social media

Is there really such a thing as free speech when it comes to social media? Hands up those of you who have ranted about an annoying customer or your boss on your Facebook page after a particularly hard day? All you want to do is get your frustration out and, hopefully, garner a bit sympathy from your friends. But what happens if your employer sees it? A recent article in The Drum looks at this issue. They argue that your employers shouldn't be snooping in the first place, a feeling I echo because it's tantamount to 'reading your personal mail'. But reading further they go on to suggest that '30% of employers have taken a member of staff through a formal disciplinary procedure as a result of comments made on their social media pages.' Really? The problem lies with the sharing aspect of social media. Yes, you can post your rant (sorry, ...

YES. I could leave it there, but that wouldn't really convince you to take the plunge if you're still hovering around the fringes of the social media world. One of the main arguments is the time factor (we covered what to tweet in our last post). It's yet another thing you have to squeeze into your already hectic day. But let's look at that issue from a different angle. I'm guessing you find the time to promote your business, chat to your customers and offer them a great service, so if you're already doing that, you're pretty much there because you just have to do the same thing but online. I bet you even go out to networking events - well that involves leaving your office, arriving at a location where you won't be entirely sure about who will be there, probably not talking to everyone in the room and just leaving ...

One of the main barriers that prevents businesses using Twitter is not knowing what to say. There is still a common misconception out there that makes people think that tweeters only ever talk about what they had for lunch. OK, sometimes they do, but on the whole tweeters use the social media platform as a way of reaching out and engaging with other people. It can be a great source of information and sales leads. If you've set up your Twitter but are yet to tweet because you have no idea what to say, the following tips should help those creative juices start to flow. How to tweet effectively 1. Share The internet is full of great information (and some that's not so great), so when you read something that makes you smile, makes you mad, or gets you thinking, ...

It's a well known fact these days that employers use social media as a way of screening candidates. Your Facebook wall offers them a great insight into the type of person you really are, rather than the one you display in the interview. But that's not the only way social media can land you in a whole heap of trouble. Yes, we live in a free country and yes, we should be able to openly voice our concerns and opinions, but there are times when some people really need to learn when to keep quite (or at least vent their frustration in a quiet and private way). Once case in point is the council press officer that had to quit his job because of an ill-judged tweet. The main aspect of this story is that the tweet ...

In the world today there are over 1 billion users of social media - that sounds quite a lot to me. Rather than just another statistic that one should make you, as a business owner, sit up and take notice. Just think about how that effects your market place. One billion people online, socialising, chatting, sharing news and information - how cool would it be if they were talking about your business? OK, sure, not all 1 billion would be talking specifically about you, but you get my meaning. But that's not to say social media is and should only be about selling. Yes, it should be part of your marketing strategy to build and enhance relationships with new and old customers alike. But it should also go further than that; it should also be used to enhance your customer service too. If you think about it, Facebook and Twitter are all about ...

Have you noticed how social media has managed to become part of our every day lives? Because of many of us now own smart-phones we automatically sent tweets, update our Facebook statuses and log in on Foursquare wherever we go. In fact, it's also beginning to have an impact on our shopping habits. We no longer have to wait until we're in front of our PCs to browse the web in search of that sought after item. Now we just turn to our phones or tablets and buy on the go. Research from Reevoo has shown that consumers indicated that social content is starting to shape how they shop online. Over half of those surveyed said that they found social media comments helpful when shopping online, with user reviews and friend recommendations being the biggest influencers. But it's not just consumers who are changing their shopping habits, retailers are also embracing ...

Is that right? Only 1% of SMEs use social media (Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn) in their marketing activities? That's what The Drum reported in a recent article. The startling revelation came from a survey from TalkTalk Business.   From the 500 SMEs surveyed, 43% said they weren’t comfortable using social networking sites. As a copywriter, I’ve been using social media for a while to offer advice, promote my business and make new contacts. It really isn’t scary – it’s just like chatting with friends. But I'm guessing that for many companies, the sheer immediacy of social media is quite daunting. After all, it gives their customers unprecedented access to them 24/7 and a very large stage from which to proclaim their displeasure (or pleasure) Today queries and complaints can be made quickly and very publicly, leaving companies feeling vulnerable. But that transparency can also be used to their advantage; the way a company ...

