social media Archives - Page 4 of 5

10 Steps to Getting the Most Out of Facebook

Facebook is the most popular and widely used social media outlet. Facebook users create profiles, interact with others, become fans of business pages and join in common interest groups. With more than 400 million members, Facebook is an excellent marketing and advertising tool, especially for B2C companies. Every business and non-profit with a customer base needs to have a presence on Facebook. Facebook offers exposure, advertising opportunities and an outlet for customer relations. It is essential for businesses to create an active and compelling presence on Facebook to enhance any social media marketing strategy.

Create a Profile — Before you can create a fan page or group, you must have a personalized Facebook profile. When creating your personal account, you may choose to use it strictly for personal use or also for your business networking. Either way, your Facebook profile should be professional. Update your privacy settings to control who can see what information and never post anything that you wouldn’t want everyone to see. Despite its casual feel, posting on social networking sites should be taken very seriously. Remember, what you post on Facebook will reflect your business and professional image.

Create a Fan Page — Once you have a personal profile, with your name and personal information, you may create a business fan page. Facebook fan pages are specifically for promoting your business. Businesses will benefit greatly from creating and maintaining a fan page, where they will be able to communicate with their target audience and enormously increase their Web visibility. When Facebook users “like” your business page, their friends will see an update on their homepage. This exposure may influence a greater audience to learn more about your organization. To gain more fans, consider offering an incentive for those who like your page. Giving exclusive deals to your Facebook fans will encourage them to follow your company and recommend you to others. It is now very easy for businesses to offer coupons to your Facebook fans with the application, Easypromos. The promotion will be introduced on your fan page. For example, “Receive a 10% coupon for becoming a fan of our business!” When the user clicks to become a fan, they will be granted access to the coupon. Keeping track of how many Facebook discount codes have been redeemed is a useful tool for monitoring how beneficial your Facebook marketing efforts are. Fan pages also give you the option to send mass emails to all of your fans to promote products, services, events and ongoing promotions.

Create a Group Page — Creating a Facebook group page for your organization is also a useful feature. While they are not necessary to your Facebook marketing success, groups are another way for businesses to create an online community to keep their audience connected. Compared to fan pages, groups are typically for more in-depth communication around a certain subject. Engage in discussions about your products, industry and organization. Facebook groups don’t require nearly as much time as fan pages. While it is good to create a group, don’t invest all of your effort in this area.

Add Multimedia — Facebook is a great place to share multimedia. Everyone takes in information differently and many people are visual learners. Post photos that resonate with your business such as your location, building, events, staff, products and more. Videos are also important to show your audience what kind of company you are and how you can benefit them. Share videos of successful customer stories, interviews with experts in your industry, educational or how-to videos and features on business accomplishments.

Expand Your Network — For proactive social media networking purposes, it is crucial to grow your fan base and make personal connections with your audience. Seek out personal contacts, customers, potential customers, influential people in your industry and so forth. To find new people to add, use the “Friend Finder,” invite friends by email and join in similar groups and fan pages. When sending requests, always add a personal message to let the user know who you are and why you would like to be their Facebook friend.

Interact — Communication and interaction are keys to your business’ Facebook success. Always encourage feedback on your posts. Address every comment, concern and message you receive in a timely and thoughtful manner. Promoting your company as a client-friendly organization will boost your online reputation and encourage others to speak favorably about your business to their connections. To keep your audience informed, update your status each time your company has an event, shares industry news, sends an e-newsletter, launches a product or has received press coverage. Produce fresh, well-written and relevant content for your fan page especially. All fan page content gets indexed by Google so it should be strong and relevant to your target audience.

Create Events — If your company is having an event or promotion, create a Facebook event and invite all of your friends and fans to attend. Include all contact and event information on the page. This is a great way to promote your event and spread exposure. For example, when someone RSVPs to your event, their friends will see an update on their news feed. If you have limited space, indicate that your event is not open to the public and limited to “invite only.”

Facebook Advertising — Facebook provides outstanding and effective ad placement. For a detailed account of how Facebook advertising works, see this week’s advertising spotlight. Using Facebook fan page ads can help you expand your fan base and ongoing marketing efforts.

Promote Your Facebook Page — Make it easy for your audience to find you. Facebook icons and links should be clear on your business’ website, blog, email signature, business cards and in any correspondence with customers and potential customers. It is also important to advertise any special discounts that your audience will receive for becoming a fan of your business’ fan page.

