Tips For Making the Most of Social Media Marketing
By Gail Martin
• Be clear about who your target audience is-age, gender, interests, location, industry, even other professional and social memberships.
• Explore different social media platforms to see where people who fit your target audience already are. Know the rules for each platform.
• Explore general social media platforms (Facebook, Squidoo, MySpace, LinkedIn, Twitter) and platforms for special interests or industry-specific sites
• Identify your social media goal (it should flow from your business plan and be reinforced by the rest of your marketing/PR activities). Goals can include: reinforcing existing relationships; meeting new people within your target audience; increasing Google hits; raising your visibility.
• Blogging is a great way to 1) Increase your SEO; 2) Share information and resources to position yourself as a leader: 3) Create fresh web content easily.
• Remember that anything you put on the Internet lasts forever. Respect copyright-your own and other people’s. Share links rather than content.
• Participate. Forums, chats and wikis are great ways to establish your leadership. Use a great signature block and make sure your content helps instead of sells.
• Update frequently and meaningfully.
• Drive traffic to your other sites. Ask a question on Twitter and invite comments to be posted to your Squidoo page. Run a contest in your newsletter and have people Tweet you their response. Post your new newsletter on your website and tweet everyone a link. Embed your blog or Twitter RSS feed on your web site and Facebook pages.
• Get a virtual assistant to help you. VAs can keep your Wall clean, get rid of old posts or invitations, put up new information on a regular basis, update event listings, invite new friends based on your criteria and message, post pre-written blog entries or pre-written Tweets.
• Get to know widgets. These make life easier by enabling you to embed your RSS feed, Tweet later, filter your Tweets and add photos or video. Widgets also give you those cool Facebook and LinkedIn badges you can use on your other sites to drive more traffic.
Gail Z. Martin owns DreamSpinner Communications and helps companies and solo professionals in the U.S. and Canada save money and get results through exceptional writing and marketing. Gail has an MBA in marketing and over 20 years of corporate and non-profit experience at senior executive levels. Gail hosts the Shared Dreams Marketing Podcast and the Shared Dreams Become Reality group on Facebook. She is also the author of The Summoner, The Blood King and Dark Haven fantasy adventure novels in the Chronicles of the Necromancer series. Find her online at http://www.DreamSpinnerCommunications.com and on Twitter at GailMartinPR.
Gail is also the author of the Solopreneur Survival Guide home study course and suite of products for start-up and small businesses, coaches, consultants and speaker/authors. http://www.SolopreneurSurvivalGuide.com
Contact Gail at [email protected].
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