Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, Linkedin, Plaxo, the list goes on and on. Chances are, if you are over the age of 25, you think these social networking sites are places young people go to get a date and post pictures of their most recent party. Well they are, however, they’re also the hottest business building opportunity to come along; especially for a small business.
As a matter of fact, according to almost every expert source, if you are ignoring these platforms, you are setting yourself up to experience real pain in the future. The reason for this is really quite simple, your customers are already there, and chances are, they are already talking about your business, your industry, and your competitors. You just don’t know it.
It’s no coincidence that Hewlett-Packard has fifty of its executive’s blogging. Smart companies, of every size, are using these new technologies to promote their brand, solidify their relationship with their customers, test market new products, solicit ideas, and gain valuable customer feedback. Small businesses are gaining a competitive advantage by taking their message, for virtually no cost, directly to their customer on these sites as well as on video sharing sites like Youtube.com and Ecorptv.com.
Their “Tweeting” away on Twitter to keep a buzz going, while developing loyal new followers and fans on places like Facebook and MySpace. Sites like Linkedin are enabling savvy sales and marketing people to use their networks to connect with prospective customers and penetrate new markets.
What was once six degrees of separation is now more like three.
The question is, where do you start?
Step one, get a blog- If you don’t already have a blog, set one up. You can do this quickly and easily at blogger.com (owned by Goggle) or use the WordPress platform. I prefer WordPress for several reasons. For starters, it’s hosted on your own server so your blog address is something like http://www.jimdonovan.com/blog. It also presents a more professional image. For links to a no cost WordPress system, complete with all the necessary plugins, visit http://www.jimdonovan.com/resources.html
Next, create a personal profile or page on Facebook- If you are an individual, like an author, speaker, coach, or consultant, a personal Facebook profile will suffice. If you are a traditional business you can use the Facebook “Page” feature to accomplish the same thing.
Once you are set-up on Facebook, you can join groups that relate to your industry or your interest. You can upload photos, videos, audios, post notes and so on and begin inviting friends to “connect with you.”
Start by connecting with people you know or people who belong to the groups you’ve joined. Make a habit of posting items of interest and make every effort to be helpful.
Do not start promoting or hyping your products and services- This is a death rattle in social media. It’s called “social media” for a reason. Network and get to know people and let them get to know you. Be real and be helpful. Make friends. Share ideas and get involved in the conversation. The business side of things will take care of itself. Remember the old adage, “Givers get.”
Depending on your customer demographic, you may want to have a presence on MySpace. The community there tends to be younger so if your targeting a young audience it’s an important place to be.
Twitter is next- It’s been said that it’s almost impossible for someone over the age of 25 to explain Twitter. It’s essentially a “micro-blogging” platform that asks, “What are you doing?”
To get started, sign up for a Twitter account and start following people. They can be people you know or admire, people who are well known in your industry and/or your friends.
What makes Twitter so popular is that “tweets” (Twitter posts) are limited to 140 characters so it forces people to be concise. Like Facebook and MySpace, you can share ideas, tips, links to interesting sites and more. There are several books and ebooks that will help you learn more about Twitter and other social media sites. And, of course, there are consultants to guide you service businesses who will handle all the details for you.
What’s important is that you do not let this opportunity pass you by. Start using these Web 2.0 tools to grow your business and enjoy the process.
Jim’s newest business, River Run Consulting, is an ecommerce company that helps small businesses in Bucks County and Montgomery County, PA and Hunterdon County, NJ, tap into the power of Web 2.0 technology to produce measurable results.
In an earlier article, I wrote about, as Franklin Delano Roosevelt essentially said, “we have nothing to fear but fear itself.”
Below is the rest of that statement which warrants further reflection.
“So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” FDR - you can read the entire speech here
Think about the last part – “Which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”
This is, in my opinion, one of the big contributors to the current economic difficulty we’re experiencing. At a time when, in order to restart our economy, we need to be moving fearlessly forward, too many people are pulling back or, worse yet, retreating into their cocoons.
Companies, instead of stepping out boldly into the marketplace, are “hunkering down” and hoping the storm blows over before they go out of business.
Individuals, worried about their security, are cutting back on all but essential spending.
