Top 5 Do"s and Don"ts of Social Media Engagement for Businesses
If you are thinking about getting into the online craze of social media, you need to understand the do's and don'ts before you begin.
Here's a quick checklist to help you get started.
1.
Create a Game Plan.
Sounds basic and it is, so start with the basics.
Figure out what you hope to accomplish using social media and then decide on your line of attack.
For example, you might want to create more brand awareness for your company or you might want to combat negative press by flooding the web with positive testimonials.
Whatever your goal, identify it then create a game plan around that.
2.
At a Minimum, Develop a Corporate Presence in these 3 areas: Blogging, Micro-Blogging & Social Networks.
Blog writing on your area of expertise should be done 3-4 times a week in order for search engines to find you and consider you relevant.
Micro-blogging, most commonly done through Twitter, should be 3-6 tweets per day of 140 characters of pure content.
Social networks, my favorite being Facebook but other sites include MySpace, YouTube, Digg, Flickr etc.
should be touched on a daily basis at a minimum.
Whether you are commenting on others posts or creating your own content, it's important to make daily contact with your peeps.
3.
Measure What You Are Doing in Social Media.
One of the biggest advantages of using social media is that it's trackable.
Stats are easy to aggregate using social media because you can literally and simply view the clicks.
There are also many tools available to monitor online usage as well.
Tracking the number of followers on each channel also shows you trends in growth.
4.
Don't Sell.
Social Media is the place to make friends with your customers, clients & constituents.
It's the place to ask questions and get feedback.
It's the place to offer information and to educate from a variety of sources, not just you, and using a variety of vehicles.
Social media is a place of engagement so engage, don't sell.
5.
Don't Use an Intern or a High School Student to Represent Your Brand How many years did it take you to develop your brand? Why would you leave the biggest, strongest, most visible form of contact with your clients to someone like that? If you can't do it yourself because there aren't enough hours in the day to wear the number of hats you have to wear then hire a professional.
The digital age has all these wonderful merits.
Are you taking advantage of them?
Here's a quick checklist to help you get started.
1.
Create a Game Plan.
Sounds basic and it is, so start with the basics.
Figure out what you hope to accomplish using social media and then decide on your line of attack.
For example, you might want to create more brand awareness for your company or you might want to combat negative press by flooding the web with positive testimonials.
Whatever your goal, identify it then create a game plan around that.
2.
At a Minimum, Develop a Corporate Presence in these 3 areas: Blogging, Micro-Blogging & Social Networks.
Blog writing on your area of expertise should be done 3-4 times a week in order for search engines to find you and consider you relevant.
Micro-blogging, most commonly done through Twitter, should be 3-6 tweets per day of 140 characters of pure content.
Social networks, my favorite being Facebook but other sites include MySpace, YouTube, Digg, Flickr etc.
should be touched on a daily basis at a minimum.
Whether you are commenting on others posts or creating your own content, it's important to make daily contact with your peeps.
3.
Measure What You Are Doing in Social Media.
One of the biggest advantages of using social media is that it's trackable.
Stats are easy to aggregate using social media because you can literally and simply view the clicks.
There are also many tools available to monitor online usage as well.
Tracking the number of followers on each channel also shows you trends in growth.
4.
Don't Sell.
Social Media is the place to make friends with your customers, clients & constituents.
It's the place to ask questions and get feedback.
It's the place to offer information and to educate from a variety of sources, not just you, and using a variety of vehicles.
Social media is a place of engagement so engage, don't sell.
5.
Don't Use an Intern or a High School Student to Represent Your Brand How many years did it take you to develop your brand? Why would you leave the biggest, strongest, most visible form of contact with your clients to someone like that? If you can't do it yourself because there aren't enough hours in the day to wear the number of hats you have to wear then hire a professional.
The digital age has all these wonderful merits.
Are you taking advantage of them?
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