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Posts Tagged: Social Networking

Social Media for Business…Whose Face Do You Use?

This is a common question asked by executives, entrepreneurs and, small businesses especially. Should you tweet or post content from a Facebook page as yourself or as your company? Ask yourself this question: On Twitter, would you be more likely to follow and engage in conversation with a person who happens to work at, or own, a particular company, or with the logo of the company? You know that there is a person (most of the time) sending out the information on the company’s behalf, but which is considered more transparent and authentic? The REAL person.

Take a look at the company, Zappos. For those of you who are not familiar with this company (shame on you!) it started as an online shoe retailer but now sells clothing as well. I believe Zappos is a customer service company that happens to help you look great! The CEO, Tony Hsieh, says they deliver HAPPINESS…and when shoes are delivered…it is indeed HAPPINESS! But if you do a search on Twitter for Zappos, you will find over 40 individual accounts that have Zappos and then the person’s name within the company that is using Twitter to reach and engage her own community, including Tony Hsieh. People want to connect to brands that they love and if there is a real person behind the brand, it is a bonus!

Social Media Expert, Gina Schreck, Twitter Training, Technology Speaker

Remember, social media is about the conversations, not the pushing of your goods and services. Once I like you, I will be more likely to buy from you. If all you do is talk without asking my opinions or listening to what I am talking about, you might as well keep wasting your money on those slick postcards that I love throwing away!

Now on Facebook it is a little different. You may want to allow individuals within an organization to send or post content on behalf of your company from their personal profile pages, but I would use extreme caution (OK I would really ask you “ARE YOU NUTS?”). If you are a small company and you want your team members to help you get the word out on certain company campaigns or messages, have and communicate clear policies around what type of content should and should not be shared from a personal Facebook profile. ”Company picnic today at Synapse” is fine but “Boss man getting married AGAIN…this time to our marketing VP” may not be the message you want getting out to all of Facebook Land! Facebook has PAGES that serve the business world and provide a great place for you to engage with your community. (See episode #35 on Gettin’ Geeky for the HOW TO CREATE A PAGE) I suggest that companies create a PAGE that does not have an individuals name, but the company or the service you provide (SPEAKEASY uses the company name while WOMEN WHO WALK THE WALK is not a company named PAGE, but a community of people drawn by common interests).

Twitter and Facebook profiles are more about the personal conversations, while PAGES (formerly FAN PAGES) are about great content and engaging your community -whether around a brand name or common interest group.

So who’s face do you use? I will leave that up to you…but unless your logo has a shoe somewhere in there, you may not get me to engage! Share your thoughts with us~ What PAGES do you engage with most and is it a person’s name or an organization? Come on…take off that mask and talk to us!

@GinaSchreck

You can connect with me on Facebook on my personal page or join the fun at our GettinGeeky Page

June 25, 2010 | Filed Under Facebook, Gettin Geeky, Social Media, Twitter | 6 Comments

HELLO? Is Anyone Home on Your Social Media Sites?

A good friend of mine is an expert in his field. He is a great guy and is booked regularly for speaking engagements. He jumped on the social bandwagon over a year ago with a Facebook page and a Twitter account. The problem is he has outsourced the posting of content on his pages to someone who obviously does not know how to LISTEN to the community he has tried to engage.

There are regular info-dump posts with tips or links to his site with information about where he is speaking next, but you never see comments on the Facebook PAGE or replies in the Twitter feed. There is no conversations going on. Why bother? Your website is already playing the role of stagnant information dumping ground (assuming there is no blog). There’s nobody home.

Social engagement tools like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and your blog are about conversations and building relationships. Part of a good conversation is listening and responding to the people you are wanting the relationship with. If you don’t believe me, try maintaining a healthy relationship with someone (significant other, children, co-worker, etc) without responding when they speak to you. That relationship won’t last long.

Here are 3 tips for making sure the lights are on and people know you are home:

1. Mix in questions with your tips and information that get posted. Asking questions shows you care about what your community thinks. For example, your Twitter profile and Facebook PAGE should be sprinkled with great content and conversations.

2. NOW LISTEN and respond to the answers your community posts. Yes this means replying to every single comment. You can bundle your reply to several people at a time but show you heard them.

