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Social Media for Business is No Longer Optional By Kim Dixon, Sage Peachtree Product Team
It's become clear that social media is here to stay. If you are like many businesses, you've been too busy running your business to figure out what you need to do. The days of creating a magazine or mail ad and waiting for the sales to pour in are over. This is the year for you to either create or strengthen your social media strategy. It's no longer an option.
It can be overwhelming at first to figure out what networks you need to be on. It's no secret Facebook and Twitter are the most popular, but you should do a little research to find out what the best fit is for your business.
What market and what customers are you trying to reach? Facebook is getting a lot of attention these days. You are probably one of the 400M+ who have an account. But if you are a B2B company, LinkedIn and Twitter may prove to be more useful than Facebook. And what is this Foursquare that is getting so much publicity? Could blogging via Wordpress be the way for you?
Social media is a way to engage with prospects and customers. You should have a strategy that will allow you to get the most out of your time and effort. In the following newsletter editions, I will be highlighting these different networks. Let's start right now with . . .
Facebook for Your Business
With over 500 million users (I'm one of them), Facebook could be the third largest country in the world. Originally created for college students, today approximately 60 percent of users are 35 years or older. This means there's a great chance your business' audience is on Facebook and you can reach them.
A lot of small businesses think that Facebook isn't going to help them, it's not for their type of business, they don't have the time, or some other reason that keeps them from getting started. Truth is if you don't want to build relationships with your customers or generate new sales leads, then Facebook's not for you. My guess is you want those things. Managing a Facebook Fan Page takes time and commitment. Once you have a goal – driving traffic to your website, building your email list, building brand awareness, enhancing customer service, etc. – you can develop your plan.
If you haven't created a Facebook page, there are 3 things you have to do first:
- Register your page here.
- Invite friends and customers to "Like" the page. (This will allow them to get your updates.)
- Secure a unique page username here (you must be logged in to access this link). You have to have 25 "Likes" before you can secure a page username. If you are relatively new to Facebook for your business, you need to first focus on getting "fans" or "Likes" to build your audience. Once you have a following and understand what they like, you can add more bells and whistles like customized landing pages, events, and other special tabs.
Here are ways to increase your fan base.
- Add your Facebook URL and "Find us on Facebook" badge to all of your correspondence – email signature, website (add Facebook badge and "Like" button with Facebook Social Plugins, business cards, letterhead, products, etc.
- Send out emails to customers telling them about your page and offering an incentive to "Like". For example, before March 31 and get 10% off your next purchase."
- "Tag" companies or customers you work with. This will show up on your page and theirs! Example, "Just had a great meeting with Jane Doe to discuss plans for her new kitchen. It's going to be beautiful! Check back for before and after pictures! Thanks John Smith for the referral!" To tag Jane Doe and John Smith, simply put "@" without the quotes before their name (e.g., @Jane Doe).
- "Tag" photos or invite your customers to post photos while using your product or service.
- Post links, articles, or videos that your customers will find useful or interesting – especially those that inspire them to comment or share on their page.
The bottom-line is that it's a time commitment, but it will reap rewards. And remember, if you set it up, get the fans, and then don't update your page or don't respond to comments, it can actually hurt your reputation. Decide you are going to do it and stay with it. Slow and steady wins the race.
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