Stay Active — Most importantly, stay active in your Facebook marketing efforts. Your success requires regular updates with fresh content, photos and interaction. While you cannot control conversation on social media sites, you can enhance it. Participate in discussions, share strong content, respond to comments and concerns and you will be rewarded.

Visit The Public Relations and Marketing Group’s website for examples of social media ads performed on behalf of its clients.

Getting Started with Social Media

Social media is a crucial marketing tool to help you make connections, rapidly build your business’ online platform and get your message out. Just about every business should be using social media in some capacity. Social media sites allow you to interact with clients, customers, competitors, critics, employees, prospects and referral sources. Through the user-generated content of social networking sites, businesses are able to learn what people are saying about them and to respond to criticism and praise. These sites also make it possible to spread your message to a larger audience than ever before in a quick, cost-effective manner. The keys are choosing the right social media platform(s) for your organization, while developing and committing to a content plan you will use to feed your network with information they will value.

Here are some tips to help your business get its message across:

• Choose Which Sites to Use — With so many social media sites out there, it is important to choose the ones that best suit your business. It is much more effective to actively use a few of these sites than to just be present on all of them. Popular social media sites include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, FourSquare, Flickr and MySpace. Research these sites and others to decide which ones are right for your business. As a general rule, if you’re in B2B (Business-to-Business), use LinkedIn. If you’re trying to reach the general public with your services, then consider using Facebook and Twitter.

• Create a Memorable Logo/Username — Pick a username that is available on all or most of the major social media sites. Develop a logo to complement your business name, not overshadow it. Use the logo in your profiles and websites.

• Know and Target Your Audience — First, determine who your target audience is. Using social media sites, post relevant content that your clients and prospective customers will find useful and interesting. Use your social media sites as a valuable tool for your audience rather than merely for your business’ self-promotion.

• Advertise to Your Target Audience — Advertisements on Facebook, MySpace and YouTube micro-target based on demographics, age, interests and location. Facebook ad campaigns, in particular, are highly targetable and effective. Facebook captures postings to create analytical data of what members have as listed interests. This data can be used to target market certain keywords.

• Build Business Contacts — LinkedIn, for example, is a business-oriented service that allows members to network and gather professional contacts. Users can find potential clients, search for jobs, land deals and get professional introductions. Creating a LinkedIn profile for your business is a great way to put your company on the map in your industry. You may also upload your existing contacts from Outlook or a CSV file to LinkedIn and Facebook.

• Interact — Follow up quickly to every comment or direct message on your social media sites. Make friends and treat your connections respectfully. Be authentic and actively participate in the conversation. Remember, you are setting the tone for your business through every conversation and post online. Always encourage people to contact you.

• Don’t Forget About Content — Content is far more important than technology or design. Write exceptional articles, recommendations and blog posts and load them with keywords so they are easily found. The text and quality of the content on your sites is what compels people to stay and return. It should be organized, well-written and complete with easy ways to link to information. Excellent content is easily and quickly spread on social media sites and search engines. Think about the type of ongoing content you can generate that relates to your organization and builds upon its credibility and expertise.

• Track Your Social Media Success — Be aware of how effective your social media profiles and websites are. Compete.com allows users to compare the estimated traffic to their site against that of their competitors. Twitter.Grader.com will run your business’ Twitter profile through and compare it to each competitor. This allows you to not only measure your own business’ online success, but to keep track of your competition.

• Don’t Slack Off — Social media is a long road and a way of doing business, not a campaign. Your social media marketing success requires commitment and long-term support. Actively update your pages with news, conversation and multimedia, such as videos and photos, to stay at the top of search engine results.

This is the first in a series of articles to be followed by closer examinations of Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Visit The Public Relations and Marketing Group’s website here for examples of social media performed on behalf of its clients.