Have you got to grips with Google+ yet? There are so many social media tools out there today, it's hard to keep track of them all. Is it really necessary to use this one too? For many, Google+ is an enigma; it appears to be a hybrid of Twitter and Facebook, so how can you make sure you get the best out of it for the time you invest in it? Thankfully, the guys over at socialmediaexaminer are on hand to answer that particular question. Their interview with Chris Brogen tells you how Google+ can help small business and the strategies he uses to get leads through it. The video is well worth a watch and covers: Why Google+ changes everything How you can get your content indexed quickly Chris's own Google+ strategy How you can get business leads through Google+ Why should be sharing personal stories on the platform How to show potential clients who you are Google+ content strategies Using Google+ ...

Yes. OK, leaving it there would make this the shortest blog in history, so let's expand on that a bit. The belief that you can't sell through social media holds many businesses back. They are under the impression that it's full of people talking about what they had for lunch or what they're up to at the weekend. Granted, there are those that do that, but there's a lot more to social media than that. You see, social media is all about building relationships and that's another thing companies can't get their heads round. They tend to set up accounts, dabble for a week or two (usually sending a constant stream of sales messages out that turn people off faster than the fastest thing you can think of on roller skates), and then wonder why nothing has happened. Selling through ...

Social media is a fantastic way of promoting your business and building relationships - but you don't need me to tell you that. But to get the most from it, you need to have it 'married' to your website rather than running everything as a separate entity. Uniting the power of two If you want to stand out from the crowd, you've got to make the most of your online exposure. Simply having a website, a blog, Facebook page and Twitter account isn't enough. If you want to get ahead of your competition, you've got to make sure all your online efforts work together. This cross-linking will your promotion potential, impressions and sales. So how can you make that happen? Socialmediaexaminer.com has produced an excellent post that gives you the low down on how to ensure your business website and social media platforms are working together to maximise their online exposure. Grab a coffee and take ...

The whole world is going Facebook crazy. Now with 1.01 billion active users its' amazing anything gets done any more, especially when you read that 50% of active users log in every day. When do we find the time to fit in work? Although that might not be comforting reading for employers, it is for business owners because you know where your market is hanging out.  That's why more and more companies are looking to advertise and engage with their customers on Facebook. But there is one question at the forefront of their minds - how do they measure their return on investment? Facebook ROI Never an easy one to calculate, but before you even start to consider number-crunching, you have to think about the goal of your campaign and what you need to measure. Hubspot offer some great advice here in their post: 20 Facebook Ad Metrics Marketers Should Know. You can ...

Once you've set up your Twitter account and you've followed all your family and friends, what do you do then? To help you find people to follow, Twitter has a handy #Discover button at the top of your Twitter home page:                 It gives you the options 'who to follow' and 'find friends', but happens when someone follows you? Should you follow them back automatically? The simple answer to that is no - it's important you take control of your Twitter stream by only following  those people you want to follow, so here are a few tips to help you. 1. Bye bye spam When you're first notified of a new follower, take a look at their Twitter profile and tweets. If they're sending out loads of promotional stuff, their more than likely a spammer and won't add any value to you. 2. What are they tweeting ...

Most businesses will agree that social media is a great marketing tool, but few have worked out a way of getting a return from their activities. In a post on Freelance Copywriter's Blog called The Money's in The Relationship,  I looked at how your return through social media should be measured by the value of the relationships you foster rather than in cash. Going one step further, socialmediaexaminer.com take a look at the 4 steps you need to take in order to sell with social media. The post tells use that to improve your ROI (return on investment) your marketing and campaigns must include these essential components: Attraction Retention Conversion Measurement To read more about how it’s done, follow the link and discover the 4 steps to selling with social media. What do you think? Are you convinced? Can you sell through social ...

LinkedIn is undoubtedly the most powerful of all professional social networking sites. Completing your profile could open up a wealth of opportunities for you from employers and potential clients. But how can you make sure you stand out from the rest? It's all about getting noticed, so here are some tips on how to give your profile a much needed boost. 7 tips to boost your LinkedIn profile 1. Headline The headline is the most important element of any sales or marketing tool and it's exactly the same with LinkedIn. It needs to be short, to the point and very clear and it must tell  the reader: Who you are Who you can help How you can help them This benefits lead copy will instantly show them what you can do for them or their organisation. 2. Be real A lot of profiles out there are boring, corporate and incredibly ...

We are turning into the 'social generation'. Phone calls and popping in for coffee have been substituted for Facebook status updates and tweets. You may think it's a great laugh to talk about your hangover, mammoth drinking session or posting those 'less than flattering' images of friends on Facebook, but... 91% of employers use social media to screen applicants (The Drum)       In the days before Facebook, if you said something  to someone, you'd get away with it (usually) as it would soon be forgotten. Your private life and social life were completely separate from work. So, unless you told them about the bender you'd been on that weekend, they were unlikely to find out. But social media has changed everything. Because your status updates are there for all to see, perspective employers love them as they ...

