1. Everything You Need to Know About Social Media for Your Business Get in the Game Social Success Strategies SOCI@L JUMPSTART

2. Social Media has revolutionized the way we com- municate with each other and how we interact with our customers and prospects. Today, people are more connected and more conversational than ever before and at the same time have a higher distrust of traditional advertising while depending more on recommendations from their friends to help make buying decisions. By leveraging the power of Social Media you will be able to connect with more people, more pros- pects, tell your story in a more relevant and mean- ingful way, deliver better customer service, and ultimately grow your sales. Social Media enables you to have an unprecedent- ed level of communication with your customers and your prospects and their friends. As you embrace this communication and use it to give great service and contribute value to their lives, customers will love you more, talk about you more, and help you grow. Social Media may not be the answer to everything, but for reaching new prospects and delivering great customer service, Social Media will help in amazing ways. This book gives you Solid Strategies for Social Suc- cess online. With solid how-to tips, training, and techniques, youll be ready to take your business to the next level. Heres the Deal SOCI@LJUMPSTART 3. What Is It? Social Media is actually two elements, Social and Media. The Social part is the communication itselfthe connection with your customers and prospects. The Media part is the technologythe social networks online where conversations are taking place. Social Media is not a strategy or a tactic, although both have their place in marketing. It is a channel for conversation and communication, which is difficult to organize and impossible to control. This is a place to have real, genuine interactions with actual customers. On the other hand, Social Media can indeed be marketing because it can help you introduce your business to more people. At the end of the day though, if it does not grow your business, its not worth doing (and growing your business starts with growing your customer service). Social Media is much more than another mar- keting channel. Its PR, customer service, collab- oration, thought leadership, networking, loyalty, brand building, and customer acquisition, all held together by the glue of community and connec- tion. Your customers can easily snap a photo with their phone, post it to Facebook with their comments, send out a Tweet to their followers and comment on Yelp all in real time, from your location. 4. Advertising was the name of the old system. It was based on interruption marketing. The idea was to essentially yell your message from rooftops and hope for the best. Those with the loudest voice maybe would win. That broadcast model of advertising is broken. Those with the loudest voices no longer win, they just annoy most people. We have been bombarded with so many messages that traditional advertising just doesnt work as well as it used to. People know how to ignore ads with DVRs, caller ID, and spam filters. Paper junk mail goes right to the recycle bin. The advertising newspaper, radio, and television once delivered are losing the battle to iPads, iTunes, satellite, and YouTube. The old advertising model sheltered companies from unhappy customers. If you treated a custom- er poorly, you may have lost some business, but your public image remained unchanged. The reality today is this: 87% of people trust peer recommendations while only 14% trust advertis- ing. People understand that real ads cost big mon- ey and must generate profits, so there is an inher- ent distrust of traditional brand advertising. The jig is up. Out with the Old 5. Marketing is the name of the new system. It is based on permission. The idea is that youll grow your business faster by talking to the specific peo- ple interested in what you do and already looking for what you offer. Youre just helping them decide when to buy (now) and from whom (you). In the new marketing model, everything is avail- able everywhere. Its not enough to tell people to buy; youve got to tell them why. You have to solve a problem, provide a solution and satisfy a need. The new model is about more than just being online, having a website that takes orders, putting up a Follow us on Facebook button, and being found on Google. These are great technologies, but they are still just one-way channels unless you participate. The new marketing model shelters consumers from untrustworthy companies. Whether a cus- tomer is treated well or poorly, that customer can easily tell thousands of people about their experi- ence through social networks. Companies can no longer hide behind the image created by ad agen- cies. Now your image is created by the customers. Now marketing decisions are made based on relationships, peer reviews, word-of -mouth, and personal recommendations. This kind of infor- mation flows through two-way channels where people talk and listen at the same time. If you want customers to trust and choose you, you have to engage in the conversations. In with the New 6. With Social Media, you have the opportunity to move your marketing from a one-way broadcast of your message to a two-way conversation with the people who matter to you most: your customers. Whatever your customers are saying, you can be listening so youll know about it right away and be able to respond appropriately and immediately. What if you could turn your best customers into Brand Ambassadors who not only bought from you, enjoyed the experience, and bought again, but also told their friends and suggested they do the same? Used correctly and consistently, Social Media will make this happen. What if your best customers told you what else they would buy if you sold it? They can. They will. But you have to ask and listen when they answer. Todays marketing is all about social, search, vid- eo, and email. Its about being available, providing valuable information, and earning the right to a sale. The benefit of this new style is that while earning that sale, you have likely developed a loyal customer, and possibly a Brand Ambassador. The Social Benefits Facebook Founded 2004 900 Million Members 800 Million Active Users People use Facebook to stay connected to friends and family, to discover whats going on in the world and to share and express what matters to them. Businesses use Facebook to connect with their customers and prospects and their friends. 