Building Your Business with Social Media Tools & Traditional PR Skills

Connect the Social Media Dots

Many small businesses owners are jumping onto the social media band wagon. If you are one of them, hopefully you have done your research and determined which social media sites make the most sense for your business (primarily based on where your customers or clients are spending their time). If you are already active, see below for a tip that can help you connect with clients and get business.

Use Social Networking to help Clients Connect the Dots for your Small Business

I have a tip, especially for solopreneurs who provide services such as business and life coaches, authors, independent PR and marketing pros, virtual assistants, mompreneurs, bloggers who are in business, and others. Don’t think of each social media site you participate in as a stand-alone site. Connect your various profiles to help your audience, and potential clients/customers, connect the social media dots and form a strong image of who you, as a business owner are.

What I mean is, if you are active on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and also have a blog, you should consider connecting these services to one another to make it easy for your existing and potential clients to find out more about who you are and what you do. Each site offers your audience a different perspective on you and your business. For example, if I answer a question on LinkedIn, and someone finds value in my answer, they may connect with me via LinkedIn. Once they do, they can read my most recent blog posts right there on LinkedIn (I use an app to pull the full post onto my profile). If they again like what they read, they may click through to the blog directly, and read what I have to say in other posts. From my blog they can see links to my Twitter and Facebook pages, if those are sites they use, I’ve made it easy to connect with me.

Blogs and Websites

A good website enhances and expands on the information about your business and skills that may be on LinkedIn. A well-written blog provides even more opportunities to showcase your expertise. A static LinkedIn page shows where you have been, and some of what you have accomplished. A blog gives you a forum for sharing your knowledge in a way that helps your customers learn something, do something better, and understand something new, especially if you business provides a service. If you provide a product, then you can use a blog to tell them about ways it can help them, about trends in the industry, about what features they might want to see, and it can be interactive. Once you get a blog going, and if you are active in social media, you will begin to get comments. Be sure to read them and comment back. A dialogue with someone on your blog can really make you stand out among your competitors. Your image in their minds becomes stronger, you helped them connect the dots in a very strong way. People involved in blogging and social media love to share a good story, blog post or positive customer service interaction. They might just help to spread the word about you.

On my blog, I have profile “badges” or small clickable buttons leading to my LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook profiles, and on each site, I link over to the others.  These are the next “dots” that folks can use to connect who you are, and what you have to offer. For a blog or website, you can set up what’s called a profile badge for each site, copy the code, and then add it to your blog or website. Or you can use a service like retaggr or the WordPress plugin Follow-Me.  Ideally, you are active on all of the pages you link to, and are providing different, but related, content on each site that helps this hypothetical client prospect connect the dots and fill in an image of your business, to get a further feel for who you are and what your expertise is.

LinkedIn

A LinkedIn profile at it’s basics provides an online work history or resume, so someone can get a feel for your background. It can be much more (but that is fodder for another post). So fill it out completely, and be sure to add links to all of the sites where you are active. Also, be sure to update your status at least a few times a week. As a colleague Irene Koehler noted in a recent Twitter #SmallBizChat that I hosted, don’t forget that Google ranks LinkedIn profiles fairly high in their index for your name. So why not put on your best face and show that you are actively engaged by updating your status. Better yet, ask or answer a few questions on the site. It gives you another way to showcase your expertise or knowledge on a subject.

Facebook

Facebook and Twitter allow you to interact with people in a public way (there are private options to communicate on each site too). Both sites allow you to share links to interesting online articles and resources; to provide value to your clients and prospects, and your friends. People tend to begin using Facebook to connect with family and friends, but solopreners and small business owners often begin to see it’s value for connecting  their business and their clients who use Facebook. When you reach this point, try setting up a Facebook Fan Page or a Facebook Group, once you have defined how one or the other fits into your larger strategy for providing value to your clients.

