1. Social media overload.  There.  In the middle of the first paragraph.  Did you catch one of the main reasons to hire a marketing professional?  Social media outlets are free and available to you … and ALL business owners on the planet.  Everyone has access to programs like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn; but no reader has the patience to sift through every business owners’ post, feed, blog or status update.  In order to use these sites effectively, you must catch readers’, friends’ and followers’ attentions.  Here’s where your friendly marketing professional comes in handy and is worth every penny.  Experienced social marketing professionals know how to write sticky content, catchy headlines and compelling posts to catch readers’ attentions.   Social media only works if someone actually reads the information!

2. Picking the right social media outlet for your business.  Social marketing campaigns are not one-size-fits-all.  Each social media outlet has a target demographic, a different vibe and a different way of disseminating information.  If your business targets women 55 and over, Twitter probably won’t do you a lot of good.  A marketing professional will immediately point you to Facebook.  If you are selling to men in the Mid-West, you need to make sure a majority of your Twitter followers are men in the Mid-West. 

3. Social marketing is time consuming.  If done correctly, a well-crafted social media campaign is well worth the time.  However, if you’re new to the social media game, you’re probably wasting a lot of time.  Social marketing is a huge time investment.  If you open accounts with different social media outlets, you need to maintain those accounts or risk turning off readers, followers and friends.  Let the marketing professional work on these campaigns so you can spend your time running your business.

4. There are plenty of fish in the sea.  Everyone knows about the “big three,” but what about the literally thousands of other social media outlets on the Internet?  Many of those smaller social marketing sites are niche sites, and that could be exactly what your business needs.  A marketing professional will take the time to research which sites exist and, although they may be small, will effectively market your business. 

Although social media is usually free to start it may end up costing you in the end.  With bland posts, untargeted messages, hundreds of hours (yes, I’m serious) spent writing, and missed ”hidden” social media opportunities, social media may be much more expensive than you realized.  If you’re interested in starting a social media campaign, invest in a marketing professional with social media experience.  She may be able to increase your return on investment and leave you with time to do what you love — run your business. 

If you have any questions about starting a social marketing campaign or helping an existing campaign, contact us!  We’ll be happy to give you tips and information about how best to leverage social media and increase awareness for your business.

The following is a quick breakdown of some of the most popular social media sites.   While you’re reading, think about your business and which channels have the best chances of reaching your target audience.   If you’re working on sites that are less helpful, consider shifting some of your time or hire someone to help manage your social media campaigns.

1. Twitter. Twitter is a micro-blogging site with an estimated 20 million users, many of them have joined the site in the last six months.  The average age of a tweeter is 31 years old.  Thirty-five percent of Twitter users live in urban areas.   The cities with the biggest Twitter populations are New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, San Francisco and Boston.  Fifty-three percent of tweeters are women.

2. Facebook.  With more than 250 million active users, Facebook is probably the most popular social media site at the moment.  Facebook is experiencing incredible increases in users in the 35-65 age demographic.   More than four million more US women 35-44 and nearly three million more US men 35-44 used Facebook in March 2009 compared to September 2008.  The fastest-growing group of users is women over 55.  There are currently 1.5 million active over-55 women users each month.   

3. Youtube.  Youtube users range in age from 18-55, evenly divided between males and females. Fifty-one percent of users go to YouTube weekly or more often, and 52 percent of 18-34 year-olds “often” share videos.  Nearly one-third of users view two-to-five videos during a visit to the site.

4. Linked In.  This “professional” social media site boasts a median user age of 40.  LinkedIn is currently reaching 11 million users in the US.  Of those users, 57 percent of these users are men and 72 percent are over the age of 35. Thirty-seven percent of users have a total household income that exceeds $100k per year.  Most are well educated – 82 percent of Linked In users have a college degree.

So, which sites work for you?  Which sites proably won’t work as well?  How can you manage your “social marketing time” more effectively?

In order to make sure that other tweeps get to know the real you (or your company), it’s important to give as much information in as little space as possible.  Be sure to include the following four items –  picture, location, website and description – and you’ll definitely see an increase in relevant followers.

1.       Post a picture.  People want to get a good look at you, not a brown box!  Choose a good picture.  It doesn’t have to be a formal headshot (although that will certainly work), but it should be a picture of you only.  If you’re concerned that you don’t have a picture you like or you want a little privacy, choose an avatar based on your company.  You may want to use your logo or a photo that represents you or your company.  You could add a picture of your product.  Maybe you have a “cartoon” version of yourself.  That works, too!  

2.       Specify your location.  People like to follow folks who are in their city/state.  Even if you’re a national company, it’s OK to list where you’re tweeting from.  People understand that you’re not the company, you’re merely a representative of the company. 

3.       Have a website?  Be sure to list your url on your profile.  This will guide folks to your site where they can learn more about you or your company.  It’s a very powerful link!  On any given day, there may be several hundred or several thousand folks looking at your profile.  Each of those people is a potential customer.  Make sure they know you have a website!

4.       Make sure that your bio (although very short) will give people an insight into you or your business.  Because Twitter bios have a very limited length, it’s important that yours is informative and catchy.  Don’t be afraid to show your personality.  You may also want to contact information or a call to action. 

Want more twips (or, tips, for you newbies), contact us!  We love Twitter, and we’re happy to let you in on all of the dirty little twecrets!

In my experience, the folks who fit into one of my categories are of much more value to me than 10 times the followers who don’t fit in any category or basically serve as spam.  As a result, I have very strict guidelines about whom I follow and I rarely deviate.  Following my own rules has kept me interested in Twitter and resulted in tons of great information.  I’m not overloaded with superfluous tweets,  and I’m always reading things that interest me.

1. Location, location, location.  I follow people who are in my area.  Even in the virtual world of Twitter, I find that locals have more relevant news, events and recommendations.   If you’re interested in your neighborhood and/or city happenings, locals are always the best ”follows.”   Not to mention that you may actually get a chance to meet these folks in person.  I’ve met many of my Twitter friends and they’ve become acquaintences and clients!

2. How frequent is the Tweet?  I find that folks who only have 3 or 4 posts are typically “trying out” Twitter, and many drop off after the first few days.  At the same time, folks who are tweeting 30 or 40 times per day actually seem more like spamers.  Most of them don’t tweet about any significant events or they try to tweet about every significant event.  The tweeps I follow typically have 3-10 tweets per day.   These people are obviously involved in Twitter and they tweet when they have something to say — not just to hear themselves tweet.

3. Hey, you’re interesting!  Typically, the best follows are people who share interesting information about my profession or my hobbies.  I get a lot of relevant information this way.  It’s similar to reading a trade publication or a newspaper every day, except it’s up-to-the-minute information.  

4. We’re engaged.  No, not in the wedding way, in the conversation way.  After all, it’s more about the conversation than the content.   If I tweet something and someone retweets or comments –  I follow that person.  Twitter is all about engaging conversation.  If someone is willing to “talk” to me, I’ll “talk” back. 

Do you have guidelines for Twitter follows?  I’d love to hear about them.  Maybe we’ll end up following each other!