“If You Build It,” They Won’t Necessarily Come…2/3

Collateral Marketing Materials Now that your website is up, you can now turn to putting together some marketing materials. Using your logo, set up and print business cards with your website, e-mail and other contact information on them. You’ll also need to set up letterhead, but more and more businesses are using Word documents and … Continue reading ““If You Build It,” They Won’t Necessarily Come…2/3”

Collateral Marketing Materials

Now that your website is up, you can now turn to putting together some marketing materials. Using your logo, set up and print business cards with your website, e-mail and other contact information on them. You’ll also need to set up letterhead, but more and more businesses are using Word documents and color laser printers to print letters as needed. You will also need to print envelopes; however, considering the difficulty some laser printers have with printing envelopes, you may consider purchasing envelopes. Use an online printer such as Vistaprint or PrintPlace. You should also consider putting together a brochure at this point. You can place it on your site as a PDF download, e-mail it and use it during your initial marketing programs. You may also want to consider purchasing presentation folders. These are good to use when providing proposals and other information to prospective clients or to provide to clients to hold your information in.

Contacts

One of the first steps you want to take when starting a business is to pull your relevant contact information together. In fact, many entrepreneurs begin collecting contact information about prospective clients and customers long before they go out on their own. You’ll need to do some research to determine the best system for you. Will Microsoft Outlook and Access be sufficient to create your databases when used in conjunction with an e-mail program such as Constant Contact or StreamSend? Will you use your Point of Sale software? Do you need an online system such as Salesforce.com? The contacts you have made are likely going to be your first customers or clients and your best referral sources. You want to create an easy system from which to mail, fax, e-mail, and engage them. Especially for those engaged in a business to business (B2B) field, you’ll need to consider what types of databases and e-mail lists you want to purchase and how you will work with that information.

Social Media

Which social media platforms are best for you? Key in on the big three: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. As a rule of thumb, if you are a retailer or have a business that provides services that anyone can use, then make Facebook your first priority. If you are primarily involved in B2B or provide professional services relying on referrals, then start with LinkedIn. Twitter can be very effective for restaurants and retailers to communicate microblogs to followers and to re-distribute e-newsletters to wider audiences. Upload your contacts with LinkedIn to invite others to connect with you and use the search function on Facebook to make friends and on Twitter to follow others, who will often then follow you.

Press Release on Business Launch and Grand Opening

Once you open your doors and are ready to do business and have built your online presence with your website, blog and social media, it’s time to do a press release announcing your new business. The press release should draw upon your branding strategy, describe its uniqueness and the customer needs it seeks to address. It should be targeted to business reporters, trade publications, local newspapers and online sites that allow you to post press releases, such as PRLog. The release should be optimized with keywords linking back to your website and your domain included. As the release gets published online, this will help to build backlinks, usually with sites with high authority, helping to build page ranking. If you have a retail establishment, restaurant or sizable space in an office building, consider a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony. It is often better for restaurants to be open for a period of time, at least a month or two, so that staff can be adequately trained and the kinks worked out before sending out a press release and holding a grand opening, as these will also often invite reviews which you will want to score well on. Use a PR firm or a service such as Marketwire to distribute your release.

Low-Cost Initial Marketing Strategies

You are now doing business. To this point, depending on how much your website cost and whether you had a grand opening, you probably spent between $5,000 and $10,000 on marketing. Now it’s time to be proactive and start getting the word out. For new businesses especially, you want to go after the lowest hanging fruit, bringing the greatest return on your investment at first.
Look at your contacts and prospect lists that you may have pulled together or purchased. Start by sending an introductory letter with your brochure or another direct mail piece to your contacts and prospects. You can do the same using e-mail and include links to your website and a link to download the brochure. By using an e-mail program such as StreamSend, you’ll be able to track who opened and clicked through to your site, or downloaded your brochure. You’ll be able to use this information to prioritize follow up.

After your introductory mail and e-mail has been sent out, you’ll want to regularly communicate via e-mail using e-newsletters. Use the content you develop to update your website and communicate via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. Consider purchasing additional contact lists or using Chamber of Commerce, published association and other prospect lists. Continue to track your click-through activity and develop materials to send to prospects. For professionals, consider making follow-up phone calls, e-mails or further engage using social media. Unfortunately, not everyone will get your e-mails or open them. Consider supplementing e-mails with regular direct mail or newsletters to your current customers and prospects.

At this point, you are probably also doing some traditional networking at appropriate venues that put you in front of prospective customers. For this, it is often more effective to go to their events, conferences, etc. in your targets rather than general chamber or other public events. Consider taking tables at conferences and sponsoring lectures. You may also want to develop a lecture or webinar for your prospective clients. Some professionals require continuing education. Look into whether your lecture can get accreditation. You may even be able to charge for attendance.

