FtcWindsor

For small business the use of social media can be quite complex. This is because as a small business owner you might be using twitter and blogging and you might have a Facebook account you use to look chat to friends. However, a client might contact you on Facebook or even just examine your profile to assess whether they want to do business with you or not. The point being by can not specify who can examine public social media forums (i.e. you can not segregate the audiences). So, an few important questions need to be answered by small business to manage there public social media image.

Are all social media mediums going to be used to promote the firm? If not which ones will be and which ones will not be? If one medium is to be used for personal use only lets say Facebook, there several actions that need to be taken, firstly privacy settings need to be adjusted accordingly; secondly, you might want to use a persona; and thirdly you should use a different email address for business and personal accounts (as people can search by email for you).

Alternatively if you decide all social media should promote your business you need to ensure that you are full aware that each and every word or statement can be seen publicly. Thus your personal actions are public and can be accessed by business associates AND CAN have an adverse or positive effect on your business.

David McWilliams is an Irish economist who has had a blog for about 2 years (note it might be longer). He also uses twitter and on twitter he has 13,560 followers. He uses twitter to announce 1) new material on which is placed on his blog and 2) his products e.g. his book, his play called the outsiders and the Kilkenomics festival etc. David Mcwilliams also asked followers to come and have a chat in the pub at Kilkenomics festival. He also has a Facebook account and a LinkedIn account.

So, what has does David McWilliams do right?

Well first of all he has a profile online and offline – that is not to say that you have to have both to make social media work for you. It is just that it works for him. The advantage of an offline profile means that people who have an interest in his offline work and social media seek him out online.

Secondly, he values his followers in several ways. 1) by not over advertising, 2) by providing good content and 3) by acknowledging the value of his followers. There are probably more reasons….

So, what value does David McWilliams get out of his followers?

Obviously, there is a knock on effects of purchases, but there are also value in the comments people provide. It also helps his offline profile, which in turn helps his work portfolio etc.

This week I am late on my blog because I have been trying to find a tweet scheduler. Preferable one that integrates twitter, LinkedIn, WordPress etc. However, I have found this is a harder task than expected. I wanted an application rather than a website.

So I reviewed a few of the many!

FutureTweets: Lets you schedule tweets. And even lets you write backwards but it seems not much else. Overall, a good basic application.

Tweetdeck: Allows you to schedule tweets and monitor your direct messages etc. However, my old Mac meant that it was extremely slow. So, quickly opted out.

Twirl: I had been using twirl, which allows cross posting (ability to post on multiple multimedia sites) etc and monitor things like direct messages. The latest version also allows you to schedule tweets

Twuffer: Allows you to schedule tweets.

I ended up trying Hootsuite because it allows me to schedule tweets, however it won’t let me post on word press yet as I have my on web address. But they have promised that I will get it in the future. So here goes the test!

Last week I promised more on branding but I am sorry to say I am about to let you down. Sorry one and all! So let me explain why I have gone off to another topic. This week I was reading about why consumers use social media by Strategy1, I tweeted the link. Now whilst they had valid points, I was a little flumixed as to why none of the reasons related to social rewards.

I think we often forget as business people that consumers are not just motivated by buying (of course we would like to believe it, but in reality it is simply not true). Consumers are motivated by many other needs, one of which is the need for social interaction and within that entertainment. So, if we ask the question again maybe we will have a different answer.

So why do your consumers use social media?

• To get information as stated by Strategy1 (including getting recommendations)
• To warn others as stated by Strategy1 (It should be added that positive feedback is also given) – thus they might generally want to share
• To interact with others (even to antagonise others)
• To be entertained or informed or gain knowledge
• To be seen as superior to others (e.g. Foursqures mayor ships)
• To get offers as stated by Strategy1
• To feel like they belong to a group

Whilst this list is not exhaustive, it can be seen that the social element is quite strong not just a side product. So, when thing of our social media strategies we need to remember to focus on the social elements NOT just the sell!