@mmangen – Twitter Goddess from Mark Gehrke on Vimeo.
Debra Gehrke talks with Michelle Mangen about Twitter, the #newend hashtag and how to use Twitter to follow along with the NEW END event during the day and after the event.
Getting More from Twitter Starts with Asking for Help from Mark Gehrke on Vimeo.
Twitter is a great networking platform to connect with your audience. Twitter can be valuable to build stronger relationships with your customers and your brand. Twitter’s benefits really come through continued use and building a relevant network. When you first start using Twitter is can be very confusing. I believe this is why many people quit the service before they see the benefits.
In this video Debra Gehrke, of Mandala Life Media, talks with Kim Sippola ( @ATWairport ) about how having help with Twitter from Michelle Mangen ( @mmangen ) made a big difference to her understanding of how to make best use of the platform for her.
A valuable thing you can do when you’re first getting started on Twitter is find a knowledge user that can explain it to you. If you have someone show you how to make sense of the terms, technology and practices you can get a huge jump start. Tweeting can be an enjoyable and valuable experience for you with a little support.
Our Recommendations:
Want a jump start with Twitter? We can help.
If you’ve been using Twitter and would like to expand your Twitter strategy we love to help. For small businesses using Twitter, getting clear about what you want to accomplish is essential. Evaluate your strategy up front and remember that strategy to action is a continual cycle. Your strategy needs continual attention if you want to see results.
Outagamie Co. Airport Uses Social Media from Mark Gehrke on Vimeo.
Outagamie Co. Airport Uses Social Media from Mark Gehrke on Vimeo.
Debra Gehrke talks with Kim Sippola, Outagamie Co. Airport Marketing Manager, about how the airport uses Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to connect with travelers and the community. Interview conducted at Renew Summit 2009 presented by New North and NEW END. We love to help support the local North Eastern Wisconsin social media business community. Social media is still very new for most businesses and navigating these ever changing waters can be challenging. We hope this video and the story we shared recently about how Grassroots A Salon is blogging to get their story out to the community will give you a little inspiration to jump in and participate. And if you have more questions we are happy to help.
One of the big questions about social media is, What is the Return on Investment? This video shares examples of many great positive returns from social media. With a bit of creativity and innovation you too can see a positive ROI from social media.
We believe social media tools can be hugely empowering for small business owners. Social media done well, forges stronger connections and better feedback with the potential for greater understanding of what your business really means in the minds and hearts of your customers. How valuable is a better understand your customers? What if your passionate fans would be empowered to become your best sales people?
Social media is not just about marketing and sales. Social tools can be used for:
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Nice little story about how the communication and connection tools of social media are giving anyone the opportunity to share their business with the world and tap into valuable feedback from their community.
Even if you think your customers are not on Twitter there are still benefits to sharing your business story through the service.
Laura Fitton ( @pistachio ) has some great additional off platform benefits from Twittering. These are great ideas and show that even if you’re in a business that doesn’t have a lot of customers on Twitter you can still help your business through Twitter.
1. SEO – Findability on the web. Twitter is a great service to help you move up the search results. Use your business name as your Twitter user name to help manage your search rankings. Bring people to your website with an active Twitter presence.
2. Research – Twitter is a great way to listen to what people are saying on the web about your field and research new ideas and directions. You can ask questions and develop feedback loops for pretty much anything.
3. Content Generation Engine – setup a resource on your home page and use it to share and give your web site visitors a place to see what’s people are talking about. Twitter can be a quick way to keep your customers in the loop for events and all kinds of things. The quick communication platform is a tool with myriad possibilities.
4. Word of Mouth Pass-a-Long – Your promotions can spread beyond Twitter, even to your off – line customers if you create deals worth spreading. A few followers could potentially share your promotion with their non twittering friends, spreading your good deals and positive word of mouth.
5. PR Gravity – sharing on Twitter can connect you to media professionals looking for great stories. If you share great content you can become a resource for your local media professionals. Most local media professionals are on Twitter. You can often by-pass the press release and communicate directly with journalists through Twitter.
