Archive for the ‘Online Networking’ Category

Who the Google are you?

Friday, November 27th, 2009

googleWhen was the last time you Googled yourself?

I was asking around a few months ago for some personal recommendations of a business coach/mentor.  One guy came highly recommended from someone who was working with him at present and I was given his name and contact details.

I always like to check someone out online before phoning them to see for myself how they represent themselves.  So I eagerly put his name in to Google.

He didn’t have a website, which was a little disappointing as I felt that I needed to work with someone who marketed themselves online.  But I decided to have a further look, as he was recommended.

There was a linked-in profile, but not up to date.  There was the odd reference on Ecademy but that was all.  Then on page 2 on his Google search I found a link to his Christmas letter which he obviously sent out via link to a webpage.  Not only could I read his Christmas letter, I could read the past 6 year letters in all their glory – photos, personal references, the full works.

A quick scan and I realised that he wasn’t to be the right personality fit with me.

What is the moral of this story?  Check yourself out on Google today and see what comes back.  You may not be able to control everything that you find and yes, there may be other people out there with the same name.  But if someone out there was to Google you, what would they find out about you and your business?

It’s worth a look!

Got a comment to add? I would love to read your thoughts and ideas.

Posted in Marketing Small Business, Online Networking, Social Media, Website & SEO Tips | 2 Comments »

Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace: Which social networks should you belong to?

Tuesday, October 6th, 2009

which social networksThere are umpteen numbers of social networks out there to choose from. There are the obvious big ones, such as Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace but once you start searching around, you soon realise there are many other, smaller and more focused one to explore.

But join too many and there is the danger that you get sucked in to the time-wasting vortex.

And let this time-wasting vortex put you off social networks altogether and you could be over-looking a huge marketing opportunity for your business!

Decisions, decisions – which one should you belong to?

Believe it or not, there is one simple question that will clarify this problem for you.

And that question is: Which social networks do your potential clients belong to?

This may should obvious but too many business owners make decisions over social networks based on their own personal experiences.

“Facebook is full of kids sharing drunken party photos”

“LinkedIn is only for people looking to get head-hunted”

“MySpace is great for free music downloads but that’s about it”

Just because this is your “perception”, it may not necessarily be the “reality”.

So before you make any decisions about which social networks may work for your business, take a moment (and preferably several!) to ask your clients which networks they belong to.

After all, your marketing efforts are NEVER about you! They are always about your clients :O)

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Posted in Online Networking, Social Media | 4 Comments »

Twitter – Is it about conversation or is it about automation?

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

small business conversationThere is an awful lot of advice out there (me included!) that talk about automating Twitter; talk about being able to schedule your tweets using devices such as TweetLater; talk about automatically updating your Facebook postings with Twitter.  All of which save you time to be able to spend so that your marketing is working more effectively for you.

But doesn’t this automation actually go against what Twitter is all about?  Twitter to be used as a conversation tool?

During the proactive times of my business, I schedule my tweets on a Monday morning, using a system like Tweetlater.

One of these scheduled tweets  a couple of weeks ago, included this recommendation as a tip and somebody came back to me with a tweet “Yes, but this automation is all very well, but isn’t Twitter about conversation and not automation?”

Great point!  Being totally automated on Twitter is extreme and I wouldn’t recommend it.

But by automating some of your tweets throughout the day and week, these can actually help generate your conversation.

You can’t be on Twitter 24 hours a day; you’ll go mad!  And you would probably drive your business to the ground.

But by having certain tweets giving out tips and information when you are not actually live on Twitter can actually help people respond back to you and start a conversation.  When you do log back in to Twitter, you can respond back and have that two-way conversation.

So is Twitter about automation or about conversation?

It is about both.  You need to automate some aspects of Twitter to be able to remain sane, to be able to develop it and drive it forward as a marketing tool for your business.  But if you automate too much it becomes lose the power because Twitter is about conversation, it is about replying and about building relationships.

Your thoughts and opinions: How much do you automate on Twitter? Or do you use Twitter for real-time tweets only?  Leave your comments in the comments box below.

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Posted in Cool Tools, Gadgets & Widgets, Online Networking, Social Media | 4 Comments »

Small Business Owners: Beware the hype of internet marketing!

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

shout It is easy to get caught in the hype of all the online marketing.  With the number of internet marketing programs you can buy into, it’s easy to feel that by having 20,000 followers on Twitter and 5,000 friends on Facebook, these are the reasons behind building a successful business. 

But behind every successful online presence there is usually a very successful offline one first.  The two go hand-in-hand.

Now, don’t get me wrong. Building an online presence is important and, in fact, integral to many small business owners, particularly those of you who sell services and their time on a 1-2-1 basis.

But when someone meets you face-to-face and your online presence it is not backing up the online presence – is not congruent to what they’re expecting – everything you have built online will just crumble instantly.

So when building an online strategy, never ever forget the power of networking, the power of standing up and speaking at events, the simple act of handing a business card to someone physically.

Always remember that behind every successful online presence there is usually a highly successful offline one too.

Posted in Marketing Small Business, Online Networking, Social Media, Website & SEO Tips | No Comments »

Social Networking: How do you request friends on facebook?

Wednesday, May 6th, 2009

handshakeHow many social networking sites are you a member of now?  There is every chance that if you are active online, then you are just not a member of one site, you are a member of probably 3 or even much, much more.

And if you are an active online social networker, are you building a friend list of thousands or growing organically?

Everyone on the internet may have different strategies and ways of building their brand online – but how many of these people network online the same way that they do offline?

Most social networking sites, such as facebook and LinkedIn, have the facility of letting you add a message when you send out a friend request or invitation to connect (wording depending on which site you are on).  Yet, hardly anyone uses it.

If you were are at a face-to-face networking event, would you consider barging in to a group of people and start shoving your business card in to everyone’s hands?

No, probably you wouldn’t. (At least I hope you wouldn’t!)

You would introduce yourself.  Probably shake a hand and ask who the other person was.  You would start a conversation.

So, why can’t people do this online?  It seems too easy to go down a big list of contacts and click the friend request button in the vague hope that the other person will confirm that request quicker than you can wink.

Now, if you are building a mailing list so that you can start sending out sales messages, then you go for it.  You may as well start shoving business cards out at networking events and hiring a team of telesales reps to call from a list of yellow pages.  You will get the same hit rate!

If you are networking online and using the social networking sites to build your brand, raise awareness of your business and generally reach out to potential clients and customers, then stop and ask yourself how you are inviting people to join your network.

If you would shake someone by the hand and introduce yourself at a face-to-face meeting, do the same online.  It may take longer in the short term, but the relationships will be stronger in the long term.

Have you got any tips to making friends on facebook?  Leave your comment below

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Posted in Business Attitude, Online Networking, Social Media | 1 Comment »