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Getting Personal with Social Media

October 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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I have been using social media for a while now – both personally and for my business.  I also spend quite a bit of time researching social media, observing, and learning about the tools and technology.  And what I have learned is the more personal you are in social media, the more human you are, the more you you are – the better the results.

People are looking to connect and build a relationship – with a person.  And this especially applies if you are a small business or solopreneur.  People want to get to know you, not just what you do for a living.  This is how they build trust in you.  Because there are a lot of business coaches out there – your clients choose you because of that something extra.  That part of your personality they connect with and relate to.

You don’t have to share private information or anything that makes you uncomfortable.  But, if you can find a way to share some of your personality, some of what makes you unique, you will see better results.  I realize this is often easier said than done.  I struggle with it myself.  Finding that balance between the “business you” and the “personal you” can be difficult. Start with integrating a few non-business related posts.  Maybe it is sharing about the music you listen to, your favorite sports team, your hobbies, your favorite food, or the book you just finished.  It is the little personal tidbits that help your customers relate to you.  Keep trying and you will find the right mix.  Once you do, you will start to really see the value of social media.

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/himmelskratzer/3252564869/
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How in the World Do You Find Time for Social Media?

October 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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There just never seems to be enough time. Believe me, I know.  I am a mom and a business owner.  I have a to-do list a mile long – client work, marketing my business, spending time with my family,  learning new skills, cleaning the house, laundry, meal planning, clipping coupons, making dinner…and the list goes on!  I am sure you can relate.  And now you are supposed to do this social media stuff?  You have to find time to think of something interesting to say, respond back, grow your presence.  Seems overwhelming, right?

Social media can be time consuming.  But it can also be an incredible tool for your business.  Social media can help you build your brand, get to know your target market, build credibility and ultimately grow your business. So the investment of time is worth it!  What do you do when you know you want to use social media, but can’t seem to find the time?  Scheduling, Planning and Tools!

The first time saving tip I use for managing my own social media is to create a schedule. I am big on schedules!  Because my life is divided between work time and family time, I have to plan in advance what I need to accomplish during my work time.  I schedule in time a few days a week to find interesting articles and create new updates to post – and then I schedule them out.  I also plan for a little time each day to check in to my accounts,  follow up and respond.  You can even go so far as to decide what type of update you want to post each day – Maybe a quote on Monday, Tip Tuesday, Article Wednesday, Tip Thursday, & something fun for Friday!

In addition, I take advantage of the tools available,  to make it quicker and easier to keep my accounts up to date.  Tools such as Hootsuite.com allow me to pre-schedule posts out in advance.  I can also post to multiple sites at one time.  I also use tools within my WordPress blog to automatically post my blog updates to my Twitter and Facebook accounts.  When I am catching up on my RSS feeds or reading an article that I find interesting, I use the Tweet This & Facebook Like buttons to post that article to my social media profiles.  I also use Foursquare as a way to quickly share where I am & what I am doing – such as attending a networking meeting or enjoying a new restaurant in town.

Now, even with all of this scheduling and planning, you will still get the best results from social media by being personal.  Make sure within your planning that you have time to respond and interact.  This is the most valuable part of social media. Take advantage of the time saving tools to keep your accounts up to date and to free up precious time to interact and get personal!

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Filed Under: Social Media, Time Management Tagged With: , ,

The 5 Step Social Media Process

June 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

social media planImplementing a social media plan for your business has many benefits, from expanding your reach online, to building credibility to drawing new clients and customers.  The social media tools available make connecting and sharing your expertise that much easier!  It is important to remember when implementing a social media plan that it  is a process.  To make it simpler to understand, I have broken it down into 5 steps:

Step One – Strategy – This is an important one.  You need to think about who you want to reach and what your goals are before you start to implement anything.  This will help you narrow your focus and use your time wisely.

Step Two – Set-Up – Before you can engage with anyone, you need to have your profiles and accounts created and maximized.  After completing step one, you should know what communities to participate in, and now is the technical job of setting everything up, making sure it is easy for people to find and connect with you – and do business with you.

Step Three – Listening – Now that your accounts are created, it is time to start listening.  Pay close attention to how the community works.  And spend some time searching and observing it all.  You will learn a lot about the community, and by listening first you can create content that is specifically for that community.  Again saving you time in the long run.

