Getting started with social media: practical tips
How do I get the social media thing right?
Social media is becoming an increasingly important part of the marketing mix. Recent data shows that over a third of Australians are a member of at least one social networking site. You might be interested in checking out some of the claims made about the reach of social media in this video about the ‘social media revolution’.
An effective social media presence can be achieved through a well thought out social media strategy. What is it you are hoping to accomplish through social media and social networking? Who are you trying to reach? How do you want to engage with them?
Next steps
The digitalbusiness.gov.au website has lots of valuable information about social media to get things rolling. The social networking page has some tips on how to get started with social networks, while the social media marketing page has useful insights about how using social networking can benefit your business. It is important to realise that each social networking site has its own particular purpose, nuance, benefits and drawbacks – so it’s important to check out their terms and conditions before signing up.
In preparing your strategy, it is important to remember that social media is in most cases not going to be the be all and end all for your businesses. One lot of recent data from online retailers in the US suggested that less than 2 per cent of orders were directly attributable from customers coming from a social network. However, social networking is becoming an increasingly vital part of the marketing mix as a loyal long-term relationship with your customers can be a key element of their final purchase decisions.
Don’t forget, it’s prudent to read and understand the terms and conditions before signing up to any social media site or feature. There should be a link to the terms and conditions on the site you’re looking at. The guides for using the site or feature should also be read in light of its terms and conditions.
Facebook claims to have more than 500 million active users. In response to the increasing use of this social network by businesses, Facebook has published some very useful best practice guides. Its guide to marketing provides practical assistance on determining what it is you are looking to get out of your Facebook Page (such as increased sales or deeper customer relationships) and how you can go about achieving that. Meanwhile its guide to building your business with Facebook Pages offers suggestions as to how you can start the online conversation about your business, expand your fan base and analyse your Facebook metrics. And for those interested in using Facebook Ads, check out their online guide to advertising. In addition you can be kept up to date with new functionalities by becoming a fan of their Facebook, Facebook Pages, Facebook Marketing Soultions and Non-Profits on Facebook pages.
Twitter is a network that allows users to share information in the form of 140 character ‘tweets’. On average, Twitter’s 200+ million registered users tweet 155 million times a day. It can be a useful way to share information, gather information and build relationships with customers and other businesses. Twitter has set up a Twitter for Business website which covers three main themes: the basics for getting started, how you can optimise your activity and what to do if you want to start advertising. Of particular use are the Best Practices guide and the case studies which illustrate the strategies that other businesses employed to get the most out of Twitter. And in true twitter fashion, you can follow @TwitterBusiness to help you keep up to date.
LinkedIn focuses on managing your professional identity. It has over 100 million members, including one in ten Australians. Further, more than 2 million businesses have company pages. So how do you maximise the benefits of this? LinkedIn has produced six short and very easy to watch videos that provide a step-by-step guide of how small businesses can grow by using this network. The “Timeless Guide to Small Business Success” series covers getting your business on LinkedIn, building relationships with your customers, recruiting to expand your team, managing your reputation, accessing funding and developing partnerships to create more business opportunities.
YouTube
YouTube has grown to become the world’s second largest search engine, bringing the global community together through video. YouTube also offers some tips on how businesses can make the most of this community, such as the use of homepage video ads, InVideo ads, brand channels and contests. Their Broadcast Your Campaign page is a good start to learn the basics about advertising via YouTube.
Flickr
Flickr is a photo management application that aims to help users share their photos with the people that matter to them. Flickr has a best practice guide for businesses wanting to effectively share their story with the millions of online users. Flickr particularly emphasises that your business should be uploading interesting and authentic photos as a way to share your organisation’s personality and build brand loyalty.
Share your thoughts
Tell us what your experience with social media and social networking has been in the comments below. Has it worked and what level of emphasis do you put on it as part of your overall marketing strategy?
By Natalie, DBCDE
Hi Natalie,
In a nutshell having a social media presence is also about brand perception and share of attention. There are many different goals. You might have a brand like Cadbury Dairy Milk, and the goal it might be to speed up the purchase cycle. The common cycle may be consumer buys the product every six weeks, but we want their attention and top of mind so we can speed it up, make it every four weeks, and by the end of year, they have speeded up the buying.
The real benefit is building up owned media, having a piece of owned media is fantastic.
Defining and categorizing all Media options (Earned, Owned and Paid) is pivotal. Ultimately these types of media work best together but making the hard choices of what to include and what not to include is crucial – especially when budgets are tight. Facebook , Twitter and YouTube help a lot. You’ve got your private audience.
. The net and Social Media weren’tt invented by business people and don’t exist to help companies make money. It is entirely possible it could be used that way but it doesn’t owe you anything.
The question to ask is, “how are people (the people I need to reach, interact with and tell stories to) are using it and how can I help them achieve their goals?
We might have a community on Facebook with 100, 000 people who are really active and captivated by your messages to them. You may be able to reach that many people with another media, but the audience reached will stop to give your proper attention?
Cheers
Lucio Ribeiro
The Online Circle Social Media
Great article. Social Media is social interaction and social communication techniques to market a business online. We just need to be wise in which platform we use to engage our customers. As Lucio mentioned “We might have a community on Facebook with 100, 000 people who are really active and captivated by your messages to them”. Flickr might be more appealing for a Photography Business. Futhermore, Social Media can be used for personal use to engage and update our friends and family of our recent activities etc
Cheers,
Deryn