If You Build It, They Won’t Necessarily Come: Part 1

If You Build It, They Won’t Necessarily Come: Part 3

Free Whitepaper: Social Media For Non-Profit Organizations

Before the rise of social media, most non-profit organizations needed to either buy expensive advertising or receive media coverage to attract the attention of their target audience and spread awareness about their mission. The Web, however, acts as a great equalizer and offers tremendous potential for non-profit organizations to build a community that believes in … Continue reading “Free Whitepaper: Social Media For Non-Profit Organizations”

A recent annual survey on Long Island’s non-profit organizations found that only 40% of non-profits are using social media. Social media is one of the fastest growing channels for public relations and marketing today and by not tapping into social media, your non-profit organization may be missing out an opportunity to directly find and connect with those who are truly passionate about your cause.

To find out more about how your organization can leverage social media, click here to fill out a request form for your free whitepaper.

Using Social Media To Drive Your Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Social media can be a great way to take your message directly to your target audience. Using various social media tools, you can build your online profile and reputation, create more backlinks and drive people back to your Web site. Below are the various tools PRMG uses to get clients maximum exposure on the Web: … Continue reading “Using Social Media To Drive Your Search Engine Optimization (SEO)”

Below are the various tools PRMG uses to get clients maximum exposure on the Web:

Blogs: Blogs are Web journals that contain opinions on different subjects. Often described as the “front door” to social media, the authors of blogs can read, comment and exchange links on other blogs. Since blogs can be updated more frequently, search engines looking for fresh content will rank it higher and make it more searchable.

Besides this, blogs can be a great way for you to build your organization’s reputation, showcase its expertise, highlight a product or service, and help improve your Search Engine Optimization by drawing audiences back to your website and including backlinks to internal pages in blog entries. They also provide a more personal way of communicating with your customers or other target audiences, giving you an opportunity to obtain constant feedback from them.

Social Networking: Social networking sites operate on the simple premise of building a profile and connecting, interacting and sharing information with “friends” over the network.

Facebook, which has more than 200 million users worldwide, allows you to build your own business fan page and create your own targeted ads, applications or platforms, which can serve as a great marketing tool. Using Facebook, you can share links, latest company news, start discussions, list events and post videos and pictures.

LinkedIn, another popular site, is particularly known for professional networking, where you can create a profile, and also display recommendations or testimonials from clients or former employers, ask and answer questions on business-related topics and create or join a professional networking group.

Microblogs: Twitter, the most popular microblogging tool, is a free service that allows members to send short messages or updates that are 140 characters or less. The message is sent to people’s “followers” or people who are interested in what the person has to say or share. Twitter can be a useful tool to drive people to your blog, Web site or Facebook profile by posting a URL every time you update them or want to inform people of latest events, promotions, press releases or company news. By posting your Web site URL to your Twitter profile or including your Web site link in a direct message to new followers, you would also be helping to boost traffic to your Web site.

Since it only consists of short updates, Twitter can often be easier to keep up with, as compared with blogging, and still help you connect and network with current or prospective customers. Many organizations use Twitter for customer service and as a quick way to monitor what others are saying about their brand.

How PRMG Can Help You Tap Into Social Media

The vast array of social media tools available can often be confusing. To help you cut through the social media clutter, we begin by first identifying your business and communication goals. Based on your target audience, we devise a marketing and communication strategy, and select social media tools that can help you best achieve your goals and reach your target audience most effectively.

Whether you need help with starting a blog, setting up a Facebook page or a Twitter profile, PRMG will always adopt an integrated approach to social media and ensure that it complements your traditional public relations and marketing efforts.

Making The Most Of Your Facebook Page

Every business today needs to take its message where its customers are. Facebook, one of the largest social media networks with over 350 million active users, has grown beyond its role in personal networking and emerged as a powerful marketing tool for businesses. Facebook “fan” pages are now an essential branding tool for all organizations, … Continue reading “Making The Most Of Your Facebook Page”

Every business today needs to take its message where its customers are. Facebook, one of the largest social media networks with over 350 million active users, has grown beyond its role in personal networking and emerged as a powerful marketing tool for businesses. Facebook “fan” pages are now an essential branding tool for all organizations, helping businesses or non-profit organizations of all sizes interact and engage directly with customers or the community in a way that’s least interruptive.

