Social Business Consulting continues to evolve and 2017 is no exception.  I have been helping companies with social media marketing since 2009 so makes me feel like a grandfather in the space.  That’s eight years! but a lot has changed in the social business and social media consulting landscape since then.

Here is a quick video post I did on the The Top 10 Must Read Social Media Books for business professionals.  Enjoy!- 

Justin Results French.

social media quotes

Do you love what you do? I certainly do. Did you know over 70% of the population dislike what they do. That means only 30% of people actually LOVE what they do.  My question today is about the social media strategy for your business.  Is your social media strategy lifting people up and leaving them feeling inspired? People often say that social media is mostly hype. That may be so, but at least it’s positive hype.  It’s better than having a negative connotation.  I have been helping businesses with social media since 2009. That said, there is nothing wrong with mixing into your social media marketing mix some motivational, inspirational, and educational content that helps feed peoples minds with positivity.  We have enough negativity in the world today, so I say- continue posting social media content that has positivity.

Thanks for stopping by,

Justin French

How to Effectively Use All Your Social Media Platforms

As a business it’s beneficial for you to be a part of various popular social media sites. Reaching the various overpopulated networks creates maximum exposure. However, you aren’t actually doing any good if you aren’t presenting a unified front between them. You have separate accounts, but the multiple platforms should essentially be seen as one. You want your customer to move between them without knowing the difference.

While your networks present various degrees of customer engagement, each in their own unique way, together they should be a single unit, representing your brand consistently. Having a strong brand image is important to do this well. After employing new sharing techniques, and making a few tweaks to your profiles, you’ll have a free flowing social presence in no time.

Brand Image

As you know, your brand makes you recognizable. NetMBA.com pointed out that, “The brand can add significant value when it is well recognized and has positive associations in the mind of the consumer.” If this is the case, you want your brand to be consistent between the platforms. To do this, you should keep a few things in mind.

• Color scheme is important. This can be incorporated in the design of your Twitter page, welcome page on Facebook and blog theme.
• Your default photo doesn’t have to be your logo, but should be representative of the brand in a recognizable way.
• Present yourself as the same business online as you are off. When you are your authentic self, customers trust you.

Get Linked Up

Your business reaches one audience on Facebook, talks with another group of your customer base on Twitter, and presents thoughtful content to the ones caught in the blogosphere. Your business is in good shape to reach everyone you want, yet you are not as successful as you could be. In order to get maximum benefit from your social presence, you want customers to be visiting all your sites. There are a variety of ways to do this.

• On Facebook, make your “Follow me” button visible.
• On Twitter, have your website link immediately below your Twitter handle. Then create a custom background, like @Souplantation, directing followers to your Facebook page and blog.
• On your blog, set up a Twitter feed so you are then connecting with your readers as well.

Let the Various Platforms Supplement One Another

While having a blog is great, and you hope to build a community there, Facebook is more within the immediate reach of most of your customers. Putting exclusive deals on Twitter are great, but not when they only reach the people who already follow you. Keeping posts consistent between platforms is integral in getting as many people involved as possible. You want to reach your entire audience, not just the ones that happen to populate that one network. To do this, you want to spread any new content or information across all platforms.

• Get your blog post in a Tweet, so it can be shared. Then put it on Facebook so those who aren’t in the blogging world can see it and then post comments on their network of choice.
• When you give an exclusive Twitter deal, tell your Facebook fans to follow you for dibs on it too.
• If you put up photos from an event, make it known in all areas. Twitter and your blog aren’t conducive to albums or multiple photos, so put them where it is. Then bring everyone else there.

To effectively use all your social networks, you have to present them as one unified platform. You want your customers to move freely between the various platforms, getting the same business and familiar brand no matter where they are.

Bio: Jessica Sanders is an avid small business writer touching on topics from social media to phone systems. She writes for an online resource that gives advice on topics including medical billing software for b2b lead generation resource, Resource Nation.

Now that you have a strong sense of who a social media person really is, let’s fast forward to 2011.

You have 3 options for your social media marketing needs:

Do it yourself
Hire an agency
Hire an employee to do it for you

Now here are 3 reasons to work with us:
Results
Revenue
Relationships

Still need more info?  It is important to fully understand that Social Media is about people. And people care about WIIFM or “What’s in it for me?” or lately with the trend in real-time, “What’s in it for me Right Now?” Traditional forms of marketing and especially companies still struggle with this, which is why I have decided to start 2010 off with a very simple explanation and clarify what a social media person is.

1. Social media is about people. And people buy stuff right? That may be so, BUT, what’s also important about social media is it connects people to similar and common interests. The key take away here is still and always has been throughout societies, that engaging, interacting, and building relationships is key. That is why some people are just natural when it comes to social media because they like to help people (and help businesses understand social media)

2. Think of social media and your participation in these social settings as prospecting for the 21st century, which if you ask any sales person, does take a lot of work. But even in your personal lives, you must constantly be improving your relationships and communication right?

3. The last secret here is to think of the social media person as the director of an orchestra. You know, the guy in the orchestra who holds the baton. This composer sets the rhythm, the flow, and leads the team to a successful production of fine tuned music. The social media person does the same for a businesses online presence; guiding the targeted traffic into the various channels. It is an art combined with a science.

Would you agree or disagree? Any analogies you have in mind that you would like to add? Feel free to let us know any questions you might have about your social media campaigns. We’ve helped many companies in this area and are here for you.

Are you ready to start seeing RESULTS with your social media efforts? Call for a FREE 10 minute Assessment at 760-576-4653 and see if you qualify to partner with us on your next project- you won’t be disappointed.