7. Business resistance to Social Media is futile and silly. Your customers are there, your competitors are there, and your prospects are there. Are you? Your customers have the ability to snap a photo with their smart phone, post it with their thoughts to Facebook, send out a Tweet to their followers, and write a review on Yelpall in real time, from your location. This can be very beneficial if you take care of them, and very damaging if you do not. And it will happen whether or not you are resisting getting into the game. Your business is already being talked about in Social Media. Are you part of the conversation? People with questions now go to the social net- works for answers. When they get there, will you be waiting, ready and available, approachable and accessible? People looking for answers go to search the inter- net looking for experts. You have the experience that makes you an expert so make sure you get found! Resistance Is Futile Twitter Founded 2006 550 Million Users 200 Million Monthly Visits 500,000 New Accounts a Day At the heart of Twitter are small bursts of information called tweets. Each tweet is 140 characters long but dont let the size fool you, you can dis- cover a lot in a little space. Twitter is a real time information network that connects you to the latest stories, ideas, opin- ions and news about what you find interesting. Youll find peo- ple on twitter sharing informa- tion you find compelling its a conversation you can easily join. 8. Great companies make mistakes, so do brilliant entrepreneurs you might too. Most people understand this, including your cus- tomers. Its a question of how you will respond to those mistakes when they happen that will de- termine how your customers, prospects and even employees respond. Because of the way the Internet, Smart Phones, and Social Media have revolutionized communi- cation, its no longer possible to sweep mistakes under the rug and hope they go away. Mistakes will be reported in detail immediately, the report will last forever, and will be nearly im- possible to erase. Welcome to the age of complete transparency and full disclosure. This makes it critical that you are able to respond immediate- ly and respond well if (when) something goes wrong. The people who are likely to talk online about a misadventure with your brand typically also talk even more about the positive way you fixed it. You have to be part of the conversation - or at least lis- tening to it - in order to do the right thing. You may have a dealing with a single customer online and it mat not seem like such a big deal until you realize that there are many people listen- ing and watching to see if you do the right thing. Its OK to Make Mistakes YouTube Established 2005 800 Million Monthly Visits 2 Billion Views a Day YouTube is a video sharing website which allows billions of people to discover, watch, share and post originally creat- ed videos. With over 72 Hours of video up- loaded every minute, YouTube provides a forum for people to connect, inform and inspire others across the globe and acts as a distribution platform for original content creators and advertisers large and small. 9. In many respects Social Media is like a giant party: there are many conversations going on and differ- ent groups of people having them. Find the ones who are talking about what youre interested in, join them, and exchange ideas. Social Media is an online conversation that is open to anyone with an Internet connection and an opinion. The conversation is real, complex, organ- ic, and human. Social Media is a dialogue, not a monologue. It is real people talking to real people. Dont hide behind your brand; get in front of it. This is where you can humanize your brand and put a face on your company. Ask questions. Give responses. Social Media is free, real, transparent, and authen- tic. For a company, engaging in Social Media (not using it) means discovering the conver- sation, participating in it, contributing to it, and ultimately influencing it. The big rule in Business Social Media is; Be Real. Talk to people like they are people who matter because they do. This Is the Social Part Linked In Founded 2003 150 Million Registered Users 90 Million Mthly Visitors 2 New Members a Second 2 Million Company Pages LinkedIn is the worlds largest professional network with over 140 million members and grow- ing rapidly. LinkedIn connects you to your trusted contacts and helps you exchange knowledge, ideas and opportunities with a broad- er network of professionals. LinkedIn profiles show at the top of search results letting you control the first impression people get when searching for you online. 