Social Media Marketing for Small Business Owners
Most of us are probably not in a position to throw caution to the wind when it comes to our own marketing budget. Most of us want our marketing programs and strategies to work well the FIRST time we try them, and as we know, that’s always a gamble. Postcard mailings aren’t what they used to be. Direct mail doesn’t have the same impact. Seminar and workshops are expensive when food is served, and there’s never a guaranteed ROI on any of it.
Today there are other ways to market to your local community without spending tons of money. I will be the first to say that “in person networking” can never be replaced. The handshake and the ability to look someone in the eye is still just as important as ever. However, with a little web savvy, you can start those conversations a lot sooner, and educate a lot faster than ever before. Your reach has been enhanced by the power of the internet.
I’ve written about this before but the truth of the matter is that this method of marketing is not only the latest trend, but it is one that I expect will last. If you aren’t on this bandwagon yet, get on fast.
The important part of understanding today’s marketing techniques is that total transparency and relationship building with your target market is the key to success. Long gone are the days when we can hide behind our websites.
Transparency does not mean writing on Facebook, Twitter, or your blog about the latest fight you have with your spouse, or what the neighbor’s bad kids are up to. What it does mean is that you are willing to share enough about yourself and your value system to build a level of trust with your local community that is unmatched. The more “accessible” you are online, the more accessible your prospects will be and the more credibility you will gain. Talk about yourself as the owner, add a picture, talk about your personal experiences that lead you to this business, or to want to work with seniors. Be real. Be honest. Depending on who is reading this I would suggest that most seniors have lived longer than you. They have made more important decisions about their lives than you have, and most can spot dishonesty or half-truths a mile away. Transparency means earning the trust of a skeptical customer.
Social media marketing is free, and it works if done correctly. Plain and simple.
More baby-boomers and seniors are on the internet than ever before. Suddenly there are tons of articles out there talking about Grandpa on Facebook and MySpace. You need to be where your target market hangs out!
I’m about to give away my secret formula that will transform your business into a marketing machine. Yes, it takes a little time, sort of like a weekend painting project, but once it’s done, the time you spend updating your information takes just a couple of hours a week. (But you will be addicted to it, so I know you will spend more time than just 2 hours a week!)
Equipment
The equipment needed for a project like this is minimal- you might want to invest in a good headset with a microphone for your computer so that you can record audio or video if you like. Amazon carries a wide variety of headsets at a reasonable price.
Step 1: (The longest step in the process)
Setting up your online accounts may take a bit of time, but well worth the investment.
Here are the initial accounts I recommend for the fastest and most sustainable results:
* Facebook Personal Account (using your own name, your picture, etc, no logos). Connections on Facebook personal are “friends”.
* Facebook Business Page (this is where you use your logo and other business related items. Connections on your Facebook business page are “fans”.
* Your Blog. Use Wordpress to create a fast and easy blog that lets you get the message out about your area of expertise. Be sure to use their tutorials to learn how to use categories and tags to your advantage. Remember that when you post on your blog use titles that identify your location and your product or service. For instance, instead of a title like “April Events”, use “April Reverse Mortgage Seminars in Miami, FL”. See the difference? The search engines will play their hand in your favor with the second title.
* Set up your Twitter account. I know, you aren’t really sure WHY you need twitter, but believe me some amazing deals go down every day because of good Twitter Posts (called tweets). Once you have your account set up, go to twellow and type in a search for people in your area. Start connecting with your local community by “Following” people in your town. They will follow you back.
* LinkedIn is next. This is an important website for professionals because unlike Facebook, Twitter, and other places, LinkedIn is for the true business to business networking. Many connections that you make on LinkedIn will turn into in-person meetings down the road. Use it to your advantage. Be sure you use the “Wordpress” feature to add your blog posts directly to your LinkedIn profile instantly. (Automation at it’s finest!)
* Use FriendFeed to link everything together. FriendFeed ties all of your accounts together. Once you connect your accounts to FriendFeed, you will notice that when you make a blog post, it automatically shows up on Facebook, Twitter, Squidoo, and many other sites. This is another great lesson in automation. Once this step is completed your BLOG becomes the center HUB for all of your information that you want to share.
* Squidoo is important because it serves as another “web page” about you and your business. You can link Twitter, Facebook, and your blog to your Squidoo page for extra backlinking and content.
* Scribd is an odd little site that pulls a lot of punch. Turn all of your print marketing material into online material that works in your favor. Anything you have in your marketing arsenal that can be scanned or uploaded to Scribd is worth taking the time to load. When you place a document on Scribd be sure to title it the same way you would a blog post- make sure your business (plumber, elder care, home care, etc) and your location (St. Louis, MO) is in the headline or title area.
* MerchantCircle- one of my current favorites! This group has done a really good job of creating a system that gets you noticed by the search engines FAST. Open a free account. They try to upsell you at every turn, but I dare say you can do just as well with a free account. The key to MerchantCircle is to make sure the name of your company portion is filled in with your line of business and your location. So instead of “Tom’s Financial Services and Loans”, a better business listing would be simply, “Reverse Mortgages, Findlay OH”. Another tip on MerchantCircle is to make sure that you put your blog posts on from your main blog right on to your MerchantCircle blog. The more content you have the faster you move up website page ranks.
* Ideamarketers is a website where you can post articles about your niche. There is no waiting time for approval. Keep the same rules in mind- article titles should reference your location and your line of business.
* GoArticles is a similar story. Post your articles, make sure they are over 500 words. Check for spelling errors etc.
* Finally, type in the words that you would use to search for a Reverse Mortgage provider or plumber in your area on Google. Who comes up first? What websites are showing on the first page and can you get listed on those? If so, go for it.
Step 2: This step is super important.
I’ve written about this before. If your website is homegrown, old, outdated, and has no “call to action”, then you will never have good lead conversion results. Spend the money or the time to update your website.
* What is a “call to action”? A call to action means giving the viewer of your webpage one simple task that he or she
Valerie’s motto and favorite saying is: “Impact is not created by big budgets, impact is created by innovative marketing ideas!” Valerie VanBooven is President and CEO of LTC Expert Publications LLC., a company devoted to empowering small business entrepreneurs and senior service providers with the tools to enjoy thriving businesses and freedom-based lifestyles.
