How could YOU be using Social Media?
October 6, 2009 by Rebekah King · Leave a Comment
Here at ReBiz Works we’re all aflutter at today’s article in the LA Times (read it here) on small business use of social media. If you are wondering how your biz could be using social media, take a look:
They are not the only small business to miss the potential that social media has to build sales, says Rebekah King, principal of ReBiz Works in Irvine, a one-person shop that specializes in social media marketing and training.
Social media sites, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, and online communication tools, such as Twitter and the content-update utility Ping.fm, could raise TNT’s profile, introduce it to new customers and provide an easy way to keep in front of its growing community. Also, content on social media sites is counted in search-engine results and can move a business higher in result rankings.
To be effective, a business needs a plan.
“Any social-media program has to have a focus, a purpose,” says King, who works with small businesses and advertising agencies. “They want to book more business. Social media can show people who they are and help drive potential customers to their website.”
Check out the article on latimes.com for the full step-by-step program we outlined for TNT Dunk Squad
Twitter Social Networking: Does It Really Work?
June 13, 2009 by Rebekah King · Leave a Comment
Being a social media consultant I get asked just about every question you can imagine (and many I never would have imagined) by people I meet at events and speaking gigs. One of the top questions is “does twitter social networking actually work?” which is often followed by a version of “how?”. Of course I have my success stories – how I typically get approached by one new client a week from my facebook/twitter/linkedIn marketing programs, how I now oversee two of the largest organizations for their respective industries in southern california – via LinkedIn… things like this – but what often seals the deal for people is learning what other companies both big and small are doing that works. As you read this, hopefully you can start to see what you might be doing that would work for you and your business…
What Dell’s doing on Twitter is one of my favorite stories, and is explained best by a Stefanie N, a dell employee herself: Read more
Marketing ‘Speak’ De-Mystified
May 26, 2009 by Rebekah King · 1 Comment
Some friends and I have a running joke that marketers just make up words & phrases to confuse customers into hiring them. It’s time for some definitions …and before you get upset with the simplicity of the definitions – I’m not trying to be Websters here, just a light FAQ… and hopefully a little dose of reality in this crowded and cloudy marketing verbiage:
Social Media = any kind of media that creates a social or community experience for the audience. Facebook lets people do this by sharing photos and videos and news with their friends.
LinkedIn Spammer? Use LinkedIn without being a jerk
May 23, 2009 by Rebekah King · 1 Comment
People ask me quite often what the etiquette is of using LinkedIn, from connecting to old co-workers, to reaching out to new job openings, or connecting with potential buyers. I have to preface this all by saying that I am a big believer in relationship building vs. connection building. I think a connection means about as much as a name in the phone book, but a relationship is knowing someone on a personal level and having the opportunity to enrich each others lives/businesses. Having 3k plus connections is fine and all, but what good does this do you when you don’t know the people you’re connected to? For many it’s adding names to their database. While there are no hard and fast rules, there are some guidelines I can give you from what I see people doing that you may or may not want to emulate yourself.
1. YOU MIGHT BE A SPAMMER IF: you compulsively send strangers connection requests and not jut the people you met once, but the folks you’ve never ever met… Read more
Social Media Market Research
May 4, 2009 by Rebekah King · Leave a Comment
Not every kind of marketing works for every type of business, so often before beginning a marketing program, our clients will want to conduct market research inside of the social media marketplace.
Our tools allow us to eavesdrop on public conversations inside of twitter, myspace, facebook, and linkedIN, bringing back information like:
- Who are your ideal clients?
- What are your ideal clients talking about?
- Where do they go to have these questions answered?
- How do they want to learn about your product?
And with this information we can then develop a marketing program tailored for your business, to provide the greatest return in the most effective way we can. Often this process will not only provide research, but also sales leads from within the social media environment.
Read a Case Study of Sales Results from Social Media via Twitter
Social Media Marketing by Rebiz Works
May 4, 2009 by Rebekah King · Leave a Comment
The Unique Element: What makes social media particularly valuable is its ability to spread the word about a product, service, trend, or style. When marketing in social media platforms we work to present information or products in a way that encourages people to share it with their friends. A photographer can post pictures of their clients and “tag” their client in the photos, the client’s friends see who has been “tagged” in the photos and can share this with their friends too.
The Definition: Social media is simply a buzz word for any type of media that has a social component – sharing, posting, commenting, messaging, discussing etc. These are social practices you would be more inclined to see at a group gathering, or coffee shop, than you would traditionally have seen online. The media used in these communities can be primarily text, video, or photos, but the most engaging are typically using all three.