10. Facebook is about friends and family. Facebook is where so many people are, its where you need to be, as a brand or company, to be found when they go looking. As customers join your business page you have the opportunity to interact with them, and by exten- sion, become known to their friends. LinkedIn is about business. Its the new Rolodex and the modern resume. You will find groups built around what you do. Join them and participate in the discussion when you have something valuable to add. Twitter is text messaging for adults. It is a giant river of information. As you grow more comfort- able with it, you will learn how to search for rele- vant people and topics. YouTube is modern-day television. It is the #2 search engine after Google. Its not replacing cable, but supplementing it. People want to watch the Internet not read it and YouTube is where they can watch you and your company in a personal and intimate way, if you wish. This Is the Media Part Google + Established 2011 170 Million Registered Users 60 Million Monthly Visi- tors Google+ brings together a number of networking ele- ments in one place; Circles are groups of friends, Hangouts are multi-person video chats and Google continues to add features geared to organizing friendship information. With over 100 million users, the addition of Brand pages, and high search-ability, Google+ is a key player in the online marketing ecosystem and an important element of your busi- ness marketing strategy. 11. 1 - Listen: Pay attention to whats being said. 2 - Converse: Join in and be a part of the conversation. 3 - Contribute: Add content and be of value. 4 - Connect: Engage people and add them to your list. 5 - Convert: Win the customer and earn the sale. Five Stages of Social Media Foursquare Founded 2009 20 Million Registered Users 2 Billion Check-ins at over 750,000 Businesses Foursquare is a location based social networking website for mobile devices, a free app that helps people make the most of where they are. People use Foursquare to share the places they visit and offer tips to their friends about whats good - or a good deal. Foursquare offers businesses - ranging from local merchants to global brands - a unique way to connect with their customers and prospects. 12. You have to be aware of the conversation before you can participate in it. Learn the ropes. As with anything else, there is a certain amount of lingo and behavior unique to the Social Networks and conversations. Its not rocket science, and you will catch on in no time. Listen by setting Google Alerts for your company name, keywords, and phrases. Search Twitter by keywords and hashtags, and follow everybody who has something to say about your interests. Check out Social Mention; its like Google Alerts, but specific to Social Media. Search Google, Twitter, Social Mention and others for your inter- ests. Then search for mentions about your business and yourself! Set up your profiles and pages. This is the online version of a land grab. Youre not able to do every- thing at once but set up accounts with the same user names and fill out profiles wherever you can. This gives you a consistent identity across the vari- ous social networks, so theyre there when needed. Simply add a photo or logo, bio or company description, and contact information. Build your brands presence. Its important to build consistent outposts - the profiles and pages that will help people find you. Listen Flickr and Picasa Flickr and Picasa are the larg- est of several online photo sharing sites all designed to make posting, hosting and sharing photos and short vid- eos easier. Images on these major sites are highly indexed by the search engines (Flickr is owned by Yahoo, Picasa by Google) so post photos of your busi- ness, you and your employees doing a great job and happy customers enjoying them- selves. 13. Once youve gotten your feet wet by listening and setting up profiles on various sites, its time to join in on the conversation. This doesnt mean over-sharing or posting or tweeting and hoping for the best. Follow conver- sations, listen, weigh in, agree or disagree, make additional points, and provide new information or a different perspective. If someone asks a question, take a minute to answer it or redirect the question to someone more knowledgeable. Do not let all the tools and technology get in your way; there isnt anything radically new in Social Media. You are merely talking with customers and prospects about their needs and wants while explaining what you do, are passionate about, and how it relates to them and the world at large. One way of getting into the conversation is by sharing other peoples content. Re-posting, re-tweeting, or liking what others share is the Internets equivalent of applause. Its also easy to reply to what people contribute with simple thanks and acknowledgement. Post with regularity to show you care and are in the game. Converse Instagram Founded 2011 60 Million Registered Users Adding a Million New Users Weekly Instagram is a fun and quirky way to share your life with friends (or your business with customers) through a series of pictures. Snap a photo with your phone, add a filter to give it a little style and share instantly and easily. Instagram allows your custom- ers to experience moments in your companys life, in real time, through photos - and they can share those photos with their friends, increasing your reach and influence. 