3. Look at what your community is saying (this is made easier by using a tool like Hootsuite or TweetDeck to filter the flow of information) and jump in on the conversation occasionally with a comment, a LIKE, a ReTweet, or a reply (shoot for 5 times a day to start).

Be sure you are applying these tips to all of the places you have hung your SOCIAL sign out–your blog, Facebook Fan Page, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, YouTube, Flickr, etc. Remember, don’t leave your lights on if no one is home!

Like Tom Bodett, I’m @GinaSchreck and I’ll leave the light on for you~

Join me on our Facebook PAGE (someone’s alway home there)

June 24, 2010 | Filed Under Facebook, Gettin Geeky, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube | 2 Comments

10 Twitter Do’s + 5 Twitter Don’ts = BIG Twitter Success

After two years using Twitter, and spending 6 months writing my Gettin’ Geeky with Twitter book, I have pulled together my top Do’s and Don’ts for using this powerful social engagement tool. There are so many tips and techniques for Twitter success, but these will be a good foundation for anyone wanting to build their business and manage their brand using this simple social engagement tool. You may not agree with all of them (and I encourage you to add your tips to this list in the comments), but I have found these the best way to build an authentic Twitter feed with minimal spam and maximum conversation that leads to new friendships, new learning and yes, new sales!

1. DO start by writing down your goals for being on Twitter. Is it a PR tool for you? Will you just be a Twatcher (someone who reads tweets but never posts anything)? Is your goal to connect with potential customers, or send readers to your blog? Write this goal down and keep it near by. Without a goal you can easily get sucked into that Twitter trap of sitting for hours and reading everyone’s posts and adding useless content to the already polluted stream. Having 1,000 followers is NOT a good goal. I can show you 1,000 naked spammers if that is your only goal.

2. DO take time to build your nest before starting to fly. Fill in your profile, giving people some information about you, a link to your website, blog or even LinkedIn profile, so they can see you are a REAL person and learn more if they want. Show your personality in that 160 character bio-HA! Most importantly is to be sure to load a good headshot of …YOUR HEAD! Don’t load a picture of your cat or truck or baby picture. People want to connect with a person, and more importantly, they want to conenct with YOU!

3. DO follow SMART people. Start by following writers and thought leaders you enjoy as well as those in your industry that you can share information with. Don’t get caught up in following the “Recommended” twits that Twitter suggests or celebrities, unless this is your industry. You can sprinkle those in later, but it can derail your focus as you read hundreds of possibly useless posts.

4. DO use a Twitter tool to manage the information flow. If you start feeling like it is information overload, realize that it is “filter failure.” Tools like TweetDeck and Hootsuite will help you manage the information flow. You do not need to read every tweet that comes raging by like a fast moving river. These tools will help you “pool” the tweets from your favorites into different columns or lists that you set up until you have time to read them. (More info on this in episode #55 of Gettin’ Geeky)

5. DO ReTweet good stuff. If you are following smart people, you will be getting smart info in your stream. When you retweet, you let others know you appreciate their information as you provide good content to those following you! (Be sure to use the RT etiquette which is to always give credit to the originator of the content)

6. DO jump in and reply to tweets that you have something to say on. Show people you are here for the conversations and not just to dump your information. If you look at your Twitter stream (look at your profile page) you should see a good mix of @replies, RT’s and great content from you.

7. DO think before you tweet! Before hitting send on that nugget of information, ask yourself if it is interesting or helpful. Many of you know my motto is “Be Interesting, Be Helpful, or Be Quiet!” Sharing personal information about watching television or what you are eating is neither helpful nor interesting. If you are telling me what movie you’re watching, perhaps you can give us a great line from the movie and have people guess, or you can tell us a lesson learned from the movie.

8. DO anticipate people ReTweeting your great nuggets. If you are posting something that you feel is helpful or interesting enough, then help people ReTweet it by making it short enough for them to fit a short comment and their Twitter name. To do this you want to aim for 120 character tweets–I know, it’s not easy!

9. DO make your links “clickable.” When posting a link to a blog or website, on Twitter, you must start with http:// instead of www. The http:// makes the link clickable. The only person who will go through the trouble to copy and paste your link into a browser is your mom, and even she will wait until later to do it. Bottom line, make it easy for folks!