There's no getting away from the fact that social media and social networking are a great way to reach a global audience. But the thing you have to remember is that once you've put something out on the Internet, it's there forever. That's why it's essential you get a strategy in place before you start. Here are three tips to help you navigate the world of social media/networking safely. 1. Strategy There's that word again. The problem is, without a strategy, you'll just be chucking things 'out there' randomly without having any idea about what they'll do for your marketing efforts, reputation or readers. So, before you get going, make sure you: Know what the goal of your campaign is Who you're aiming your content at What that audience wants to know What you've got to do to get results 2. Your optimisation is missing The whole idea ...

I first posted this on my blog www.freelancecopywritersblog.com, but I thought I'd also share it with you here:   The Importance of Social Media Profiles Have you ever wondered how some people end up everywhere on the web? If you Google their name, reams and reams of listings appear. How do they do it? How do they make themselves so visible? The answer is good old fashioned search engine optimisation. If you’re thinking I’ve finally lost it because surely, SEO is surely just for websites, let me put your mind at ease. No, I haven’t completely lost it. SEO is just as important for your social media profiles as it is for your website. The whole point about filling in your profile on sites such as Twitter, LinkedIn and all the other social networking sites, is to make yourself visible to potential clients or business partners. So if you’re not making the most of them, why ...

After browsing through The Drum recently, I was absolutely astonished to come across this statistic: 71% of companies are still ignoring consumer complaints on Twitter I mean, come on, these are your customers. Just because they choose Twitter a their form of communication as opposed to a phone call, doesn't make their complain any less important. Plus, if it's out on Twitter, potentially thousands of people can also see their complaint. So doesn't make sense to do something about it rather than ignore it? According to the article, only 29% of those who tweeted a company with a complaint received a reply (Maritz Research) and the goes on to say: The American research looked at 1,298 consumers over the age of 18 who frequently tweet and have used the micro-blogging site to complain about a specific product, service, brand or company. 49% of respondents ...

Social media is conversation. It's a way for people to exchange ideas, discuss common ground and share interesting information. The idea behind it is simple: Generate great content People pick it up and share it with others You get more followers, fans and comments Sounds easy, doesn't it? But if you've been using social media for a while and no one is sharing your stuff? What do you do? The first thing to do is to make sure your content can be found. After all, if no one's reading it, no one can share it. Why your content is being passed over Before you start to panic, don't. If no one is sharing, all you have to do is rethink how you’re using social media. Here are 5 reasons that could hold the answer to why your content isn’t being shared. 1. Trust People will only share content ...

Q: Should you be using social media? A: Yes. Q: Should you be selling through social media? A: Yes. Q: Should you be connecting and engaging with your customers/audience through social media? A: Yes. Yes, social media is a great way to connect, engage with your customers, find new clients and promote your business. But many businesses fall at the first hurdle because they use it solely as a promotional tool. By constantly tweeting or updating fans about your latest promotions, news, what you're up to and a few more promotions, you'll lose followers hand over fist. Why? Because you'll come across as being 'spammy'.   Social media as a marketing tool   Through social media you can encourage people to sign up to your newsletters, promote your eBooks and give-aways and encourage them to visit your website. But if that's all you do, people will get fed ...

For those of you who are still not convinced about having your business on Facebook, take a look at a few of these stats that show the levels of engagement with customers you could be enjoying: Worldwide, 175 million people log onto Facebook every day 66% of comments on company pages are from consumers (34% are from other businesses) 35% of consumer comments on company Facebook pages are compliments 8% of consumer comments on company Facebook pages are complaints 17% of company responses to consumer comments call consumers by name 15% of company responses to consumer comments invite further conversation 89% of consumer replies on company Facebook pages go unanswered Stats from Socially Awkward Media Having a business page on Facebook makes sense as it's where your customers hang out. So, if you want to engage with them, you've got ...

You already know about the benefits of using Google Analytics to track your website's performace (even if the recent cookies legislation will result in incomplete data), but have you considered using it to track the effectiveness of your social media activities?   The Analytics tool is a great way to track the performance of your SEO strategy. Your dashboard offers numerous stats that can be used to enhance the performance of your site and its content:                     So, if it can do that for your website, what can it do for your social media usage?   Take a walk on the social side As you start to make more use of social media in your marketing strategies, the need to track and monitor your activity increases. Well, you'll be pleased to hear that the clever bods over at Google have found a way ...

