A slide deck from Matt Wakefield's seminar about using social media for business success. The seminars were conducted 4/20/2010 and 4/27/2010 in Seattle
25. Source: Anderson Analytics, Pew Research Amai Age: 31 Income: $58,000 Status: Married Interests: restaurants, sports, politics, personal finance and religion Uses it for: news, socializing, curing boredom at work
No breaks Taking notes Ask questions Key takeawaysSOMETHING TO NOTE:There’s a variety of different levels of proficiency in the room here today. To make sure the novices get as much out of the class as the near-experts, you may hear something you already know. Feel free to jump in with your own experiences. It would kind of go against the grain of social media if it were just me up here talking.
Introductions You’ll learn… What is social media Social media sites Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Blogs FoursquareBest practices Campaigns
We’ll go around the room. Tell us: Your name Your companyOne thing you hope to get out of this class
Where the lines are blurred between the author and the audience; content creator and content consumer Many-to-many instead of one-to-many You have the same potential audience that anyone else has You create your own reputation, gain followers and fans You provide contentYou gain the trust/distrust of your audiencesYou connect with your customers and stakeholders
The traditional media are the gatekeepers, but once you’re past them, the benefit is that you have access to their wide, general audience.
No gatekeepers; Only your own credibility based on providing value to your fans and followers. You create your own audience, who identify themselves as being interested in what you have to offer.
The thing that separates all of these is that instead of having one person you don’t know tell you what is important, you have groups of friends and trusted companies having conversations about what is important.
Traditional MediaSocial MediaNewspapers BlogsRadio PodcastingTelevision Video sharingMagazines Photo sharingBooks RSS feedsMusic/movies Social networks
Don’t be: While there’s a social media site for pretty much every niche, there are a key few that will allow you to connect with existing customers, and drive traffic to your store, service or restaurant.
Now that we’ve covered what social media is at a high level, let’s bring it down to the few sites that you can actually use to market your business.
WHO HERE HAS HEARD OF TWITTER?WHO HERE IS USING IT PERSONALLY?WHO HERE IS TWEETING FOR THEIR BUSINESS?
What is Twitter, you ask? I could explain it to you, or I could have someone who makes paper puppets explain it to you.The same things that the video talks about as people, applies to businesses and brands as well.
Microblogging: 140 characters per post18 million users worldwide50 million tweets/day (1.5 billion/month)Allows no-frills sharing of information and connecting in real-timeVery conversational mediumTwitter is a free online service that allows you to send messages to hundreds (or even millions) of your friends or customers, all at the same time. Your Twitter friends receive an alert each time you send a new message either on their mobile phones and/or on their computers.
USE EXAMPLE OF BEING IN A ROOM FULL OF PEOPLEYOU HAVE THIS IN YOUR HANDOUTS@username – A person’s screen name begins with an @ symbol Follower – Someone who follows your account, and will receive your tweets. Note: Following is a one-way activity. Tweet – a message or post on Twitter (140 characters, maximum)Retweet (RT) – When someone receives a tweet they like, they can sent it to the people who follow them by “retweeting” it. Reply – By typing an @ symbol in front of someone’s name, that tweet will be flagged for the recipient, but will be available for anyone to see. The equivalent of shouting to a person across a crowded room. DirectMessage(DM) – A tweet that only goes to one person. The equivalent of whispering it to them.Tweetup – A networking event where people who meet on Twitter meet in real life.
Note: Female; And age skews older than most expectTransition: Now that we know who’s on Twitter, let’s find out how to reach them
FOR A STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO HOW TO DO IT WITH SCREENSHOTS, SEE THE HANDOUTCreate an account. Create a custom background. Search to find people to follow.Start engaging
CHOOSE A NAMEShort nameName of your company (SEO)What your company doesMemorable
Shows your brandAlso put a picture in your profile, and not your logo
Twitter search for keywords geographically (“capitol hill”, “seattle”, “video rental”, “coffee”, “cinema”)Wefollow provides a list of the most influential people in the city of Seattle. #1 is the convention and visitors bureau SeattleMaven. If you take care of her, she’ll take care of you.