10. DO add pictures, videos and other fun add-ins to your Twitter stream to allow us to SEE into your world. Most mobile devices can snap a pic and upload it to Twitter either via MMS messaging (text) or by using an app. Write a short tweet with the pic and share!

11. DON’T send people an auto Direct Message that tells them you are a cheesy spammer right off the bat. If you ARE a cheesy spammer, you may not want to tell us to unfollow you so quickly. When I get a direct message (DM) from a new person I follow and it reads “Thank you for following me, I can help you make thousands of dollars from your Twitter stream. Here is my gift to you: http://ImAnIdiot.com” I click UNFOLLOW and depending on what the spammer said, I may UNFOLLOW and BLOCK! Direct messages should be real messages from you to the other person that are not intended for anyone else to see. Here’s more information on how to use the DM feature.

12. Don’t protect your tweets. Go back to your goal-why are you on Twitter? Unless you are using Twitter for an internal communication tool (in which case, most of these tips will become useless to you), you really shouldn’t care about who reads your helpful nuggets. You do not have to follow them all back. Remember people who are following your posts will only see what you decide to send out. Make it easy for people to get your information. Protecting your tweets is a hassel for others.

13. Don’t use the verification services that make followers authenticate themselves to prove they are not spammers. YOU do the work. Remember, you don’t have to follow everyone back, but don’t punish those you were trying to attract in the beginning.

14. Don’t send every tweet to Facebook and LinkedIn. Be selective on what posts go where. Each of these sites reaches a different audience (for the most part) and requires different information. There are some nuggets that will go everywhere and some only to one or two of the sites. Using a tool like TweetDeck or Hootsuite will allow you to pick and choose which sites will receive your post.

15. Don’t listen to every so called “expert” telling you her Do’s and Don’ts on how to use your Twitter account. If you jump in and explore you will find the tools you like and a way that works for you.

Add your favorite Do’s and Don’ts~

@GinaSchreck

June 21, 2010 | Filed Under Gettin Geeky, Marketing, Twitter | 11 Comments

5 Reasons I Won’t Follow You Back

If you are trying to build your Twitter following, you may want to take a fresh look at your Twitter profile and do some housekeeping first. There are some folks who will auto-follow anyone who follows them, but many people want to make sure they are following people who will add great content to their Twitter stream. Here are the 5 reasons I do not follow people:

1. If there is no photo. Do not let the DEFAULT BIRD of laziness kill your Twitter efforts. Don’t be like those folks who drive to work while they shave or put on make up- Get dressed before you leave the house. Loading a picture can be tricky for some folks but if you don’t have a digital photo on your computer to load, try using the camera that is built into your laptop to snap a photo or better yet have your teenaged son or daughter do it for you! They can even go to http://PicNik.com and do some teeth whitening or blemish remover before loading it.

2. If there is a photo but it looks like something out of a Playboy or Playgirl magazine you will not only NOT be followed but you will probably be BLOCKED! I don’t want to see a picture that is cropped from your chin to your hips and I CERTAINLY don’t want to see your sculpted 6-pack abs (that would only irritate me every time I saw your tweets!). Save those Glamour Girl poses for your boyfriend, and get dressed before you take that headshot!

3. If you have no bio written. Take a moment (it’s only 160 characters for goodness sake) and tell us who you are or better yet why you are here in Twitter Town. Are you a photographer, a trainer, a stamp collector? Put something that gives your followers an idea of the type of information you will be sending out and don’t forget to show some personality. Play around with your bio and feel free to change it up often to see which one you like the best. You can take a look at my Twitter Bio for one idea.

4. If there is no link allowing me to find out more about you. Add the URL to your website, your blog, your Facebook profile or even your LinkedIn page. Show me you are legit. If you are entering Twitter Town to network or showcase your business, don’t forget this important step!