Search engine optimisation usually makes you think of things like: SEO copywriting Keywords Title tags Headings and subheadings These are all very important when it comes to boosting your website's SEO, but there's a lot more that also has to happen 'behind the scenes'. What is off screen SEO? There are 3 main elements that make up off screen SEO. Let's look at each in turn to see how they can affect your SEO effectiveness. 1. Website Your website shouldn't just look nice, although that will obviously help draw people to it. It is essential you choose your web designer carefully. Make sure they understand SEO - and I mean really understand it. If you're unsure, ask to see some examples of good websites they've put together that are achieveing great things in the SEO arena. The structure of your website is key when it ...

When you think about PR, do you instantly picture overly-made-up women in expensive designer suits air kissing whilst handing out expensive glossy magazines? Or, perhaps it's the excessively expensive inches in newspapers and trade magazines that first springs to mind. Well, to be honest, PR isn't really about either of those and it doesn't have to break the bank. In truth, PR doesn't even have to cost you a penny. Want to know more? It's who you know PR doesn't have to be expensive and it can even be free. All you need to do is to get to know people and build a few relationships. Dealing with the press first, in your industry there is bound to be a magazine or two that you can get in touch with. Chat with the editors, offer an article or two for their publication or ...

Let's get one thing straight from the off - social media is not an advertising channel. Too many businesses set up their accounts and then start running them like online adverts, bombarding their followers and fans with a constant stream of hard core marketing messages. If you do that... People will get seriously hacked off with you very quickly You'll be unfollowed rapidly You won't be adding value The main point about social media is engagement - you must listen to others, ask questions, join in with the conversation and add value. Social engagement If you want great results from your social media activities you must be willing to put in time and effort. If you sit back and wait for people to come to you, you'll waiting an awfully long time. Here are a few things you can do to help you get the most out ...

When using social media within your marketing strategy, should you automate it? That question usually divides opinion. There are those that think it's fine to automate and schedule a stream of updates so they always have a presence on Twitter. But there are those that believe that social medis should be social and an activity you take part in real time. As for me, I don't think it should be automated - well, at least not all of it. Understanding social media Social media is about being social, so if you don't really like people, it's not for you. To be effective you must listen, engage and chat. When the opportunity arises, you can offer help and advice or join in with a debate. But if you automate everything,  you can't do that. That's not to say you can't automate at all. As a ...

A funny thing happens to some people when they start using social media - they forget who they are. People still seem to believe that they have to be corporate and cardboard-like when interacting online - but there lies the problem, many aren't interacting. The people you'll 'meet' through social media will reflect the usual personality types: Confrontational Shy Opinionated Funny Those who think they're funny Confident Flirty Sarcastic ... That's why you have to be human when using social media, which means interaction - you have to talk to other people just like in real life. Making friends Just as you would chat and mingle at a party, if you want to make an impression on social media you have to start conversations. The great thing about doing this in an online world, is that no one can see you. If, in real life, you're less than confident in a group ...

'I don't have time' or 'it's a complete waste of time' (which usually translates into 'I don't understand it') are 2 of the most common responses when people are asked why they're not using social media as part of their marketing strategy. But those that have taken the time to understand the mechanics of social media and the effects it can have on your business profile, realise that blogging, facebook interaction and Twitter can all boost business and credibility. Many people still think its a passing fad - nope, it's still here. Many people think the only way to market it through old fashioned cold calling and mail shots - nope, most people won't buy from a cold caller. So if you are one of the stalwarts who refuses to acknowledge the benefits of social media, let me ask you... How ...

There are a lot of companies out  there now using social media. But there are also a lot of companies who are still resisting it. The main reason is it's perceived lack of Return on Investment (ROI), with the boss forcefully announcing that if you can prove its ROI he'll think about it. But there lies the problem - how do you discover its ROI? Does it even have one? The ROI of social media Earlier this year, Thomson Reuters hosted one of Finextra's international series of social media events. Numerous delegates from the Financial Services sector gathered to mull over the enigma of social media, especially Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. During the day a number of tweets were flying around, including one that caught my eye: "There is ROI in social media, finding it is the Holy Grail." For me, social media is ...

Do you remember the days when marketing your business involved taking out an ad in a magazine or local paper. It was great wasn't it? Your little box snuggled up against all your competitors' little boxes. Then of course there was the humble mail shot, not to mention the dreaded cold calling. You'd spend hours and hours going down your list of phone numbers, repeat your well rehearsed opening pitch, desperate to hear a 'yes' rather than the usual '***!!!####'. Those were the days. Thank God you don't have to rely on that type of marketing anymore. When I started out as a copywriter, I vowed I would never resort to cold calling. I don't know about you, but I hate it when my evening is interrupted by a sales call. How dare these people phone me, uninvited, to try and sell me something ...