Facebook pages enable you to create your own unique presence where customers can interact with you and keep in touch with your brand, product or service. By becoming a “fan” of your page, customers can access the latest updates on your “wall,” read your latest blog entry or event, and view videos or photos you may post on your profile. They can also participate in discussions and post comments or give feedback on information you may post.

When someone becomes a fan of your page, posts a comment or interacts with your page, their activity is visible to their friends through the “News Feed.” The social nature of Facebook gives your page greater exposure, allowing you to attract more fans and draw attention to your company or organization.

Besides these benefits, Facebook pages usually rank high in search engines, helping potential customers find you easily and own more “real estate” in the first few search pages. By sharing links with company-related news or other information on your Web site, you can drive more clicks and better optimize your site for improved search engine results.

How To Get Started

The first step is to set up your profile. If you already have a personal profile, just log in to your account and click on the applications tab on the bottom left. Select “Ads and Pages” and click on “Create a Page.”

Select an appropriate business category for your page and enter your company information. List your Web site’s URL and links to your blog or Twitter profile, along with other contact information. While creating a profile, think about how you want to project your company to your fans and what keywords you want to include in your profile and business description. Once you set up your page, click on “Publish your page” to make it public.

You can then invite your “friends” on your personal profile to become fans of your business page. If you don’t have a personal profile, it is recommended that you set one up first before creating a business page. Having a personal Facebook profile will make it easier to promote your Facebook page among your existing network.

What Should You Post On Your Facebook Page?
Keeping your profile active is important if you want to retain your existing fans and attract new ones. You can post regular updates on new projects your company may be working on, links to the latest company news, press releases or your latest blog post. You can also post events and pictures and start discussions with your fans, inviting their ideas or soliciting their feedback.

Using applications such as Facebook polls, you can gauge what your customers think about a particular product or new service you want to introduce.

How To Attract Fans To Your Facebook Page
To attract fans to your Facebook page, the first step should be to become a fan of your own page. This will ensure that your Facebook friends learn about your page through the News Feed. You can then also invite your own Facebook friends to become fans of the page by using the “Suggest to Friends” feature that shows up below your profile picture on the top left.

To publicize your Facebook page, add links to it on your Web site, e-newsletter and blog. You can even add a clickable Facebook badge or icon to your e-mail signature that points to your Facebook page. If you wish to try paid options, you can use Facebook ads to publicize your fan page to a select target audience based on demographic or geographic criteria or other criteria, such as profession or interests.

Visit PRMG’s Facebook page and become a fan to stay connected with us.

Making The Most Of Your Twitter Profile

Over the past year, Twitter has emerged as one of the most popular social media tools to be used by individuals and companies, evolving as an important tool in brand marketing. Cable service provider Comcast uses Twitter to engage directly with its customers and solve customer complaints in real time. Besides direct brand engagement and … Continue reading “Making The Most Of Your Twitter Profile”

PRMG’s Twitter Profile

Over the past year, Twitter has emerged as one of the most popular social media tools to be used by individuals and companies, evolving as an important tool in brand marketing. Cable service provider Comcast uses Twitter to engage directly with its customers and solve customer complaints in real time. Besides direct brand engagement and customer service, companies like Dell have directly generated over $3 million in sales through Twitter, offering exclusive discounts and deals to their “followers.”

Yet, it’s not just the big corporates that can successfully tap into Twitter; small businesses can also utilize this tool to build their brand, increase sales and engage better with their customers. Twitter.com offers this example: When an employee working in the Empire State Building tweeted that he was craving Tasty D-Lite ice cream, Tasty D-Lite offered to deliver it right to his office. Houston-based café Coffee Groundz allows customers to order their beverages and food through Twitter – which the café says has helped it double its customer base and discover a completely new way to engage and build a community of loyal customers.

As a local business, how can you tap into Twitter’s potential and achieve the same results? Read on to learn about our tips for understanding Twitter and making the most of your Twitter profile.

What is Twitter?
Twitter is a free “microblogging” service that allows members to send short messages or updates (called “tweets”) that are 140 characters or less. The message, which can be sent or viewed from your computer or mobile device, is sent to a person’s “followers” or those who are interested in what you may have to say or share. The quick, short updates and the ability to send or receive them anywhere, make Twitter a useful tool for communicating in real time.

