In short, you’ll see more posts from friends that have spurred lively debates in the comments. And you’ll see fewer ‘cooking videos’ from brands and publications. Prioritizing what your friends and family share is part of an effort by Facebook to help people spend time on the site in what it thinks is a more meaningful way.
The changes are reflecting other moves by the online giants that will make things harder for businesses using Search Engine Optinisation to get their messages out there online.
One poster put this on LinkedIn, summarising the choices for businesses.
And finally, good ‘ole fashioned paid advertising done right – Ads with punchy copy selling real products that solve real problems.
Where to start? Learn from people who are doing it successfully. Keep coming up with new and creative ideas. Refine and clarify your message– Until you build a real following.
And partly because those selling it made it out to be some kind of mystic art – usually the sure sign of a con.
Whatever we think of the constant Google rule changes and the latest move from Facebook, you can be pretty sure that those who rely on decent content to develop their network will be better off than those who have given money to SEO optimisation firms.
about online marketing, but do you know what it is, or how you can use it in your business?
Many companies are now using it to promote their products and services, and to help build a stronger business. It’s not just a matter of ‘keeping up with the Jones’s’ – social media marketing is here to stay and is a sure way to reach your target audience.
This type of marketing uses the various social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, combined with websites, blogs and email-marketing to promote companies and their products or services. It’s a great way to find more potential customers and to keep in contact with them. The better you know what they are looking for and the more you keep in contact, the larger your following of people who trust you and your company. This therefore creates more customers, and ones who will most likely give you repeat service.
What is blogging? Should I be doing it?
Blogs can also be used to give information that potential customers are looking for, whether they be small tutorials or information on how to find something. If you keep your viewers’ interest and give them something for free, like useful information, they will be more likely to buy your products or services. Having a blog and publicising it on your site will keep your customers interested.If you don’t know how to do this,
Not at all – e-mailers done correctly can be one of the most effective forms of online marketing. The trick is not to “spam” people by sending them shotgun-style – content needs to be relevant and worth reading. With help, your business can be sending regular, professional emails and your customers will mostly welcome knowing what you are up to and how they can benefit by doing business with you. This is not a high-cost option and you don’t have to employ someone full time to do it.
Besides establishing a trusting relationship with your customers and potential customers, there are a host of other benefits to this type of marketing. One of the biggest benefits is establishing awareness for your brand. Since so many people frequent social media sites, you will be able to spread your company’s name and brand around to a lot of people all at once. Keep it interesting and light-hearted to help attract more people. Make sure you are keeping your information up-to-date and keeping in contact with your viewers to keep your reputation high.
Using social media also allows you to check out your competition and see what they are doing to attract new customers. You can see what kind of deals they are offering, and therefore offer your customers something better.
Since you can keep in touch with your audience on a regular basis through these sites, it is the perfect opportunity to be pitching your products or services in a more down to earth way. Involve people by asking them questions about what they would like to see you carry or for improvements, but remember that you should be ready for any constructive criticism, and it’s wise not to start an argument with a customer, whether you agree with their comments or not.
By combining all the aspects of the different social sites, you can stay very involved in every area of your business. Blogging about things that you are knowledgeable in will let people know that you are an expert in that particular area and you can also connect with other professionals through the various networks, even across the globe. Plus, you can re-connect with old friends and family members who are out-of-town and build your contacts even more this way. There is no other source like the social media sites where you can easily do this in business.
No, you don’t – but a combination of social networks mixed with a judicious mix of blogging can benefit every business now. It may be obvious – a hairdressing business is bound to do well on Facebook, where many of its clients are – but sometimes there are more subtle uses of social networks that
you may need expert help
of what other businesses are doing might not be a bad idea.
If you run a business and don’t have time, staffing or budget to consider online marketing, you could be missing a trick. Pick up the phone and call +44 (0)7846 910284 or email
to see how you can get help at a price to suit your budget.
“Geoff and I first came together when we supported him on the re-build of ICI plc’s web site. It was great to find someone who knew so much about the business that the job we needed to do was done quicker than the norm -and this went on well after the launch. When an opportunity arose for us to start virtually from scratch on Wolseley’s plc site – we found that same level of knowledge even though he had only just joined the team! Geoff is a calm, thorough 24/7 professional and we are working on finding the next project where we can team together.”
