So, I get this request last week from a new business owner that wanted me to be-friend them on Facebook. Hey, I am all about new business so went straight to his page to learn more. I like to know who I am dealing with, same as you! What I found was not only amusing, but some what disturbing.

This guys business profile had no contact name, one lame picture and the best part is his business page said he was most interested in looking for women, dating and a relationship.

I tell my daughter this everyday “You have to pay attention!”  If you are going to promote your business on the internet then I suggest you not only pay attention when you set up your social media profiles the first time but if you haven’t done it in a while, go back and check to make sure it is up to date with what your business is about now! I got to thinking about this after seeing how a simple mistake can cost you. I looked at all of my social media profiles yesterday to make sure I wasn’t embarrassing myself or my business. I spent 2 hours updating them after seeing how outdated they were.

Point is this: Have a look at your profiles and make sure you are sending out not only the right message, but that you are branding your business for what it is. If you profile says one thing about you and your business and the website or search engine rankings say something different, I am a whole lot less inclined to do business with you!

What happened to the week? Seems like there is so much to do I can’t get anything done. What about you? Busy I hope.

If you think you are to busy to keep up with social media marketing then you are going to love the strategy I use for marketing my business with Social Media.

Sit down; learn this and you will harness one of the biggest and best online advertising methods available today.  Also start to get rankings in the search engines for absolutely no money out of pocket. Social Media marketing is worth your time, just not so much of it. Give this a few days and you will not only save time but your business will have a local presence simply through word of mouth. Not to mention direct website traffic!

Did I mention FREE advertising…FREE Referrals…FREE Promotion?

“How to” Keep Up With Social Media Marketing and Make It Work Effectively”

1. Set Up Profile/Page Completely

If you haven’t already been playing with social media then you will want to set up a profile or page on a site like Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn to name a few.

Either way, make sure you complete all the information available for describing you and your business. The more information you enter the more responses you will get.

If you are like me you may have profiles on 4 or 5 sites already. I recommend you set up an account with a social media update service. What this does is saves you from having to visit all of your accounts to say, tell or promote anything. Simply say it once and hit submit. All of your social media sites will be updated. I use Ping.FM for most of my updating. You can learn more about ping.fm here.

1. Pick One Site! Yes that is what I said. Focus on learning everything here and in time you can move to another site and repeat these steps. Choose the one you enjoy best, use as personal entertainment or business building, and the site that you have the most friends, connection or followers with.

Why? Well, keep in mind we are still going to be updating this site and all of our other sites from one location but our goal is to save time and be effective. I am a member of 6 social media sites. I focus on Facebook and keep tabs on the others periodically. I do however have email updates sent to me when someone makes a comment, replies to a message or contacts me through the site. That way I never miss a proposal request or question about my business.

1. Spruce It Up

Add pictures, videos, informative links and applications (for business) that connect your site posts to other social media sites simultaneously. Make it appealing! People love media and it will make visitors want to learn about you, interact with you and most importantly find out what you do and who you are by checking out your pictures, then your profile, then your site. No necessarily in that exact order but that’s how it happens.

Doing these things intrigues interest and comments, giving you exposure and allowing you to build relationships. People buy from people they know.

1. Posting Procedure & Etiquette

When you update your status be positive, intuitive or funny. Start conversations, don’t run people off. As a rule of thumb I post 3-5 times a day to all my sites. 80% of my posts are friendly conversation starters. 20% of them are about marketing my website, event or a product promotion.

I can not stress enough that this is sales with out being a sales rep. Do not push your product or service, try to sell every new connection or make it evident that you are only here for business. They do not call it “Social Media” for nothing. Spam your business or website link here and people will de-friend you, block you and even hurt you with negative comments to other people or connections they know.

1. Interact & Comment

Building relationships can be done from your computer. You can talk to 1000’s of people each day by using social media. Try doing that by going to lunch or meeting over coffee.

With people seeing your status post everyday it is undeniable that some of these folks will find what you have to say interesting. Being interesting or debatable in your posts, or by posting pictures you evoke peoples nature to put there two cents worth into the conversation.

Interact with them by posting a reply comment. By starting and continuing conversations people will tell you what they think. That big client you where looking to meet or better yet someone who has been looking for your product or service could chime in. Say hello and thank them for their comments. Now it is time to get to know them and let them get to know you. They will know what you do and inquire when they are ready.

Remember this tip: Do not get angry or hostile from the comments you receive. Do not appear to be right all the time. Take the negative comments and learn from them and reply with integrity and character. You never know when you will learn something. It also helps you build authority and leadership in your industry. If the commenter is abusive kick them out of your network!

Okay that being said here is a summary of things to do.