How can you use Twitter for your business?
Many organizations use Twitter for customer service and as a quick way to monitor what others are saying about their brand. Besides this, Twitter can be used to stay connected with customers by sharing the latest company news or other information about your products and services and drive traffic to your Web site or blog. It can also be used to obtain real-time feedback or ideas from customers. Since it only consists of short updates, Twitter can often be easier to keep up with, as compared with blogging, and still help you stay connected with current or prospective customers.

Getting started with Twitter
The first step should be to create a Twitter account; signing up for one is quite quick and easy. For more information on how to get started with Twitter, read the Twitter Help Guide. If you are setting up a Twitter account for your business, enter the name of your business or brand in the profile information section with a short description and a link to your Web site.

Select a username also known as a “Twitter handle,” which is displayed as a ‘@’ sign followed by your username (For example @ThePRMG.) Usernames are limited to 15 characters, so you may need to abbreviate your company name. Upload a small profile picture, which could be your logo or your own picture (if you want to add a more personal touch to your business profile.)

Next, search for those in your industry or community by entering search keywords in the search box or the “Find People” tab and start following them and their tweets. You can also invite those in your e-mail contact list to connect with you over Twitter. A final word of advice: Don’t post too many updates over Twitter and if you are using Twitter for business, have something relevant to say.

Cracking the Twitter Code – Your Guide To Twitter Lingo

•Tweets = Messages/Updates over Twitter
•Twitter Handle = Your unique identity on Twitter – @ followed by your user-name
•Following = When you “follow” someone over Twitter, you add them to your list of followers (think of them as friends you add on Facebook.) Once you follow someone, their tweets appear on your home page.
•Retweet = You can repost or “retweet” any interesting update posted by those you follow that you want to share with others. This can be done by adding the letters RT before the message and giving proper credit to the original author.
•DM = Direct messages sent by one Twitter user directly to another that can only be seen by the recipient (think of it as messages sent to your inbox over Facebook.) DMs also cannot exceed more than 140 characters and you can only DM people who follow you.
•Hashtag = # symbol followed by a specific keyword. This helps you find other users who have used the same word in their tweets, helping you categorize tweets and see what others may be saying about a particular subject.

PRMG is on Twitter! Find us and connect with us here.

Making The Most Of Your Blog

In 2008, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research conducted a study, which established that fast-growing small businesses are adopting social media at a faster rate than larger corporations. This may largely be due to the fact that for small businesses, social media can be a useful communications channel, allowing them to directly … Continue reading “Making The Most Of Your Blog”

In 2008, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research conducted a study, which established that fast-growing small businesses are adopting social media at a faster rate than larger corporations. This may largely be due to the fact that for small businesses, social media can be a useful communications channel, allowing them to directly engage in a conversation with their customers and obtain feedback.

Beginning with this issue, PRMG will be writing a series of articles that provide in-depth information and tips that can help you understand and utilize social media effectively for your business.

If you have read or at least heard of blogs but don’t exactly understand how it can help promote your business or how it may fit into your overall marketing and communication plan, read on for our first article on blogs.

What is a blog?

Blogs are Web-based journals that contain opinions on different subjects. These can include plain text, links and audio/video elements. The authors of blogs read and comment on other blogs and also exchange links. This creates relationships between different bloggers and forms what is collectively called the blogosphere. Readers can directly subscribe to blogs using RSS or e-mail, or engage with bloggers by leaving comments on their posts.

Why launch a blog?

Business or corporate blogs can be used to demonstrate your expertise and leadership in your field or industry, helping to attract attention of the media or potential customers. They can also be used to continuously build a dialogue with existing customers in a more personalized way and share important updates with them on your products or services.

In the past, the only way most businesses could get their message out was through media coverage or advertising. With blogs and other social media tools, it is now possible to directly present your story to your target audience using your own words and in your own voice. This can be especially useful in times of crisis, when you want to present your side of the story. Apart from this, blogs can also be an additional channel for potential customers to find you and learn more about you, creating more access points and links in search engines.

How do you start a blog?

Before starting a blog, it is important to consider your objectives and target audience. If the market or target audience you cater to, does not engage in social media, blogging may not be the best channel for you. The best way to understand how blogs work and develop your own blog content is to read other blogs and participate in the blogosphere by commenting on posts.