Step Four – Reaching Out – You need to make a conscious effort to reach out.  People will not always come to you – you need to find them.  This is where your strategy and listening come in handy.  Find targeted people on your networks and begin to connect and engage with them.

Step Five – Continued Maintenance – you can’t just set up a social media presence and forget it.  It has to be consistently nurtured and grown to benefit you.  So, you must update your accounts and continue to connect with others.  Also continue to search for new connections and build those relationships.

As you can see, social media is an on going process.  So try not to expect results overnight.  But, if you are consistent and continue to work on your social media presence, you will see some incredible results.  And if you need help implementing any of the steps listed above, contact me :)

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REBarCamp Sacramento

June 11, 2010 By 2 Comments

Real Estate Bar Camp SacramentoThis week I attended the Real Estate BarCamp here in Sacramento, an event centered around social media for real estate professionals.  It was a day long event with events scheduled each hour and it was great!  There was an incredible mix of people new to social media and those that have been using it for a while.  And each session was more like a discussion, so everyone was able to participate and share their thoughts.

I attended sessions on How to build a good reputation online, HyperLocal blogging, Useful WordPress plugins, and Search Engine Optimization.  I learned something in each one both from the leader of the session and from the people attending.

There was a really good turnout, but considering the number of realtors and real estate professionals in the Sacramento area, I believe more should have attended.  Especially since it was free!  I think it shows that people are still slow to adopt social media in their real estate business.  I am not sure if it is lack of interest, lack of time, or just lack of knowledge.  If it is lack of knowledge, than an event like REBarCamp is a great place to start.  There were 101 sessions all day on blogging, Twitter, Facebook and more.  Between the sessions and the attendees, there was plenty of information available!

I thought the whole event was worthwhile and full of value.  If you have a REBarCamp in your area, try to make it.  No matter what stage you are in – beginner or big time social media player, it will be well worth your time!

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Integrating Social Media with Offline Marketing

June 3, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Marketing yourself and your business online is a very important piece of your marketing plan.  You can extend your reach and build your brand online using tools such as Facebook,Twitter, blogs, and email marketing.  But, you want to make sure you integrate your online marketing with your offline efforts.  Finding the balance between the two – online and offline – is the key.  Here are a few ways to integrate the two:

1.  Add the web address to your social networking profiles to your business card.  This way everyone you meet in person can also find and connect with you online. For example, www.twitter.com/devonzimny is the url for my Twitter profile.

2.  Add your web addresses to all for your offline marketing materials – such as postcards, brochures, and flyers.  This way you offer the opportunity for people to get to know you and connect where they want.  Many people who spend time on Facebook are comfortable there.  And they may choose to get to know you a little better through your Facebook page before taking it to the next step.

3.  Search for the people you meet at offline networking events online – Do a search for them on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter.  By expanding your online network with people you have met in person, you can further that relationship and create a stronger network.

4.  Make sure to invite those that you meet offline to join your email list.  Let them know about the value you provide and ask if they would like to receive updates from you.  Email is a great way to stay in front of people.  And by providing consistent value, you will build a really strong relationship – and be the person that comes to mind first.

5.  Attend events such as Tweet-Ups, which are offline meetups of people on Twitter. These events are a great way to meet people you connect with on Twitter face to face.  They are also great for meeting new people and expanding your network.

6.  Do a little research before attending a live conference or event – check to see who else is talking about the conference.  Also, check to see if a hashtag (#) has been created for the conference.  If so, be sure to include it in your updates and to follow along with others mentioning the conference.  By preparing ahead of time, you can determine some people who you want to connect with at the event and even schedule some coffee chats.

Just because you are starting to utilize online networking tools does not mean that you abandon all of your offline efforts.  By integrating both of your online and offline efforts, you can strengthen your relationships and build a strong network.

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Realtors: 5 Things You Must Do Before Implementing Social Media

May 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment

You have been hearing about social media for a while now.  You know that you just have to start using it for your business.  You can’t wait any longer or else you will be too late.  With all of the talk about social media, you may feel that you have to rush in and get going immediately.  Before you jump in, stop and think first.

You will save yourself time in the long run if you strategize in the beginning.  Coming up with a plan will help you narrow your focus and save your precious time. Before you make the leap, consider the following 5 things first:

1. Determine Who You Want to Reach – A vital part of an effective social media plan is understanding who your target market is.  Who are you talking to?  Is it first time homebuyers?  Move Up buyers?  Buyers who are downsizing?  Narrowing down your focus to a specific market will help you fine tune your message and save you time!

