tweets to 15 promotional tweets. When you are sharing interesting tidbits they do not and should not be all about your services and offerings. On Twitter people are looking to learn more about you the person not just you the business owner. Of course once they feel that they know you better they are more willing to eventually buy from you!
2 Engage others. Ask questions use the function to spark conversations and retweet others’ messages. This helps people get to know you but it is also a chance for you to demonstrate your expertise. You don’t need to outright sell in order for others to see that you have something of value to offer them. Before you know it others will be retweeting sharing your helpful information with others leading to more visibility for you.
3 Use your profile to your advantage. You are able to link to your website in your profile as well as include a small blurb about who you are and what it is you do. Although you don’t have a ton of space to write here be sure to give a little snapshot of your personal self as well as your professional self. This is a great way to get others to explore your offerings become your subscribers or clients and boost your traffic.
Most of all remember that Twitter is a place to be you listen respond and be helpful. The results for your bottom line may not be immediate but you are building your reputation and strengthening relationships each time you participate. And that’s great for business!
About the writer: Christine Gallagher MLS MSIS founder of CommunicateValue.com teaches solopreneurs and small business owners how to use online marketing and social media to communicate effectively and authentically and attract more business. For FREE tips on how to build profitable relationships leverage technology and create your own successful online business visit http://CommunicateValue.com
How To Work With Social Media
So much is said about the use of social media for marketing yourself or your company. But is it hype? Its easy to become cynical when people make exorbitant claims about the usefulness of something without really explaining how to actually work it. Its a lot simpler if you just keep a few things in mind:
As in any marketing campaign keep things consistent across all efforts. Just because youre using NEW media doesnt mean you should abolish old ways that worked. No matter how many sites you join make profiles on or post comments on make sure theres clear continuity through them all. Use social media to start the process of Business Lead Generation but then keep the ball rolling.
Be consistent in your efforts as well. Its easy to forget about the many accounts youve started. Focus on a few and keep them going! Update and interactno you dont have to make “friends” online if that makes you uncomfortable but acquaintances might help. The point is engagement. Engage your audiences and anyone already on your side. Most importantly do it daily. No one likes to be forgotten so dont forget to keep the conversation going with the people youve interacted with as well as keeping your profiles updated. If you want a client customer or shareholders trust you have to be consistent as well as helpful and a good listener.
Which leads me to the next point”pull” communication or Inbound Marketing. The Web is useful for one large thing specifically; pulling people in is a more credible less annoying way of communicating with customers. You and I hate having messages thrown at uswhy would we do that to our customers all the time? Yes advertising does work sometimes but engaging customers answering their questions and giving them helpful information they ask for that will lead them to understanding more about your product/service is much more personal and trustworthy it is also a great approach to Online Lead Generation.
About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;”Office DEVA was founded in 2003 by Laura Pumo and is a virtual assistance company providing personalized global administrative support to professional coaches executives sales teams and corporations.”Office Deva: http://www.officedeva.com
How To Use Social Widgets For Internet Marketing
First let’s spend a little time discussing what exactly is a widget. A widget is a mini web application where webmasters can add to their websites. This is usually done by copying and pasting some simple HTML or Javascript code on to the existing web pages. The term social widget refers to widgets that are meant specifically for social websites. Social websites like MySpace.com or Facebook.com allow their members to customize their profile pages. That means the members can add any social widgets to their profile page.
There are many types of different social widgets. They range from puzzles simple games fancy clocks to useful tools such as calendars password generators and so on. So depending on how you want your social web pages to look you are free to choose any social widget that is available for download. Usually social widgets are freely available at no cost. And why is that? If you are an Internet marketer perhaps you already know the reasons.
Social widgets are developed for others to use on their websites or web pages. As these web pages become more and more popular especially on social websites where there is a general tendency for members to add new friends the widget will spread virally. This allows the Internet marketer to get free exposure at no cost. It is not uncommon to see widgets that link back to the developer’s website. A popular social widget can potentially be downloaded and used by millions on web users. So imagine the amount of free traffic that the developer will receive!
But that can only happen if a social widget is extremely popular and online visitors are willing to spread the word. How can that be achieved? For a start new widgets should be promoted as much as possible to gain traction. For example a developer can list a new widget in widget directories. These directories function very much like a search engine and allows users to search for the widgets that they want. The more places that the widget is listed in the better the chance of someone downloading the widget and actually installs and uses it.
In addition the widget must also be setup to spread itself virally. Let’s say you downloaded a quiz widget that allows you to quiz your friends. When your friends receive your quiz requests they in turn must download the widget before they can see the quiz. If they like the widget they will continue to spread the widget to their own network of friends. This is in essence how widgets can spread virally.
So if you are into Internet marketing you probably realize by now how powerful social widgets can be. With millions and millions of members on social networking sites the potential is huge. A wildly successful widget can easily bring in thousands of targeted visitors a day. How you monetize the traffic is completely up to you. After all the traffic will keep coming without you having to spend a single dime.
About the writer: To download free Social Widgets Gadgets please visit our Widgets site.