The Tools: When someone talks about social media we often think about tools like Myspace, Facebook, and LinkedIN, but there are over 80,000 different social media platforms around the world. Ning, Xing, Bebo and Orkut or a few examples of different social media tools. Typically it’s easier to get started on the more common applications, but the most strategic marketing plans focus on reaching out to the niche communities that best match our client’s target audience.
EXAMPLE: Tony Columbini @ Egge Machine & Speed Shop doesn’t do much on Facebook/Myspace/LinkedIn, but is extremely active in car enthusiast communities. They’ve seen a direct relationship between sales and this online community involvement.
The Business: Many social media platforms make their money from display ads on different parts of the site, or by charging people for advanced access or communication ability. One of the basic tenants of social media is the most simple membership be free, so many people can join – to create the community and bring enough people together to keep the site engaging to the audience.
EXAMPLE: LinkedIN charges for advanced communication, like InMail or number of introduction requests. Twitter is often a topic of conversation, because to date the founders do not have a revenue model for the tool, leading many to believe it may not last forever.
Loic Le Meur (founder of Seesmic) Talks About Product Marketing Online
April 29, 2009 by Rebekah King · Leave a Comment
After catching his talk at the Inbound Marketing Summit 2009 on launching a product in social media, I was lucky enough to get Loic alone for a quick interview. Watch as he gives you 3 tips on launching in the new media age, and I mis-pronounce everything.
You can find Loic Le Meur at www.twitter.com/loic and his product at www.seesmic.com
Social Networking: All Screwed Up
April 24, 2009 by Rebekah King · Leave a Comment
I don’t know about you, but I’m not on my social networking sites 24/7. it’s more like 2/7, because really – I’ve got a business to run! Some people may find this a little contradictory, as I run a social media marketing company, yet we’re always telling people to find balance between the two. If you aren’t working to keep your business growing and gaining clients, then all the social media marketing in the world won’t do you any good.
But, I digress. My tangent is distracting us all for the point of today’s rant.
Pointless, cheezy, salesy, uninvited emails via facebook.
I recently received this from someone in one of my groups:
When Britains Got Talent start Susan Boyle took the stage in front of the three judges, it was all the audience could do to stop themselves from laughing. In front of them stood a 47 year old woman with an unpolished appearance who was certain to humiliate herself in front of millions. Then she did something extraordinary. She sang “I Dreamed a Dream” from the West End musical Les Misérables so beautifully that she received a standing ovation and is the talk of the UK. Her audition which has since been put on Youtube has received tens of millions of views. Read more
Tracking Twitter: Big Brands Using Social Media
March 29, 2009 by Rebekah King · 1 Comment
I just found a great new tool for keeping tabs on the brands using social media, it’s called Tracking Twitter and you can check it out at http://trackingtwitter.com/brands. Why would you want to though?
1. Look for your contemporaries
I get asked nearly every day “why would I want to use twitter?” which is kind of silly, because no one person can tell someone they’ve just met what social media tool will appropriately connect them to their consumer. I don’t know you – I don’t know what you sell and I don’t know how you sell it. I don’t know the things that will kill you online: like being lazy, or having terrible customer service (when your csr hangs up on them you can bet they’ll twitter you about it), or having a terrible product. These are all things my clients and I talk about, and find the best course of action. Of course you probably want to see what your competition, kindred companies, and clients are doing – so a tool like Tracking Twitter makes that very doable. I am sure I’ll be using it to watch brands grow in their strategy, and see what their results are once these profiles have been active long enough to gain measureable results.
2. Learn what works Read more
Social Media and Customer Loyalty: The Skinny
January 30, 2009 by Rebekah King · Leave a Comment
Typically I frown on simply ‘reposting’ articles, but this one is so good it’s my exception to the rule this month:
Deepening Customer Loyalty Through Social Media by Aaron Strout
When was the last time you said to yourself: “Wow, I’d recommend this product or service to a friend”? Within the last month? Six months? If you have to think about this question, you’ve already made my point. Over the last 50 years, outsourced manufacturing, poor customer service and an overall commoditization of products and services have served to erode consumers’ affections for most brands.
While the idea of diminished customer loyalty may be disheartening–after all, if customers aren’t loyal, they don’t rave about your brand to other customers and they certainly can’t be tricked into forking over a greater share of their wallet–all hope is not lost. In fact, smart brands like Dell, Ford and Sears are starting to see increases in brand affinity as a result of their social endeavors. Read more
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