Embracing Social Media

How are you and your team embracing social media?

There are so many tools to choose from and it can be information overload.   Where do you begin or how do you adjust your current strategy?  How do you decide which channels to use?

Step back and think about what your goals are.   Who is your target audience?   What is your message?   What do you and your brand want to be known as?   

Here is my strategy I'd like to share with you.   It is updated from feedback and assistance from many including marketing, our team, clients, friends and associates.

LinkedIn is the tool for building your professional network.   Find people on LinkedIN who are your clients, who are potential clients, suppliers, referral sources and advocates for your business.   You will also find LinkedIN is an excellent source to recruit candidates to consider for your team.   Your HR personnel should be on LinkedIn as part of their recruiting efforts.

Join groups on LinkedIn in your industry and areas you are interested in.  Make comments and like other's comments to.   Create your own group and create your company page.   Keep content fresh, interesting and the key in groups is engaging your audience.   How can you start a conversation with your followers?

Twitter is ideal to send out timely messages to your audience.   What is happening now in your industry, what is going on in your company, what events are you participating in or supporting; these are some of the things you can share.

I have a personal twitter account as well as we have a company twitter account.  Retweet (RT) your messages from both accounts.  Follow others and other companies who are clients, potential clients, news media and others who you want to be associated with.

Facebook is one of those tools many companies feel is for personal use only.   If you are targeting a younger audience you should have a company page on Facebook.   This is where you can show the people behind your brand, share all the good things they are doing in the community.  People like to get to know the people who make up your company.

To blog or not to blog?   As an owner/CEO/President you should consider blogging.   You are the brand of your company.   A blog shows a real person behind the brand.   People feel closer and they feel like they know you.   If you want to present yourself as the expert on the subject matter, you can achieve this with your blog. 

There are many other tools such as YouTube, Instagram and so forth that you can consider as well.  Building your social media strategy starts with the basics of who is your audience and what is your message going to be.

Timelines are important to ensure regular communications.  I push out messages once or twice a week on LinkedIn, daily on Twitter, weekly on Facebook and weekly on my blog.

Adding pictures to your messages will help increase the number of views.   Sharing pictures of your team in action also increases traffic.  Balance your content with business messages, personal touch, expert advice and remember to avoid "selling" to your audience.

How are you embracing social media?