Creative Commons License photo credit: alexliivet

The best social media marketing tips help establish lasting relationships between your business and your targeted market. There are two ways to use social media marketing to increase customer loyalty and ensure your business a customer for life: engagement and appreciation.

Making a habit of engaging with your customers and targeted market on sites such as Twitter or Facebook personalizes your business and gives your company a more relatable feel. When a current or potential customer knows they can reach out to you and receive a human response, a feeling of investment in the relationship is created. Rather than stewing about problems they may have had, a customer you interact with through social media is likely to comment on your company blog or direct message you on Twitter to make you aware of the issue, giving you an opportunity to really shine in offering a solution.

Once you have made a habit of engaging with your customers and clients, take advantage of the easy connection offered by social media marketing to offer targeted sales, products and special deals to your social media communities. You can select five random followers a month to receive a special coupon code, or offer “secret” sales just for Twitter followers. A customer who is invested in their relationship with your company, as well as one with a feeling that their business is truly appreciated, is likely to be a customer for life, no matter what competition moves into the neighborhood.

Facebook recently launched the capabilities of replying to comments via email. In case you haven’t noticed, there’s a message from Facebook in each of the emails that reads, “New Feature: Reply to this email to comment on this post.” This is a fantastic feature for anyone who manages a fan page. Manage multiple fan pages as I do, and it is a gift. Today, I’m referring to it as my special holiday gift from Facebook.

I’ve always monitored comments via email. My email feeds into my Blackberry. Now, I can reply faster and easier to keep discussions going and without logging into Facebook. This saves me a ton of steps, not to mention a whole lot of time. Thanks Facebook!

*Hint: Don’t try to reply to emailed messages from last week. The feature wasn’t implemented and is likely not to work on older messages.

How I am using it

HootSuite allows me to monitor a lot of information in one browser window:

1. Both of my Twitter accounts
2. My Facebook page
3. My Facebook fan page
4. My LinkedIn network
5. Personalized Twitter searches so I can see when certain words are Tweeted
6. Twitter lists so I can monitor conversations of specific ‘Tweeters”

More than just monitoring

1. Save Time:  With HootSuite I can type one message and have it appear on all on my social networks
2. Keep it short:  Twitters 140 character limit is hard to stay within when you copy long website urls.  HootSuite will shrink those urls with a click on the mouse.
3. Timely:  Do you have information that needs to be provided on a particular day?  at a particular time?  Use the scheduling feature to schedule when you posts will be made on your various social networks.
4. Statistics:  HootSuite provides you with statistics on how many time your links were clicked on.  I have used bit.ly before to do this ( I still love bit.ly!)  But it is so convenient to have the tracking within HootSuite.
5. There is a lot more HootSuite can do, but those are the highlights that I am using right now.

Choice

There are other tools like this available, but HootSuite is quickly become my tool of choice.  Here are a few other tools to consider that I am using:

1. www.TweetDeck.com
2. www.Seesmic.com

What are you using?

What tools to you using to build stronger relationships, monitor your brand, or increase the effectiveness of your communications?

What does it mean to ‘unfriend’ someone?  Are we no longer friends?  Why were we friends in the first place.

The definition is obviously familiar to those who use Facebook, where the phrase originated: “To remove someone as a ‘friend’ on a social networking site such as Facebook,” the authors said. No word if the Twitter equivalent, “unfollow,” was included or referred to.  (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2355963,00.asp)

Kindergarten

We learned everything we needed to know in kindergarten, right? We learned to be polite, be honest, considerate, follow the rules, and especially make friends.  However, there was no lesson plan on “unfriending.”  The word wasn’t even in existence back then.

It’s now a universal term in the social networking community.  Like Google users quickly coined the term “Just Google It,” social marketing people know exactly what it means “to be unfriended.”  If you are using social networking for business purposes, you had better know what this term is, as well as be aware of the causes and repercussions of being “unfriended.”

Who did you unfriend this year?

How many people did you ‘unfriend’ this year?   Was 2009 the year when we are a little more selective in who we invite as a friend on Facebook or other social networks?

Will you please be my friend

Food for Thought

I have two reasons I would unfriend someone:

1. Once we became friends, you harvested ALL of my contacts by spamming them with friend requests.  (Yes it did happen.)
2. You are constantly trying to sell me something through social media rather than building a relationship.  (Yes it still happens.)

I would love to read your comments.  What would make you unfriend someone?

I work with many businesses on setting up their fan pages and teach classes on how to get the most out of your business fan page. The number one issue that causes fan page “flop” has to do with HOW the page is initially set up. If I can walk you through the pitfalls now, it will prevent you (and me) many future headaches.