2.  What Information is your Market seeking? What are their questions?  What are their problems and concerns?  What information do they need to know and understand before they buy?  By getting to know your target market, you can create content and share information that answers their questions and solves their problems.  This will make your content creation much easier.  As well as providing your clients, customers, and fans with the information they are searching for.

3.  Where do your target customers hang out online? Do some listening and research to find out where your customers are spending their time.  Maybe there are specific forums or niche social networks that cater to your potential customers?  Doing this research ahead of time will allow you to focus solely on the communities that are most beneficial to you.  Since there is never enough time in the day, choosing where you need to spend your time online is an important decision.

4.  What do you want your target customers to do? Think about your sales process.  As you bring more potential clients into the funnel, how do you want to direct them. Should they sign up for an email newsletter?  Should they visit your blog or website? How does social media fit into your current sales process?  You want to focus your social media efforts in such a way that directs your potential customers to take an action.

5.  How are you going to measure success? Once you know who you are trying to reach, where they are hanging out, what you want them to do, you want to be able to measure your results.  So decide on how you will measure your progress.  Maybe it is to track newsletter sign ups or website visits.  Whatever the measuring stick is, you want it to be in place when you start.

By spending some time strategizing up front, you will keep yourself from spinning your wheels in the long run.  So, set aside some time and work on these 5 questions.  You will be happy you did!

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mfinleydesigns/
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Filed Under: Real Estate, Social Media, Uncategorized Tagged With: , ,

How to use Facebook for Business: Profile or Business Page?

May 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Facebook

When considering using Facebook for your business, it can be confusing at first.  If you have been on Facebook personally, getting back in touch with friends, keeping up with family, and even playing games, you may not get how that could translate to business.  The first piece to understand is the difference between a Facebook profile and a Business page.

A Facebook profile is your personal page on Facebook.  If you have been using Facebook already, you have a profile.  To connect with others through your profile, you must friend them and they have to friend you back.

Once you have become friends with someone, you then get their updates, can see their pictures and videos,  and can send messages back and forth.  The same is true of what you post.  Anytime you update your status, comment on another post, upload a picture or RSVP to an event, all of your friends can see it.  You have control over the privacy of your page and how much is shown to those who are not your friends.

Your profile is not meant to be used for business.  When someone becomes your friend, it is ok to mention your business here or there, but your Facebook profile is truly meant to be personal.

Now the business page  is a little different.  Your business page (previously called a fan page) is essentially the storefront for your business on Facebook.  It is a completely public page that can be found via a search engine (such as Google or Yahoo) or through Facebook search.  Anyone can see the information on the page.

Those who want to keep up with your business page will click the “like” button.  This will allow them to see any updates made by your business page.  So anytime you update your status, post pictures or videos, or add an event to your business page, anyone who has liked your page will see that.  It is simple to “like” a page, and you do not need to approve it or friend them back.  They are essentially opting in to receive updates from you through Facebook.  Since they are dealing with the business page, they expect to here news and information related to your business.  So be sure what you are posting is valuable and helpful.

Creating a business page is the best solution for a business presence on Facebook.  It allows you to keep in contact with current customers, as well as future customers.  By simply updating your status or posting a link to an interesting article, you are keeping your business at the top of the mind of your customers.

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Are you Suffering from Social Media Writer’s Block?

February 24, 2010 By 1 Comment
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Do you stare at your blank Twitter profile wondering what to write about?  Have your profiles sat under-appreciated and unused because you just don’t know what to say.  It is understandable.  When you first start using social media it can be a bit overwhelming.  In the beginning it is hard to know what is the “right” content to share.  Not to mention that you have only a few followers, so who is really listening anyway?