Follow the Read My Lips handout Listen - What are people saying about you, your competitors, your industry? Immerse - Where are these conversations happening? What do you want them to say about you? Participate - Become a member of the community and join the conversations. Engage - Start new discussions. Create a support network to enable brand evangelists.
Giveaway – Goal is awareness; not trying to get more affiliation with the brandCoupon code – Good for resultsMedia pitch – Media are all over Twitter
Example: T-Mobile, Hotel MaxPeople love free stuff on TwitterJust offer a product or service for free and the word will spread virallyEngage audiences by asking a question
People like helping friends save money; they’ll spread the word for youPeople who use them often wouldn’t be the ones who purchaseTrackable metrics
This is more about using Twitter for PRIf you have a new product or service, or want to tie your business into a trend, you can talk to media directly on Twitter They expect it, they’re okay with it, and most of the time, they love it.Local media from KOMO, KIRO, KING and Q13 all have their twitter handles on their websites, and most of them tweet regularly.Example: Bill Wixey, cancer
Questions or SUCCESS STORIES?
WHO HERE HAS HEARD OF FACEBOOK?WHO HAS A PERSONAL FACEBOOK PROFILE?WHO HAS A BUSINESS PAGE?
Social networking site primarily used for personal connections with family, friends and social groupAllows companies/brands to connect with customers and enthusiasts.Features allow picture sharing, messaging, status updates and event coordination.NEWS FEED/STATUS UPDATES = DOMINANT FEATURE (like a Tweet)Some quick statistics that might blow your mind:Of the online population, 47 percent visit Facebook daily – (TV: 55%; Radio: 37%; Newspapers: 22%) Average user has 130 friends on the site Average user sends 8 friend requests per month Average user spends more than 55 minutes per day on Facebook Average user clicks the Like button on 9 pieces of content each month Average user writes 25 comments on Facebook content each month Average user becomes a fan of 4 Pages each month Average user is invited to 3 events per month Average user is a member of 13 groupsBUT MOST IMPORTANTLY More than 1.5 million local businesses have active Pages on Facebook More than 20 million people become fans of Pages each day Pages have created more than 5.3 billion fans
A little bit of a misnomer. Skews female.The top thirdmost affluent Americans are 25% more likely to use Facebook than the bottomthird.The 55+ age group is growing the fastest: 923% growth in the last year.
Facebook is more regulated than Twitter. Contests and sweepstakes are regulated and limited. You can buy advertising and the advertising can be extremely targeted. Facebook is more about keeping current customers in-the-know, and turning them into evangelists, than about finding new customers.It’s about deeper-level connections1. Post news: To keep fans interested and your page relevant, link to related news, include fun facts in status updates, post events, start conversations about a local charity. Even if it is not directly related to you, your continued activity keeps you a part of the fan’s status updates. EX. Kind of like the quarterly newsletter you get from your mortgage agent or insurance company, that is half fluff and half evangelism.2. Share videos, images, graphics. Show your food. Show your store. Show your products. Show yourself, if you are the product.2. To start conversations, ask questions. This can lead to helpful feedback and also get fans to talk about you. (fan’s conversations appear on THEIR friends status updates = more company coverage)EX. Spun a local designer specializing in organic womens wear, started a conversation by asking their fans if there should be more skirts or dresses. That simple status update, generated 36 cfomments. Not only does this give great feedback, now fans are anticipating the new summer line.
They post regularly, at least once a day; posting news about what they offer, as well as industry news, trends and celebrity hair stylesThey share photos of their tools and their spaceThey ask their fans what they think about music, styles, and recommendations on products they should offerResult: 1,200 local fans; many of whom are repeat customers that don’t just think about the salon when they need a trim.
Questions or SUCCESS STORIES?
Now we’ve seen what the kids are up to. Now it’s time to check in on mom and pop. Just kidding.WHO HERE HAS A LINKEDIN PROFILE?
What is LinkedIn?It’s the equivalent of an online resume for yourself and for your business.Has your personal profile and your business’s profileWhy is it great?Minimal time commitmentMinimal upkeepSEOMakes your business findableCompetitive researchAdds legitimacy – My wife used it to find her doctor, her dentist and her dog trainer. “the world’s largest audience of affluent, influential professionals.”