Are you building your personal brand to help grow your business?
@tommytrc does a great job explaining why it’s important to start building a personal brand. Tommy has some great advice to help you get started creating the brand of you.
How does having a strong personal brand translate to building a successful business? If people can relate to you on a personal level they will be more likely to want to do business with you.
It’s all about relationships and I agree with Tommy that relationships are coming back. Personal branding and social media is fundamentally about relationships. With the wonderful tools available today it’s easier than ever to start building your extended relationships. You can grow a personal brand that will continue to evolve and grow as your talents and interests grow. Your personal brand is a reflection of your passions, gifts and talents.
When your building a personal brand it’s important that the story you’re sharing is real and authentic.
@tommytrc shares 3 great simple tips to starting a personal brand.
1. Start slow, start small and build your personal brand
2. Just do it. Jump in
3. Be Yourself
These are great tips from Tommy. There is much wisdom in remembering these basic ideas.
Adding my thoughts on Tommy’s 3 Steps:
- Start Slow! If you’re new to building your personal brand there is no way you can know everything you need to know about all the various ways to build your brand. Start small and start simply with one or 2 things. Once you’re comfortable then add more to your personal branding mix. Personal branding takes time and is a long term proposition, actually it can be a lifetime activity.
- Just Do It! I talk to people all the time that are overwhelmed with all the possible ways they can use technology to build their brand. Honestly, you have to jump in and find what works best for you. The beauty of the tools and technologies available today is that most of them can be adapted to fit you. Remember, you are build the brand of you. You need to DO social media the best way for you.
- Be Yourself! It is impossible to build a personal brand without being yourself. As Tommy mentions people want you. Put yourself into everything you share and do. Be consistently in alignment with who you truly are. Be the real you.
Please share your thoughts about personal branding in the comments.
Thanks to @tommytrc for sharing with us your great example of the personal brand you’re building daily.
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Social media is not a fad and the Social Media Revolution video explains why.
Knowing how to market your business is one of the most important parts of building any business.
Here 10 tips for creating a cost-effective business marketing plan.
1. Know Yourself
Selling is about trust, and those with the best, most trustworthy stories win over customers. Businesses need to clearly articulate the reasons potential buyers should do business with them.
You must define who you are and live your brand!
2. Know Your Stuff
Confused consumers don’t buy, so businesses need to clarify the reasons why consumers would want to buy from them. Listening to the needs of the consumer is critical. Be knowledgeable about how your service or product can fill those needs, and you can discover how you can be helpful and connect with customers.
Know your product / service inside and out so you can focus on adapting to the needs of your customer.
3. Don’t Go to Market Without a Plan
4. Develop a Compelling Message
A successful message is one that is unique, meaningful, and credible; that addresses consumers’ emotions and intellect; and that decisively sells a company’s demonstrated results.
This is the time to be direct and promote the benefits to your customer. Testimonials are a great way to support a compelling message.
5. If You’ve Got the Knowledge and Experience Share It
Let consumers know about your training and certifications. Customers what to know they are doing business with a pro. Take the opportunity and let consumers know that you know your stuff.
6. Fish Where the Fish Are
Be where your customers are. Know who they are and where they hang out. From local networks, to international social networking, know your audience and what they value.
7. Choose the Tactics That are Right for Your Audience
Must-have items in a successful marketing plan:
Blogging, Facebook and Twitter are wonderful way to connect with customers.
8. Get Quality Marketing Support
Hire a pro to help you develop your company’s marketing plan, strategies and tactics.
9. Speak the Truth
Trust is so important in today’s business world. Tell the truth, be consistent and be in your integrity all the time. It’s important to believe in what you do, you spend most of your life doing it. You deserve be true to yourself and everything you do.
10. Raise the Tide
Help your industry grow. Be helpful and supportive within your industry. When consumers understand the benefits of your industry everyone benefits. You can chose to be a leader that shares with your industry. Sharing your knowledge and stories can grow your entire market.
Do you have any additional marketing strategies you would like to share? Add your voice to our comments.
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