Next, secure a unique and memorable URL that reflects the nature of your blog and can be optimized for search engines. Choose an appropriate blogging software like WordPress or Blogger, both of which are free and easy to use. Post a few trial entries before launching your blog, and promote it to your existing contacts through e-mail newsletters or links from your Web site.

Before launching your blog, you should consider if you want to allow your readers to directly post comments or if you want to moderate and approve them before posting. If you want to engage and build a two-way dialogue with your readers you should take some time to respond to comments on each post.

What should you post on your blog?

While planning your own blog posts, think about what type of information your target audience is seeking and how you may be able to answer their questions or solve their problems by delivering relevant, useful content. This will give your readers enough reason to keep returning to your blog if they find it to be a useful resource or channel that is worth reading regularly.

A great way to generate content is to write short posts on newsworthy events relating to your industry and offering your opinion on how it may affect your business or customers. You could also provide links on your blog to important news articles you have recently read, which you think may be of interest to your blog readers. Posting audio and video content can be a fun, interactive way of demonstrating your products or services or posting informative interviews with influencers in your field.

How do you become a part of the blogosphere?

To make it easy for potential readers to find your blog, register your blog on blog directories and catalogs (such as, Technorati and Blog Catalog) that will list your blog in a relevant category and create more backlinks to your blog. You can also create a blogroll, where you link to other relevant blogs in your field or industry, which helps you become known in the blogosphere and encourages other bloggers to link back to you, creating more backlinks and improving your search results.

Whose Brand Is It Anyway? A brand is defined by its customers

Imagine this scenario: Your company decides to rebrand its logo by changing its font. No big deal, right? Wrong. Or at least not if you are IKEA. Last week, a Swedish resident was reading an IKEA print advertisement in a local newspaper when he noticed the IKEA typeface looked different. He sent out a message … Continue reading “Whose Brand Is It Anyway? A brand is defined by its customers”

Imagine this scenario: Your company decides to rebrand its logo by changing its font. No big deal, right?

Wrong. Or at least not if you are IKEA. Last week, a Swedish resident was reading an IKEA print advertisement in a local newspaper when he noticed the IKEA typeface looked different. He sent out a message over Twitter and learned from IKEA’s advertising agency that IKEA had recently adopted a new font. As Time magazine reported in its recent article, very soon customers from Tokyo to Dublin to Melbourne were tweeting about how they thought the new font was “just plain ugly” and how disgusted they were with the font change. The IKEA font issue soon became a trending topic on Twitter, with fans across the globe talking about it, drawing even more tweets than Senator Edward Kennedy.

IKEA’s font furor proves yet again what many brand theorists have always asserted: A brand is defined by its customers, not the company that creates it. The book Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies, quotes Ricardo Guimaraes, founder of Thymus Branding in Brazil. According to him, “the value of a brand belongs to the market, and not to the company and the company is, in a way, only a tool to create value for the brand.”

With brands being defined by your customers, it becomes even more important to pay close attention to what they have to say. Because, whether you like it or not, customers can talk and connect with each other over social networks and exchange reviews and opinions about you and your product or service. Instead of avoiding participation in these conversations out of fear of criticism or a backlash, companies are better off jumping in and leveraging the buzz to crowdsource ideas and better improve their product or brand.

Take Dell for example. In 2006, “Dell Hell” became a popular phrase over the Internet – with online bloggers and customers complaining about Dell’s poor customer service. The company learned its lessons quickly, and soon launched its blog, Direct2Dell, to listen and engage directly with customers. Soon after, Dell launched IdeaStorm, a site where customers could brainstorm, discuss and submit ideas relating to Dell and its products, allowing them to directly participate in shaping the Dell brand. Since its launch, Dell has implemented 366 ideas submitted by customers.

Many companies spend heavily on costly market research to glean consumer insights. Though all your customers or audiences may not necessarily be online, social media allows you to obtain these insights for free by monitoring blogs, microblogs and social networks in real time, often allowing you to spot trends, test ideas, identify influencers or to respond quickly to what could brew into a potential PR crisis. Using tools like Google Alerts, Technorati, Google Reader, GoogleBlogSearch and Twitter search, you can easily monitor and listen to what’s being said about you. Hiring an agency may be a good idea if you do not have the time or the resources to keep an ear to the ground for you.

