subject: Social Media Networking – How it can Benefit your Business [print this page] Social Media Networking How it can Benefit your Business
Creating a social media personality for your business is a key element when trying to create and maintain your own brand. Social media is one way of giving your company its own voice, and by giving it this voice it allows interaction with the customer. But what are these platforms? How can they be used? What are the advantages of doing so?
Social Media Platforms
There are a range of social and business media sites LinkedIn and Twitter to name two of the most well known. But these types of sites are only as useful as you make them. Just creating an account and then sitting back waiting for interest will not work. It is important to understand how to use them and the benefits they can bring.
Twitter
Twitter has been described as instant messaging made available to the public and can be used as a constant stream of information and communication. It is important to create a profile so that other businesses and customers can see who you are and what you can offer. As the tweets appear in real time, it allows the company to have an online presence throughout the day. Following the right people is the key to Twitter. Presenting useful and resourceful information to your followers is also a good idea.
LinkedIn
Just setting up a profile is not enough; connect with business colleagues and inspect their contacts to see whether you could do business. Join groups; contribute to discussions; post content and get noticed. Share contacts: people you think could work together; it's just the same as face to face networking! Plus you must make use of the recommendation feature: request recommendations and make them where deserved; doing business these days is all about reading about other people's experiences!
Blogs
Creating your own blog is a good way to show off your expertise and that you have an opinion on the latest news and trends. Sites such as Blogger and Wordpress allow for blogs to be set up for free and with little effort. They are a low cost web presence, and are quick and relatively easy to upload. They allow a business to share its ideas with a wide audience, which is especially advantageous for consultants and knowledge workers.
Taking these simple steps can increase your online presence with minimal effort and expense. A good quality web design team can even manage social media sites for you, meaning they do all the hard work. These social media teams will be trained in how to maximise publicity and create a personalised online presence.
Ollie Ford & Co can manage all of your social media accounts. Call them today for a free quote or to discuss how they can help you get the best out of social media.
