Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Citation preview
Beyond the Hype: How to Use Social Media Tools to Grow Your
Business
Introductions
• Paul BuraniPresident, Clicksharp Marketingwww.clicksharpmarketing.com
• Michelle Riggen-RansomCo-Founder & Communications Director, Batch Blue Softwarewww.batchblue.com
What are Social Media?”Communities where users can submit content related to a very specific topic of interest. The content is public for community members to interact freely: commenting, voting, sharing, discussing. These media are "social" because people are encouraged to contribute to the dialogue, present their viewpoints, and engage with their communities – the same way as if they took place offline at a coffee shop, dinner party, or board meeting.” Photo credit: Flickr/tomfite.
Push vs. Pull Marketing
What are Social Media?
• What do all social media sites have in common?
– Profile-based environment
– User-generated content
– Community interaction
– Etiquette
What are Social Media?
• How do social media sites differ?
– “Open” or “Closed”
– Type & format of content
– Scope of relationships
– Cross-platform integration
What are Social Media?
• What’s behind all the hype?• How can social media be a low-risk marketing asset?
Source: eMarketer, comScore, Facebook.
• Do’s
– Be proactive with links and comments.
– Focus on just a few communities.
– Engage others for feedback.
– Maintain regularity in your contributions.
– Be yourself.
What are Social Media?
What are Social Media?
• Don’ts
– Be a pushy salesperson.
– Recklessly use off-color humor.
– Expect total privacy.
– Assume people care about the minutia of you or your business.
– Overlook the rules of confidentiality.
• Should my business be using social media?
– Does selling your product require customer education?
– Would customer feedback help you develop better products?
– Do you take an organized approach to customer service?
– Will showing customers your personality help you sell more?
Social Media Marketing
• How to pick the right mix of social media tools
1. Where are you likeliest to find your audience?
2. What kind of content will you publish?
Social Media Marketing
• Applying the mindset:
– "Content is Currency”
– Chicklets and the multiplier effect
– Search engines and social media annuities
– Everyone is ready to listen; what are you going to say?
Social Media Marketing
• Economizing marketing efforts across different social media platforms
– Webmail contacts
– RSS (Really Simple Syndication)
– One more reason to start blogging!
Social Media Marketing
Social Media Marketing
• Measuring Success: the X-factor!– When visitors leave, how soon do they come back?– What geographic areas attract/engage visitors the
most?– How deeply do visitors engage with the content?– Do IT issues (OS, browsers, connection speeds) affect
the site's user experience?– Which third party websites send the most traffic?– What site content holds attention & keeps visitors
coming back?– Which promotions and ad campaigns are paying off?
Social Media Marketing
– Are offline marketing efforts contributing to the website's success?
– Are any particular pages driving people away?– What path do visitors take to reach the most important
content?– Which search engine keywords direct people to the
site?– Which visitors are just browsing, and
which have a meaningful impact on business?
Social Media Marketing
Photo credit: Flickr/fragwagon.
Social media marketing extends on corporate strategy…
it does not replace it.
BatchBlue Software: Small company, big challenges
• Crowded market (CRM)• No physical product to sell• Target audience (small businesses)
notoriously difficult to reach• No advertising budget …so what’s a young start-up to do?
Using Social Media to Win Friends & Influence Customers
• BatchBlue Blog• Forums• Twitter• Sbbuzz (Twitter chat/blog)• YouTube, Facebook, Flickr
@batchblue on Twitter
@batchblue on Twitter
@sbbuzz and sbbuzz.biz
@sbbuzz and sbbuzz.biz
BatchBlue Forums
= Free CS!
BatchBlue Blog
YouTube, FaceBook, Flickr
It’s not the tools…it’s the network
Biz dev
Twitter => SXSW => Twitter => Product integration/co-marketing BatchBook & FreshBooks
PR & marketing
Twitter t-shirts => Blogger’s Lounge at SXSW =>Contact at Mashable
Hiring & recruiting
Twitter => Local tech meetup =>BatchBlue’s new System
Administrator
10 Things YOU can do to grow your biz with social media
1. Listen. Get out there, find your audience. 2. Be ready. Carry a camera everywhere. You
never know when that killer video or photo op will present itself.
3. Open Twitter account. Number one way we've found to build network fast.
4. Share. Make posts easy to share and make them compelling enough that people will want to share.
5. Engage. Be responsive. Folks want to know people behind the company.
… and the next 5!6. Syndicate. Leverage the power of RSS.
You'll get more bang for your content buck.7. Provide value. Offer free content, promo
codes, give people tools to promote you.8. Crowdsource. Ask compelling questions,
empower people to weigh in. You won't be the only one interested in the answers.
9. Have fun! If it's not fun, you won't do it.10. Shine! Put yourself on the main stage. You
may not have a huge social network today, but tomorrow you might.
Questions?
ContactsPaul Buranitwitter:@clicksharpemail: [email protected]
Ramon Raytwitter: @ramonray email: [email protected]
Michelle Riggen-Ransomtwitter: @mriggen @batchblue email: [email protected]