Pitfall #1: Don’t set up a fake person in order to create a business fan page. The best strategy is to log in as yourself, under your personal profile to build the page. Don’t worry, if you have your personal privacy settings correct, no one will be able to access your personal page or information, even if they join your fan page. Do it this way, and…

• You won’t forget your username and password (fictional people have poor memories)
• You won’t “lose a fan page “out in Facebook cyberspace like many people have who don’t manage it under their primary personal account.
• You’ll have your personal friends to invite as fans to start getting the word out there.
• You’ll be better at frequent updates and keeping the page interesting if you get in the habit of checking on things every time you’re logged in personally.
• You’ll save time and increase efficiencies when you only have one account to log into.
• All your pages you create will be neatly organized under you, the main administrator.
• All comments and posts to your fan page will flow into your main email, so you can monitor what is going on without logging into FB.
• You’ll maintain primary administrator, regardless of who else you add as secondary administrators. You will be able to remove them at anytime.

Pitfall #2: Don’t delegate fan page set up to someone whom you do not want to be the main administrator of the page. Even if you plan to have one or more people responsible for the fan page on a daily basis, the owner should set up the fan page. It doesn’t need to look pretty, just published. Then add secondary administrative people to help with the page. Do it this way, and…

• If an employee or volunteer leaves your organization, you can delete them as an administrator and add someone else in their place.
• You never have to worry about someone leaving your business and taking your fan page with them (hostage) or abandoning it.

Pitfall #3: Don’t keep creating and recreating the same page. This happens when someone can’t find the original one they created, they forgot what they called it, they forgot what name/email/password they used to create it, or they named all their pages the same thing. You can envision how messy these scenarios can get, yet it happens all the time. If you are having any of these issues STOP. You need a professional to help you figure out a strategy that won’t leave your fans confused or waste your time. Something is going “amuck” and you don’t want to repeat it over and over again.

Avoid these three pitfalls, set up your page correctly, and I promise that you’ll have fun doing business on Facebook. People are a blast when they join communities in which they are passionate, so don’t let frustration force you to miss out on meeting these fantastic people.

PRESENTER’S DIRECTIONS

Amount of time needed:  20 – 30 minutes

Divide participants into 3-5 small groups.

Give each small group a scenario page and a pack of “tool/activity” cards. Each card has an amount of points labeled at the bottom; this signifies how much needs to be invested (time, money, etc.) in the tool/activity (the maximum amount of points they can use is 10).

Each small group should complete the scenario page and be prepared to report back to the large group. Give them 5 minutes to discuss, fill out the scenario page and prepare to report back.

Have each group report back.   Set a 2-minute time limit for each group.

Once all the groups have reported back ask a number of the following discussion questions to the entire group – as time permits.

1. How did your small group discussions go?
2. How hard or easy was it to decide on which tools/activities to use? Why?
3. What did you think of the choices or rational of any of the groups?
4. What did you learn from this activity?

Various Scenarios

• Raising Awareness
• Fundraising
• Event Promotion
• Advocacy
• Thought Leadership

Social Media Card Deck

• Social Media Card Deck

Additional material from the Convening can be found on the Resilient Organizations Fund website.

• Home Page:  http://www.resilientnonprofits.org/
• Materials:  http://www.resilientnonprofits.org/materials/
• About the Convening:  http://www.resilientnonprofits.org/convenings/

Have you have every wondered:  “why bother with social media?”  Great stats  – some very surprising.   Welcome to the revolution.

Twitter is free and open to everyone. Therefore once you have an open account, everyone is free to follow you. Yet, the more people who follow you, the more beneficial it is to you. Depending on your goals for Twitter, having a large following is critical. Write a creative Bio, start following people in your target market, get involved in conversations, be helpful, and watch your followers grow. Don’t let this “lack of control” over who your followers are worry you. Yet, this is the #1 worry I get when talking to people.

Some people feel the content of what people are tweeting can adversely affect their product image or business. The answer is yes, it can. BUT people are going to tweet about their opinions, successes, and frustrations whether you are active on Twitter or not. Therefore, using Twitter to listen to customers, monitor conversations about competitor products or offer insightful comments can be very helpful to damage control and gaining a healthy grasp on what people need and want in products and services. There is ample opportunity to be active on Twitter to develop relationships with key people interested in what you have to say and sell.

There is a wonderful, yet complete lack of control over what and who gets Retweeted (RT) on Twitter. You can ask to be RT’d, but you can’t make anyone. Therefore, you are responsible for writing tweets that peek interest and stimulate emotions that will end up going viral through followers who feel compelled to RT what you have to say. It’s a wonderful way to reach new people and get the word out about something for which you are passionate. You’ll be surprised what grabs people’s attention and gets retweeted.

And of course, you have no control over what Google decides to grab from Twitter and display in its search results. Yet, Google seems to really like social networking content. Therefore, use this new found method of reaching people via Google to communicate, market, and meet new people. Whether someone walks in your front door, tweets with you on Twitter, or finds you via a Google search, your relationship with him/her is priceless. Don’t be afraid of your lack of control using Twitter. Embrace the possibilities.