In the end, no matter whom the brand belongs to – customers or your company – listening more closely to your customers will make them feel valued, creating more brand loyalty and better engagement. The positive word-of-mouth publicity this will generate will give your brand a tremendous boost.

For more information on our social media and digital marketing services, contact PRMG at johnzaher@theprmg.com.

A Quick Guide to the Social Media Toolbox

Facebook, MySpace, Xing, Twitter, wikis, LinkedIn, Plaxo, podcasts, blogs, Digg, YouTube, FlickR, RSS, StumbleUpon…the list is endless. If the vast array of social media tools available leaves you scratching your head in confusion, you are not alone. Cutting through the social media clutter and making sense of it all can be difficult, but it is important to remember that social media tools are, in the end, just that – tools meant to achieve an objective. Once you have identified your business and communication goals, your target audience, and a communication and marketing strategy to reach that audience, the last step is to select the tools that best help you achieve these goals and reach your audience most effectively.

Below is a look at a few popular social media tools, how they work and the communication and business objectives they may help achieve.

Blogs: Blogs are Web journals that contain opinions on different subjects. Often described as the “front door” to social media, the authors of blogs can read, comment and exchange links on other blogs. If a large number of blogs link to your post or entry, it causes your blog to rise in Google’s search rankings. Blogs can be a great way for small or large organizations to build their reputation, showcase their expertise, highlight their product or service, and help improve your Search Engine Optimization by drawing audiences to your website.They also provide a more personal way of communicating with your customers or other target audiences, giving you an opportunity to obtain constant feedback from them.

Social Networking: Social networking sites operate on the simple premise of building a profile and connecting, interacting and sharing information with “friends” over the network. Popular social networks include Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, all of which allow you to create or join communities, start discussions and share information with people who are interested in connecting or in learning more about you. Facebook, which has more than 200 million users worldwide, also allows you to build your own business fan page and create your own targeted ads, applications or platforms, which can serve as a great marketing tool. LinkedIn, another popular site, is particularly known for professional networking, where you can create a profile, and also display recommendations or testimonials from clients or former employers, ask and answer questions on business-related topics and create or join a professional networking group.

Microblogs: Twitter, the most popular microblogging tool, is a free service that allows members to send short messages or updates that are 140 characters or less. The message is sent to people’s “followers” or people who are interested in what the person has to say or share. Twitter can be a useful tool to drive people to your blog, Web site or Facebook profile by posting a URL every time you update them or want to inform people of a latest event or company news. Since it only consists of short updates, Twitter can often be easier to keep up with, as compared with blogging, and still help you connect and network with current or prospective customers. Many organizations use Twitter for customer service and as a quick way to monitor what others are saying about their brand.

RSS/Social Tagging/Social Bookmarking: Creating content through blogs, podcasts, wikis and videos is just one aspect of social media. The other aspect is to make content easy to access, search and consume when the need arises. Social media tools like RSS feeds, social tagging and bookmarking bring order to the chaos of social media content.

• RSS or Really Simple Syndication allows people to subscribe to online news, blogs, podcasts and other information, bringing updates to them instead of having to visit different blogs and sites. Many experts cite RSS as the most important social media tool due to its ability to aggregate different sources, syndicate to a single view and publish instantly to an audience of subscribers.

• Social tagging involves adding “tags,” which are keywords or descriptive phrases given to digital information by users so it can be easily stored, sorted and searched. Digg is an example of a site where users can tag articles they like and select the category they should be placed in.

• Social bookmarking allows users to mark a page or Web site they find useful and may want to remember or share with others. The bookmarks can be made public or shared privately and can be viewed chronologically, by category or via tags. Using a downloadable application like Del.icio.us, you can bookmark a Web site and classify it using any tag you want. Other visitors to the Web site can not only see your tags, but can also search other sites with the same tag.

As is evident, different social media tools achieve different objectives, and to select the right social media tool, it is important to first clearly define your objective. At PRMG, we help clients evaluate their objectives and integrate social media into their overall communication and marketing strategy, helping them achieve their business goals better, faster and more efficiently.

For more information on our social media and digital marketing services, contact us at (631) 207-1057 or email at: johnzaher@theprmg.com.

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