Well, for social media to be effective for your business, you have to get over this hump.  You have to start contributing and adding content.  Simply having a profile isn’t going to do much good for your business.  It must be updated regularly.  Here are a few ways for you to start coming up with that all important content:

  1. Read More.  Start to follow other blogs in your industry or that are of interest to you.  Look for good articles that your target market will also enjoy.  Then post links to the blog posts and articles that have good information to share.  You can add a little comment or just post the title and link.  Most websites and blogs make this very easy to do.  Just search for the “Re-Tweet” this or Share This button on the page and with a few clicks you have posted the link to your account.
  2. Share your Own Content – If you have a blog, be sure to post the link of your new blog post on your social media accounts.  (There are wordpress plugins available to make this very simple to do)  If you have written articles, post those.  Got an event coming up?  Mention it.  One side note – make sure you aren’t only posting links to your stuff.  This gets old fast.  Mix it in with other content and interaction.
  3. Comment or reply to someone elses post.  This is one of my favorites.  It doesn’t take long to reply to another tweet or comment on a facebook posting, and you are starting to build the ever important relationship this way.
  4. Spend 1 hour a week brainstorming content ideas.  Schedule this time in your calendar and keep it an easy to access file (I use Evernote).  Think of 10 valuable bits of information you can share.  It is much easier to do when you have set aside the time to focus on it.  Now, when you do get onto your social media sites, you already have some great content to post .  You can now spend your time responding and commenting to others.  Instead of spending all your time trying to decide what to say.

It doesn’t have to be scary.  And the only way you will really learn what works for your business is to try.  Stop staring at the blank screen and make it a priority to start talking.  Jump in!

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Filed Under: Business, Social Media Tagged With: ,

If I Could Go Back in Time…

February 17, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Recently, I was thinking about my last career and if I would have used social media.  (I was actually asked this question not too long ago.)  I was the design center manager for a homebuilder.  I was extremely busy, worked a lot of hours, and went non-stop all day.  We were in the middle of a housing boom!  And I loved it.  But, when I look back and remember how busy I was, the thought of trying something new, like social media, would have been totally overwhelming.  It was only a few years ago, so many of the social media tools were available, but I just didn’t know about them.  I wish I could say, yeah, I absolutely would have embraced all this new media.  But, that isn’t true.  I wouldn’t have even had the time to figure it out!

But, things have changed.  I have learned all about social media and how to market online.  It was due to personal changes in my life that I started to learn, but I soon found a passion and love for it.  I can look back to my previous career and think of so many ways social media would have helped us.  From interacting with our customers, to informing our buyers, to customer service.  This is why I am so passionate about social media now – I can see the potential for so many businesses.  I can see how useful the tools are.  I can see how you can grow your business by using these marketing tools.  And I want to help you learn them.  I want to help you take your business to the next level online.  Just like I want to go back in time and tell the old me to start thinking outside of the box and learn about internet marketing.

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Filed Under: Internet Marketing, Social Media Tagged With: ,

Social Media Time Management Tips

February 11, 2010 By Leave a Comment
social media icons blue

social media icons blueWho has time for social media, right?  You are busy running a business!  I mean come on!  Even though it is mostly free, social media still takes time and effort to really see results.  But, isn’t that true of any marketing?  It all takes time and consistent effort, and social media is no different.  It is just a new way to market online.  I think the benefits of social media outweigh the effort and time you have to put in.  There are ways to manage your social media efforts, however, that can make the most of your time.

  1. Use a tool like www.tweetdeck.com or www.hootsuite.com to manage multiple accounts.  You can connect your Twitter, Facebook Fan Page, and LinkedIn accounts all within one tool, and post to all 3 at once.
  2. Use the available tools to automatically pull your blog posts into your various social media accounts.  There are plugins available on WordPress to post to Twitter automatically, you can use the Notes application on Facebook, and there is a WordPress application for LinkedIn.  You don’t have to do anything – other than actually write on your blog, and it will be posted to all of your other accounts.
  3. Use the Share This and ReTweet This tools to share articles and blog posts that you find interesting and think would be interesting to your network.  They are becoming much more common on blogs, article and news sites.  You are able to share a link with just a few clicks.  As you are catching up with industry news online, also consider what is worth sharing.
  4. Schedule time into your day – put it into your calendar and make it routine to check your accounts daily.  Make sure you respond to replies and comments.  And take some time to interact with others.
  5. Use your phone to share interesting thoughts, pictures, and events throughout your day.  Smartphones have made this very easy to do.  So it doesn’t take much time to post throughout the day.

You do have to commit some of your time to social media.  But, you can put systems in place and use the available tools to make it easier and more efficient.  Just like any other form of marketing, the more consistent effort you put in, the better the results.

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/webtreatsetc/ / CC BY 2.0

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