5. Post a few tweets before you head out to follow folks or clean up your trash-talking tweet stream if you already have tweets posted. I tend to look at one page of someone’s tweets to see what kind of information they are sending out. This is a good exercise of all of us to do – look one one page of your Twitter profile and see it from the perspective of a new follower. Would YOU follow YOU if you saw that? Nothing is a bigger Twitter turn off than a page filled with profanity or raunchy talk that belongs …well that belongs in the TRASH CAN. Remember that your tweets are out there for the world to see, and unless you are trying to attract that kind of trashy business, keep a bar of soap handy and clean that Twitter beak!

Remember, everyone has different standards but these are a few that are shared by many business folks here in Twitter Town. If you want more tips on creating a successful Twitter nest check out Gettin’ Geeky with Twitter: Build Your Business and Manage Your Brand with Today’s Hottest Social Media Tool – available in eBook (for the impatient) or paperback!

What are some of the standards that you have when it comes to folks you will follow, unfollow or block?

@GinaSchreck

May 13, 2010 | Filed Under Gettin Geeky, Social Media, Twitter | 3 Comments

Understanding The Four Faces of Facebook

There is no doubt that Facebook is the powertool that we need in today’s marketing toolbelt. With well over 400 million users, you have the equivalent of an entire country, which just happens to be the 3^rd LARGEST in the world (Ranking by population: China, India, FACEBOOK, United States), at your fingertips.

What started as a college connection tool has evolved into a Quad-Faced, personal networking and professional business behemoth. Along with this evolution has come great confusion. How to separate personal from professional use? What is the difference between profiles, pages and groups? Here is an overview of the four faces and how to use each.

The Personal PROFILE. The mainstay of Facebook is the personal profile, and it can be used for both personal connections with family members and close friends or as a professional networking tool. The terms of agreement at Facebook state that you will have only one account. If used correctly, you do not need separate accounts for business and personal use. Using the “LIST” feature you can create a list for colleagues and lists for family members or friends and then set privacy settings for these lists that will help you keep your information and photos nicely separated.
The Business PAGE. The former FAN PAGE has matured into the Business Tool extraordinaire. PAGES can do just about anything a website can do including house videos, blogs, testimonials, and more. You can have as many PAGES as you’d like and they are created off of your personal PROFILE. When you log into your personal PROFILE you will find a link on the left column that reads, “Ads and Pages.” From this link you will choose “Create a PAGE” not an AD.

Uploaded with plasq‘s Skitch!

PAGES have no limit on the number of fans you may have (profiles cap at 5,000) and each post from a PAGE is fully indexed by Google and other search engines (profile posts depend upon your privacy settings). People who join your PAGE cannot see anything on your PROFILE (unless you are connected there) and your friends are not automatic fans of your PAGE. Facebook PAGES also offer wonderful analytic tools to help you track click through rates, fan demographics and more.

One word of caution when naming your page: You may want to put your business name or other benefit-revealing name on your page instead of your personal name. Your friends will know the value or type of information YOU will provide but if your goal is to grow your fan base beyond your friends, your page should give an idea of WHY I SHOULD allow your PAGE information to be added to my information stream. (see post: Unless You’re a Rock Start, Your Facebook Page Shouldn’t Have Your Name)
The Community PAGE. This is the newest and most random face on Facebook. Again, in their efforts to separate business application on Facebook from personal use, the Community PAGE was born. These are PAGES that do not represent one particular product or service. You might be a fan of “I LOVE SLEEPING PAST NOON,” or “I ALWAYS DUNK MY COOKIES IN MILK.” There is not one person who “owns” these PAGES, so after someone creates them and they grow to a certain number, Facebook turns them over to be managed by the community. Posts are made equally by all and the group will self-manage the content.

Uploaded with plasq‘s Skitch!
Facebook GROUPS. GROUPS are meant to foster discussion around a particular topic area and are great tools to use after a class or conference to keep the conversations flowing. Facebook GROUPS are similar to LinkedIn Groups. They do not have the same functionality as PAGES but have the benefit of being made private (members must be approved to join) or even secret (not even showing up in group searches). This makes them a great post-event tool that you are able to monitor.
To create your own GROUP, you simply log into your Facebook PROFILE and like creating a PAGE, you look for the GROUP link on the left column and select “Create a GROUP.” After naming your GROUP and filling out some basic information you will be taken to the second page that allows you to make the group public, private or secret.