May
6

So where do we begin?

By now many of us are familiar with the buzz word ‘Social Media’. Those of us using social media realize it is another form of communication (as stated in the name its ‘social’). What I hope to prove to you is it is a way to market and grow your business in a measurable way with a reaction based timely response. In essence it is a quantifiable way to increase business or sales.

What some of us have yet to realize social media is an extension of our business that can reach farther and faster than conventional practices of networking and marketing can offer.  

It provides a way for many people to come together in a variety of social networking platforms to reach millions of users daily while making available a surplus of marketing and sales opportunities and ask and answer/questions like:

  • Where do I begin (strategy/business plan)?
  • What can it do for my business (awareness, increase your sphere of influence, increased sales/profit)?
  • What are the dangers involved (reputation, brand management)?
  • What can I learn from it (tools available, continuing education)?

In September 2009 I attended the American Marketing Association (AMA) Panel Discussion on Social Media. It opened my eyes to how social media was not just about getting on Facebook to share photos or play Farmville or instant messaging with family and friends. Yes it is a way to be social but it also a viable tool for businesses, education/academia, healthcare, government agencies to reach so many people.

  • There are more than 400 million active users on Facebook.
  •  As of July 2009 1,017,020 (source* figures are taken from Facebook and then compared to Facebook usage statistics lists.)
  • 566,780 Pinal County Facebook users (source: Matt Adams, Factor 1, speaker at the 23rdAnnual Pinal Co. Town Hall April 28 -30, 2010)
  • LinkedIn has over 65 million members.
  • Twitter users have climbed to a lofty 75 million.

Over the next few posts I will outline what I’ve learned thus far (actions we’ve taken, tools available, what we’ve learned, how to measure success (ROI) and mistakes and how to avoid them).

As we consider the vast Social Media Landscape and all of the platforms available it’s overwhelming to say the least.

So where do we begin?
As part of my research I read blogs, tweets, RSS fees, Facebook updates, Google alerts and slideshare posts to name a few. I found this slide share post of great interest and wanted to share this with all of you.

Slideshare briefing by Olivier Blanchard who is a business strategist specializing in new media, social media and brand management. Entitles this briefing Olivier Blanchard Basics Of Social Media ROI.

Olivier Blanchard Basics Of Social Media Roi

I hope you find this article of interested. Stay tuned for my next post on steps to creating your social media small business strategy.

Warmly,
Stephanie

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