The following is a list of common mistakes I see people make while networking online. If you see yourself or business in ANY of the mistakes below, make an immediate effort to rectify the issue. Your business and social marketing efforts depend on it.

5 Common Mistakes People Make Networking Online

1. Missing Gravatar Picture: More often than not, I see missing gravatar pictures next to insightful blog comments. If you take the time to write insightful comments and engage in conversations with other people, you are wasting valuable opportunities to connect yourself and/or company with a network of people. It takes less than a minute to establish your gravatar picture, and in doing so, you show the world that their potential relationship with you is worth 60 seconds of your time.
2. Non-Human Gravatar Picture: While on the Gravatar subject, let me suggest that you use a photograph of yourself. A professional, personal, up-close, creative, HUMAN, recent photograph of YOU. Yeah, your hilarious high school photo might be funny to you, but guess what? Social networking isn’t about you. It’s about all the thousands of people you want to engage in conversation. So unless you have a very niche business where a goofy picture of you or your dog is appropriate, don’t make the mistake of missing a great opportunity with your Gravatar picture.
3. Missing Twitter Bio: Why bother joining Twitter if you don’t want people to follow you? If you don’t take a few minutes to write something in your bio that tells people who you are, what’s important to you, or why you are on Twitter, don’t expect them to follow you. If you think this isn’t hurting you, guess again. I make it a policy not to follow anyone with a missing bio, and I’m not the only one. It’s fast becoming an online example of being socially inept.
4. Contact Info: When I visit blogs and Facebook fan pages, I like to know where the person or business is. It is how I personally connect with people. I remember many of my social network contacts by their city or state. If the information is missing, I have a hard time remembering and connecting with them on a personal level. Why? Concrete information makes it REAL for me. Last week I was tweeting with someone from California, who was on her way to Minnesota with a college friend in MY CITY. Do you think I remember this contact on Twitter? You Bet! So add your business information or at least city/state location to your various sites. (plus, it’ll help with Google results)
5. Missing Persons Report: The biggest mistake I see is when people go missing. I tend to gravitate toward the people I’ve gotten to know online, so when it occurs to me that I haven’t seen or heard from them in a long time, it makes the whole process disjointed and inconsistent. Make sure that you make a plan make your social networking “rounds” wherever you get involved. If you have a fan page on Facebook, update it. If you are on Twitter, consistently tweet and follow-up with people. If you join communities such as Ning or industry specific site, go back on a regular basis. If you need to make a plan or write it on the calendar or set aside a specific day/time, do it. It is a mistake to go missing from your social networking contacts.

Intro

• 30 Days of Social Media
• Are you ready to engage in social media?
• Social Media Tool Box
  
• Putting a Face on Social Media – Gravatars

Facebook

• Face It: Why You Need To Know About Facebook
• Facebook-Business
• Facebook Advertising is for Everyone

Social Bookmarking

• What the Heck is Social Bookmarking
  

YouTube

• Good Marketing is About Telling Stories – YouTube Can Help
• How To Setup Your YouTube Account AND My Famous 5 Minute Video Creation Secrets Revealed

Google

• Google Wants to Alert Your Business to New Possibilities for Free

RSS

• What is RSS and Why Do I Care

LinkedIn

• LinkedIn 101 Getting the Most From This Often Mis-Understood Social Network
• What Everybody Ought to Know About Connections On LinkedIn
• Do You Make These Mistakes

Inspiration

• A Little Shift Goes a Long Way
• If the White House Can Embrace Social Media Can Your Business
• Social Marketing Results in Less than 60 Minutes: One Great Example
• Do You Make These Mistakes With Your Customers

Local Search

• If You Are Not In Local Search Engines Now, You Will Regret It Later
• Getting Started With Your Google Local/Google Maps Listing
• Are You Ready to Take Control of Your Online Reputation

Blogs

• Don’t Be Too Quick To Decide a Blog Isn’t Right For Your Business
• Give Me 15 Minutes and I Will Give You The Formula To Blogging Success

Auto Responder/E-commerce

• Do You Get Better Service From An Auto-Responder At An E-commerce Store Than You Do In Person

Photo Sharing

• Create a Vivid Image – Finding the Right Photo Just Got Easier

Twitter

• Is Twitter For You
• Twitter for Your Business

Authenticity

• Do You Have an Identity Crisis

Email

• Do you know what the single most important ingredient is in your business

Protecting Your Information

• The Lazy Mans Way to Hack Into Your Personal Information and Passwords
• There Is A Quick Way to Secure Your Identity On Social Websites

Summary

• How Much Time Should You Spend on Social Media Each Week