Twitter

Twitter can be another dot in creating the image of your business. Twitter is great for connecting with anyone who shares an interest in things you are interested in. It is often a mix of business and personal information, if you only post links to your site, your connections there won’t grow quickly. For my POV on Using Twitter, click here. It can take getting used to, but has been very successful for many small businesses, as it is opt-in. If individuals like your info, they “follow you,” or click a button and then see your messages on their page. Since all you give out in a Twitter profile is an image, short bio, and a website or blog link (no phone numbers, no email addresses), it is easier than other sites to connect with people you have never met, nor worked with before.

For me, Twitter is a way to source links to great content (blog posts, news articles, software and tools, breaking news and industry info) that is of interest to me and my audience. It also allows me to easily interact with people asking and answering questions. Following someone’s Twitter stream or tweets  (as the flow of short 140 character messages arecalled) gives you insights into an individual. How they use twitter (once they get the hang of things – I don’t judge anyone by their first few weeks of activity) can tell you a bit about how they are in business. Do they just send out notices about their own stuff? Do they interact with others in a positive manner, do the provide value, do they show a sense of humor, do they help others, do they answer questions asked of them. It is kind of difficult to lie about who you are in 140 character bits over time. Your personality shows, and that can be a good thing for helping clients connect the dots about you and your business.

How Do You Connect the Social Media Dots?

Let me, and my readers, know how you connect the social media dots for your clients, customers, or audiences. Feel free to ask questions about ways you can connect with your clients, or let me know how I can help you connect the PR and Social Media Dots for your business or organization.

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To follow or not to follow, that is one of many questions that arise when people first set up an account on Twitter. Perhaps an even greater question is who should I follow on Twitter?

At the request of digital journalist Nicole Brewer, a reporter for www.CBS3.com and  CWPhilly57 TV here in Philadelphia, I have creted a list of suggested people to follow on Twitter. This post will accompany a TV broadcast and web story she is writing about using Twitter in May 2009. It’s just a a place to start.

I know that “who to follow” is a highly subjective topic, so I am including a diverse list of people, both local and from further afield. I’m trying to include people who are active and engage or connect with others, and those who tweet about various interests, hobbies and cool things to do, not necessarily big brands or businesses.

I’ve tried to select those who will be friendly and will hopefully interact with you on Twitter as you check it out. I’ve tried to pick the type of folks who, at a party, will come up and say hi, but not the type who will slap their business card in your hands before they even shake your hand.

You can always ask me questions on Twitter too – I’m @CathyWebSavvyPR. To see one POV on how and what to tweet about click here. For very basic tips on how to set up your page and tweet click here.

A few Music Peeps to follow on Twitter:

WaltRibeiro / Walt Ribeiro I’m The Internet’s Music Teacher and NYC Organizer for Digg. I Salsa Dance, write Orchestra Music, and can solve a Rubiks Cube. You Rock (and roll) [Note: Walt used to live in Philly, but is now in NYC. He helped me select a few music scene peeps on Twitter.] [NYC/Philly roots]

boggia Purveyor of YesterPop & builder of Brand New Classic Rock since 2001.

SpintoBand Local Philly indie rock band suggested by @waltribeiro

matthyzer / Matt Hyzer Professional piano player, music arranger, church organist, jazz player

Mom Bloggers to follow on Twitter:

Cecilyk / Cecily Blogger * Writer * Mom * Sober * Fat Chick * Wife * Liberal * Philly Girl [Note: She was featured Nicole Brewer's CW Philly TV broadcast]

classymommy MBA turned SAHM of 2. Founder/Editor Classy Mommy, Social Media Consultant, Runner, Mom Expert, Brand Advocate & Consultant [SAHM = Stay at Home Mom]

DealSeekingMom / Tara KuczykowskiCFO, Mediator, Chef, Chauffeur, Fashionista, Cheerleader, Physician, Psychiatrist, aka MOM (of 5).

momadvice I am founder of MomAdvice.com and momma to two beautiful kids.

Multi-talented local Philadelphia peeps to check out or follow on Twitter:

KimWood / Kim Wood I’m just me ! Mom, Blogger, Real Estate Agent, Runner, Pescetarian talking about Life in Pennsylvania. I want *connection*.