54% male, 46% femaleMore affluent than the WSJ, Businessweek, Forbes
An example of a good business profile includes:LogoDescriptionUse of keywordsCompany statistics and informationLinks to employee profilesNews/blog posts/awards
An example of a good personal profile includes…PictureCurrent/pastRecommendationsWebsite linksConnections
Solicit recommendationsThe links page allows you to customize the hypertextOf course, you want people to see your faceLinkedIn Answers allow you to submit your own questions and answer those that others ask, such as questions about your industry. People will often ask tax questions, technical questions, in-depth art questions
You’d want people to say these things about you and your business, right?
Going in and changing the link text from “My Blog” to “Social Matt, social media blog” will increase the SEO of your LinkedIn profile substantially
Seems pretty straightforward. A picture is engaging, and on your business page, a
If you want to add some “street cred” to your LinkedIn profile, you can become an “expert” in your field by logging onto LinkedIn Answers and answering questions that have been posed by the community about your area of expertise.If your answer is selected by the asker as the best answer that’s submitted, you earn points toward becoming an expert, which adds value to your profile, and by extension, your business’s profile.
Questions or SUCCESS STORIES?
The program essentially turns your social life into a video game using your cell phone’s GPS chip. You “check in” when you visit a bar, restaurant, gym, supermarket, or pretty much any destination you might encounter in a city, and earn points for doing so. Visit a location more than anyone else playing and you become its “mayor,” a contested title that is lost just as easily as it is awarded. Different activities also unlock themed “badges,” virtual distinctions like “Local: You’ve been at the same place 3x in one week!” or “Photogenic: You found three places with a photobooth!” Were that not enough, the app also notifies your friends of your whereabouts, and lets users add comments and tips to places they visit. Anything from “nice views at dusk” at a park, to “I threw up here last night” at a bar.
The mayor is one of your most loyal customers. Odds are, you know him or her.
Through Foursqure, find out:who's visitinghow oftenfor how longwhere they're coming fromwhere they're going nextYou have to partner with Foursquare to make this happen, so go to www.foursquare.com/businesses
Questions or SUCCESS STORIES?
HOW MANY OF YOU USE YELP?HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE UNLOCKED YOUR BUSINESS’S PROFILE?
Yelp is an online city guide, featuring user created reviewsCompany purpose: “To connect people with great local businesses.”Why it is great:Popular: In March 2010, 31 million people visited yelpCompany profile is free: this includes company and owner summary, contact and hour information, pics, and special offer and event postingGreat SEO: sometimes the yelp page appears before the company page on google search
Unlock business profilePost events to business yelp page in addition to listingCommunicate with reviewers with graciousnessSpecial offersTrack page viewersAdd detaield business descriptionsRecommend other businessesOutreach to Elites
There are more than 70 million blogs on the Internet.The whole spectrumBlogs range from a person writing to an audience of five friends and family to a consumer technology blog with a monthly readership of five million.Corporate blogs Corporate blogs are a way for a company to have a voice onlineAlso helps engage with consumers by allowing them to leave commentsMore and more companies are blogging. Should yours? (HANDOUT)
Most people come up and say, “We need a blog. How can we do it?” Should ask “DO we need a blog? Are we staffed to update it? Who will monitor the comments and respond to them? How will we keep our content fresh? Read the handout. If you’re doing it for the right reasons, and you have the resources, then go for it. It takes a time commitment, but the payoff can be great
The question we get most, once people have decided to blog is: Blogger or Wordpress?
ONCE YOU’VE DECIDED TO BLOG…Take time to respond to the commentsOpen a dialog with readersBe patient as you gain a followingBe honest about who is postingRemember that your company is accountable for everything said on the blog
Ask the questions
You have to partner with Foursquare to make this happen, so go to www.foursquare.com/businesses
You have to partner with Foursquare to make this happen, so go to www.foursquare.com/businesses
You have to partner with Foursquare to make this happen, so go to www.foursquare.com/businesses
There is a time commitment, but it can be what you want it to be. The real danger is getting addictedListen first; hear what your customers and competitors are saying before you jump into conversationsNot each of these will be worthwhile for you. Pick based on where your customers are and the resources you have availableThese are the keys to social media. If you ignore them, they’ll come back to bite you.