• Set up account profile(s) completely by filling in all information (this will take you the most time – once set up your looking at an hour a week).
• Set up social media updater like ping.fm and pick sites you wanted updated
• Pick one site you like and enjoy using
• Set up email or text notification when someone interacts with you on your other sites. Link sites together so if you use facebook to post it automatically transfers to twitter.
• Make your page appealing and interesting; Add pictures, video, links
• Post on a regular basis to all sites from one location or use your favorite site and link it to your other sites. What ever is easiest?
• Comment on other peoples posts and comment when others comment on your post. Talk to people, talk to people, talk to people. It’s all about who you know.
• Do this 2-3 times a day 3-4 days a week spending no more than 10 min @ a time posting links, pictures, making comments or entering your status updates.

That pretty much sums it up. Post comments below with questions or share your useful tips and strategies. Happy Marketing!

Brian McDaniel & Carbon Copy Consulting

Trusted Source for Online Marketing Information

P.S. Like this article, then share it with your friends on the social media site of your choice listed below. Much Appreciated!

Social Media is possibly the best way on the planet to make friends and connect with people. For you to build relationships effectively on these sites you must be active in posting, communicating and being a person who is interesting. Simple enough right? Here is how I save time and post regularly.

Social media is fairly simple. Be yourself, interact and post often. The problem with all this is the sheer time it takes to be an active member. Most of us, especially you that are business owners, simply do not have enough time in the day to maintain a presence on all of these social platforms. As a business owner, time is money.

But here is why you must do it! Sharing your business on social media platforms is a must for anyone looking for exposure online or offline. There is no better way to spread the good news about your product or service than a satisfied customer proclaiming your name to all their friends and connections. So in reality you can’t afford to “not” to be active in social media.

So, how do we do this effectively and efficiently? Well, today I am going to tell you about a posting service called ping.fm. Instead of visiting, facebook, twitter, linkedin, your blog… the list could go on and on, to post updates, you can do it all from one place.

Ping.fm is a simple and FREE service that makes updating your social networks a snap!

Enter your status post, links to your website or simply make a profound statement here and it will be posted to all of your social media profiles with one click of a button.

Not a big prophecy from above but will defiantly help you stay up to date all by saving you time in the process.

Hope you enjoy it. Re-tweet or share this on Facebook and help someone save time. Much appreciated.

]]> http://carboncopyconsulting.com/social-media-marketing/ping-your-social-media-updates-to-save-time/feed/ 2 http://carboncopyconsulting.com/social-media-marketing/learn-internet-marketing-using-facebook/ http://carboncopyconsulting.com/social-media-marketing/learn-internet-marketing-using-facebook/#comments Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:28:14 +0000 Brian http://carboncopyconsulting.com/?p=241

Internet marketing is going to be essential in the future of your small business. Learn it and you will be able to get more customers for less money all while your business grows. Internet marketing is very different from marketing in the real world and most people find is quite complicated.

If you are interested in learning internet marketing for your business then Facebook or any of the other popular social networking sites are a good place to start. I find marketing on Facebook provides you with a lot of potential for marketing your website, products or services. If you are a first time internet marketer you will want to start here.

Keep in mind, Facebook is for the most part a social networking website that is designed to let people communicate with their friends. It also serves as a way for people to meet new people and establish new relationships. This type of marketing is more about word of mouth advertising. You do not want to push your message out, instead make it readily available to be seen and viewed buy the people that cross your profile or status update.

There are over 64 million subscribers on Facebook alone, and growing by an estimated 200,000 per day. You will certainly be able to find a lot of people who will be interested in what you have to sell. Facebook has all the tools needed for you to communicate and market your business effectively to a highly targeted audience or group.

Another key marketing feature is Facebook Ad’s. This is paid advertising to get instant traffic and views to your website. Here you will be able to target a niche market by age, gender, marital status, location and much more. With these ads you will be able to easily target only the customers you want.

Establish your own group or host your own event on Facebook. Social media marketing is all about “socializing” with your friends and more importantly, their friends. Invite like minded people who are interested in the same things you are to these groups and events. They will interact with you, learn more about you and eventually buy from you. People do business with you only if they know you, like you and Trust you. It’s all about building relationships online rather than off line.

Tip to Remember: I see people marketing their businesses or products on Facebook all the time; however, very few are doing it right. If all you talk about on Facebook is selling cars then your friends will soon ignore you or blacklist you all together. But, if you will be their friend, comment on their photos and status updates, and build that relationship, then every now and again you can tell them about the big sale you’re having down at the lot. They will appreciate you looking out for them rather than trying to sell them. Not to mention they will also most likely look you up when they are ready to buy a new car.

Leave a comment letting me know about your marketing experience with Facebook.

For more tips and tricks about using Facebook and other social media marketing simply put your name and email in the boxes below.