social media collectively they make up the New Media 2.0 tools that enable online publishing and live interaction with people in a variety of ways. Before implementing social media tactics, develop a strategy based on customer research and measurable goals and objectives. Small businesses that implement these tools without a plan will fail. Think… research, objective, strategy, THEN tactics. Here are seven strategies that will help you join the social phenomenon.
- Blog(Blog)is a journal-type commentary website that links to articles or other resources on the web. The most comprehensive directory of blogs can be found at Technorati. Create your own blog for free on WordPress or Blogger.
- microblogging is a shortened version of a blog post that is limited in length and format. Popular examples of microblogging are Twitter and FriendFeed.
- Multimedia allows you to share rich media like videos, images and presentations online. Examples include: YouTube, Flickr, and SlideShare.
- social bookmarking it is a central location for posting links to valuable resources for users to share with others. Post your nifty links on Digg, StumbleUpon, and Delicious.
- Social networks The Sites allow you to create a profile and interact with others. The sites that enjoy this social phenomenon are Facebook, LinkedIn and Myspace.
- Reviews and Opinions They are a way for customers to share online opinions and reviews of products and services. To get started, go to Epinions, Yahoo, and eHow.
- wikis enables group collaboration of public and private information in a central repository. An example of each repository is: 1) Public Wikipedia and 2) Private Wikia.
training exercise
What sites do your potential customers visit the most?
Check list
- Create a social media strategy for your business.
- Attract your customers through social media.
- Experiment with social media tools by analyzing the numbers and making adjustments as necessary.
Remember, keep testing and tweaking, social media is an evolving and moving phenomenon.