LDpodcast / Whitney HoffmanAttorney/podcaster/Podcamp Foundation Director of Operations/ Pediatric Logistics Specialist [Note: Whitney is responsible for getting me into Twitter - I'd been checking it out, but jumped in after attending Whitney's Podcamp Philly event)

gloriabell / Gloria Bell People Connector, Social Media Enthusiast, Life Lover, Friend, Hugger, Organizer, Thoughts/Musings at http://asseenthroughmyeyes.wordpress.com/

tweetupphilly / Tweet Up Philly!Putting the SOCIAL in Social Media in Philly (tweets by @waltpsu and @jenz036)

Twitter Peeps in Philly Food and Culture:

PhilaFoodie Adventures in food and wine in Philadelphia. Restaurant critic for Philly’s City Paper. Lawyer.

avenueofthearts Philadelphia premier entertainment and cultural district.

visitphilly Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, as tweeted by Caroline

greenphilly / TU-GreenFreeman, Emily, and Joe: Temple University seniors analyzing How Green Philadelphia is {Note: new to Twitter – but might be of interest]

Folks who are knowledgeable about the larger realm of social media and blogging

BethHarte / Beth HartePrincipal of HMC. Marketing. PR. Social Media. Adjunct Prof. History addict. Avid reader. Art/Culture buff. Fan of beer, cowgirl boots and brilliance [Note: She was featured Nicole Brewer's CW Philly TV broadcast]

chrisbrogan / Chris Brogan President, New Marketing Labs, a social media agency and education company. Email: blog at chrisbrogan dot com [Note: VERY useful info - not local, but I met him at PodCamp Philly]

copyblogger / Brian Clark I create new media content for fun and profit. [Note: Not local, but great info]

problogger / Darren Rowse I blog about twitter and tweet about blogging. Sometimes I blog about tweeting about blogging and tweet about blogging about twitter. [Note: he also created a blog called www.Twittips.com, also not local]

mashable / Pete Cashmore The hottest Twitter news, Twitter tips and Twitter help. Plus, the best social media links around! . [Note: Not local, but great info]

IreneKoehler / Irene Koehler How can I help you leverage social media and networking for your business or career? Coach, speaker; plus tips on my site. Happy to answer questions. {Note whe is hosing a free, Twitter 101 webinar 5/28/09]

And me – CathyWebSavvyPR / Cathy Larkin Naturally curious, I love sharing cool stuff. A Social Media / PR Guide 4 small biz, museums & authors who do cool things linkedin.com/in/cathylarkin

Small Business and Freelance info:

smallbiztrends / Anita Campbell CEO, Small Business Trends, an online small biz community reaching over 250,000 each month. Small business success … delivered daily CA [Note: Not local]

debbieweil / Debbie Weil I translate all this stuff for the non-digerati; author of THE CORPORATE BLOGGING BOOK; background photo: Tim rock climbing in CA [Note: Not local]

FreelanceFolder FreelanceFolder is a blog and community for freelancers and web-workers [Disclosure: We have worked together on a few projects]

alexknowshtml / Alex HillmanCommunity Architect, Catalyst for Hire. I’m an expert in misadventures. I co-founded IndyHall, a community coworking space in Philadelphia.

smallbizlady / Melinda Emerson Melinda Emerson is an entrepreneur, professional speaker, and small business coach-expertise includes small business start-up, leadership and work/life balance. [Philly. Disclosure: We co-host a chat @SmallBizChat on Twitter about small business together]

Some of these people I have never met except on Twitter, some folks I have met in person after ‘meeting’ them and interacting with them on Twitter, and others that were recommended to me by my Twitter followers. Please add your suggestions below too!

Please feel free to add twitter peeps I missed in the comments section of the post; and please include why we should follow them. Oh, and I encourage people to include their twitter usernames (or handles as they are called) at the end of your comment – because it is all about building community and engaging with each other.

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