Banks, once burned, are reluctant to lend again, thereby cutting off the credit markets and shooting themselves in the foot. .
All of these, while understandable, are compounding the problem and standing in the way of a faster recovery.
Holding this problem in place are the steady stream of negative messages from the media. It’s not my intention to make them the fall guy but, let’s face it, all we hear on the evening news or read in our daily newspapers are more and more stories about how bad things are.
It’s interesting to note that one of the things Roosevelt did to help turn the situation around in the 1930′s was to create a “Mastermind” alliance to start crafting more positive messages and stories of successes rather than failures.
He assembled both houses of Congress, positive thinkers like Napoleon Hill and Norman Vincent Peale, the leading newspaper publishers and radio station owners of the day, and church leaders of every denomination.
Their efforts, combined with the efforts of ordinary citizens, produced a wave of positivity that was powerful enough to start turning the tides of the great depression.
It’s an interesting aside that Hill did not write his, now famous, book, Think and Grow Rich, with the intention of publishing it. He wrote it to keep himself in a positive frame of mind in order to get through these difficult times.
The time has come, once again, for those of us who believe in the power of the mind to start following Hill’s model and begin to spread a positive message of hope and recovery.
You can help
Email, call or write your congressional representatives and ask that they and, yes, President Obama, model the strategy developed by Hill and FDR.
Write emails and letters to the editors of your local newspapers, asking them to start “singing a different song.”
Please share this message with your friends as well as on social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Linkedin, and so on.
The line above, a parody of a line first uttered by Bette Davis in the movie “All About Eve,” is as appropriate to today’s world as it was to her character’s situation in the movie.
All you need to do is pickup a newspaper or turn on the television news to know that we are living through some turbulent times. Each day the media bombards us with more news riddled with fear and uncertainty. Each day we hear of dangers to our safety or about the latest job cutbacks. It’s almost as if they are trying to convince us that there are tough times ahead.
I’m not going to go into why anyone would want to continue to broadcast negative messages, I’ll leave that for someone else to figure out. Whether there is a threat to our safety, economic recession, or some other circumstance beyond our control, how you are affected by the current circumstances is totally a matter of what you choose to believe and the way you choose to react or not react to the news.
If, for example, you believe that your security and income are the responsibility of the government or your company, you may be in for a difficult time. If, on the other hand, you realize that everything in your life comes from your Creator, you’ll get through this just fine.
In times like these, it’s more important than ever to develop a strong, spiritual connection, whether it’s through your church, prayer group, or simply from your own time spent praying and meditating.
People who are firmly grounded and have a deep spiritual connection are able to handle whatever life sends their way. Those who do not have this relationship with a power greater them themselves, can be devastated by life’s events.
There are some things you can do to help you “weather the storm” should it come your way. For openers, stop reading newspapers and listening to the news. By doing this you will immediately eliminate a major amount of negativity from your life.
Don’t let yourself get sucked into negative, unproductive conversations about the economy. I made this mistake several years ago and almost lost everything. Only when I stopped buying into the problem did my life begin to change.
Devote some time each day, preferably in the morning, to think about what you want in your life. Begin to see your life the way you want it to be. Focus on what you want, and give no energy to that which you do not want to appear. Your thoughts and words have power. Use them carefully.
If you belong to a church, or other spiritual group, stay closely connected to them. Above all, realize that the source that provides the very air you breathe is the same source that will provide everything else you need.
Are you going to be another statistic?
It’s a sad fact that by Valentine’s Day, February 14th, more than 95% of people will have made no progress on the dreams they had at the beginning of the year.
We start out on January 1 with the best of intentions. “This will be my year,” we tell ourselves. “This is the year I – start my new business, write my book, find that perfect someone, get in shape,” we proudly proclaim to anyone who’ll listen.
If you’re an author, speaker, coach, trainer, teacher or professional, you may want to take a look at a new jump-start program I’ve created to help you turn your expertise into a new revenue stream:
Action produces results
Congratulations to all the people who ordered the “20 Ways to Make $100 a Day Online” ebook. I honestly hope you are using the ideas in it. I know I am and it’s making a difference. Please don’t be one of those people who buys a program and never uses it. All you have to do is take a little time, go through the 20 ways and pick one to act upon. Yes, it can be that simple.
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