Online Marketing for Local Business
Posts tagged social media
Finding Your Customers On Social Networks
15 years
by admin
in Uncategorized
For most organizations, the conversation of “why” or “should” we do social media has shifted to “where” and “how” do we do social media?
A major component of answering those questions effectively is understanding in which social platforms your customers are already connected and concentrated, because there really is no benefit in beating your customers or clients to the punch this time! Companies need to follow…not lead, their customers across the social networking web.
Maybe your boss thinks none of your customers are on Facebook, but you think they are. How can you prove it?
Or maybe you’re a small-business owner, and know many of your clients or customers are socially connected, but aren’t sure how to find them?
Here are 4 ways to find out where your customers are in social media:
#1: Hire Someone to Tell You
Rapleaf and Flowtown are just two services that reside in the emerging field called “social anthropology”. You provide them with the list of all your customer email addresseses, and they figure out who among your customers is on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media networks; their likes, and other important details.
#2: Analyze Email Behavior
Have you added links to all your social accounts in your emails? Have you added the ability for your email recipients to share content on Facebook, Twitter, Digg and elsewhere? If you send email routinely, you need to add these functions to your email immediately.
Most quality email service providers give you the option of easily adding sharing tools, and you can then run a report showing which of your subscribers clicked your Twitter link and/or shared content on Facebook.
Viola! Now you know that person is a member and is active on those social sites.
#3: Just Ask!
One of the most obvious ways of finding out where your customers are hanging out and using social media is also the simplest, but unfortunately the least utilized. Just ask them.
If you have a “Contact Us” form, an online lead generation form, an email newsletter signup or a shopping cart, why are you still only asking for name, address and email address?
Add data collection fields for Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, at minimum.
#4: Your Friends at Hat Trick Associates
If you have email addresses for your customers, we here at HTA can actual use a little trick that takes advantage of the system functionality of one of the top email providers.
Without giving away the whole secret, let us tell you that with just your email list, we can tell you within the hour every single one of them who are on both Facebook and Twitter!
If you’d like to learn more, or just how we do it, all you need to do is Contact Us!
Sowing the Seeds…..Grow Your Email List
15 years
by admin
in Uncategorized
Email newsletters and other marketing is quite cost-effective, timely and very flexible. But these benefits will do you no good if you don’t have anyone to communicate with in the first place!
How can you grow your email list(s)?
The first step of course is utilizing all the addresses you already have. This means the friends, colleagues and other business associates who reside in your email contact list(s). You should also go through that pile of business cards you’ve been collecting since 1996* in your top drawer.
Next, ask all of your contacts on social media sites to join your list as well. Facebook fan pages, Twitter feeds, LinkedIn accounts, etc. Offer them something of value if they join your list. A special discount or other giveaway could work well.
Lastly, continue to build from there. Make it a point to ask for email addresses from new customers, members, clients, participants or donors. If you provide price quotes as part of your business, add these folks as well. Periodically re-contact your social network, since most people continually add new folks to their networks.
And for those with a large customer base already, create ways to add the email information for all the people you do business with. An “Enter to Win a Cool Prize” contest, with an email address needed “to notify the winner” could work well.
Just remember, your database of email contacts is one of your most valuable resources – don’t abuse it! Provide interesting content, thoughtful commentary, and value… like special discounts, coupons or exclusive information, and you shouldn’t have any problems.
*Don’t actually include email addresses from 1996! (if they even still function, that is…) There is no “law” written in granite regarding your old contacts and using their email addresses. But one rule of thumb is: if you’ve done business or spoken with the contact within the last 2 years, they’re fair game for your new list. But every business, and list, is different!
You Don't Need a Fortune to Compete Online
15 years
by admin
in Uncategorized
I was kinda disappointed by the ads on the Super Bowl this year. The game itself was at least competitive and fairly entertaining (for a hockey fan), but nothing really stood out as a “great” commercial. I’ve always been amazed that companies can spend so many millions of dollars on just 30 seconds of airtime. Yes, lots of people are watching. (Are they paying attention…or drinking & eating? Well, the TV is on at least.) But I questioned if there were better ways to spend the dough.
Most of the companies that buy ad time during the big game are huge consumer goods-type companies, the kind that can afford to do all sorts of “real” promotion during the year…and then tack on a big SB ad for good measure. For the other 99% of businesses, there are far more effective options for spending a million advertising dollars.
The great news is that you don’t need a huge advertising budget to spend on marketing or PR to share your ideas or your offerings anymore. The Internet has leveled the playing field for most. With great content, some well placed SEO dollars, a great viral video or some effective email list and/or social network building, small companies can compete with much larger ones.
Of course, writing the content takes both your time and expertise, or hiring a competent writer to help out. But many of the ways that content is shared online these days are completely free, like most social networks or blogging platforms.
And sure, email marketing isn’t free… but the marginal costs to reach additional people once a campaign has been created are almost nothing. So who wins or loses depends more on having a good online communications strategy, and less on having the biggest checkbook. For someone who likes rooting for the underdog, I like that.