14. As you grow comfortable in social media, you will want to contribute more to the conversation, to share what you know. The 80/20 rule certainly applies here (80% of the response will come from 20% of your effort and at least 80% of your con- tent should be about something other than you). When you post, tweet and share, try to make it about others. Find great ideas from other people and share them with your network. (always acknowledge the source, of course!) This can be as simple as hitting the share button on Facebook, forwarding a tweet that resonates with you, or posting a link to an article, news story, blog post, or YouTube video that is interest- ing and valuable. Do you have some news to share about your com- pany? Did you just write a brilliant blog post or put up an interesting YouTube video? Share it but make sure it is well balanced with other peoples content. Me-Me-Me is still bad manners! It is nice to be recognized, and feels good to have information you share validated by your peers, so do it for others! Contribute BLOG In the simplest terms, a blog is like a website that you frequent- ly update. Your blog is your home on the Internet, where you can easily share whats happening with your company. There are mil- lions and millions of blogs in every shape, size and form. A website tends to be a static, electronic brochure that is dif- ficult to update unless you can write code or have the IT guy on speed dial. Blogs are easily updated and with a little prac- tice have a very small learning curve. Blog posts tend to be short updates but can also be photos with descriptive captions or even videos. 15. Social Media is all about making real connections. You are forming a bond with people. Let them know who you are, what makes you tick, why you do what you do and learn the same about them. These connections are very valuable. Theres no telling where they could lead, and you never know who someone might know. Even if someone doesnt need your services at the moment, they might recommend you to their friends, and its with these introductions that your network real- ly begins to flourish and your influence begins to spread. WARNING! Connections can be lost. To truly engage people and connect for the long term, you MUST add them to your email subscriber list, newsletter list, or contact databaseany storage place outside of the networks. Remember: your Facebook page (and every one of its friends) belongs to Facebook, not you. Your Twitter connections belong to Twitter. If for some reason your account is deleted, suspended or terminated then poof goodbye connections. If you are providing valuable information in the form of ideas, training, tips, techniques, inspira- tion, or motivationthen people are willing to join your list or subscribe to what youre offering and youll build the connection! Connect Yelp Founded 2004 71 Million Users 40 Million Monthly Visits Over 27 Million Reviews YYelp is an online urban city guide that helps people find cool places to eat, shop, drink, relax and play based on the informed opinions of a vibrant and informed community of locals in the know. Yelp is a fun and easy way to find, review and talk about whats great - and not so great in your world. Youll find a wide range of people on Yelp including locals in the know, visitors who want to get an insiders view and anyone try- ing to find a great local business. 16. True engagement means making a connection that puts you in control of your network. The simplest, clearest way to do this is invite people to join your email list. By signing up, they are saying, Yes, send me more. Understand that when they give you their contact information, its a form of digital currency and you owe them something in exchange. Provide something valuable: a newsletter, a webinar, a first crack at special deals, a video, a downloadable white paper, a catalog, or a compli- mentary eBook. Do not abuse this relationship. When you mail to your list, make sure the content is created with one thing in mind: whats in it for THEM? Its okay to have an agenda, but people dont care about what you say until they know that you actually care about them. Give, give, give and you will eventual- ly build a strong, loyal following who consider you a reliable and valuable expert. Some of these connections will become your customers, and some wont. Treat them all with the same respect. Be honest about what you offer and what you get in return. Give clear calls to action, space out your offers, and make it easy to buy from you. There is no longer a difference between your connections and your customers. Welcome to the new world. It is awesome! Convert Pinterest Founded 2010 12 Million Users Pinterest is a virtual pin board that allows users to create and manage theme based image collections such as Events, In- terests, Hobbies and more. Pin- terests mission is to connect everyone in the world through the things they find interesting via a global platform of inspira- tion and idea sharing. Pinterest allows users to share (or re-pin) images of things that interest them, with millions of new pins added every week, Pinterest is connecting people all over the world based on shared tastes and interests. 17. You have to create your strategy. What do you want to accomplish by putting this time and effort into Social Media? Time is your most valuable resource and this requires an investment of time. What are your goals? Drive more traffic to your blog? Have a successful Facebook page? Increase your Twitter followers? Double your email list? Generate awareness? Become a more recognized expert? Increase awareness and build your brand? Deliver extraordinary service? Based on the strategies and goals youre develop- ing, what are the various ways you can move toward success? What are the Social Media tools and platforms that will best support you? If you create powerful reasons to invest energy into Social Media and have a goal in mind, then youll do it, stick to it and even enjoy it! People ask about the ROI of Social Media can you measure it? The ROI of Social Media is that you still get to be in business in 5 years. As you get into it, youll discover there are many more quantifiable ways to measure response from Social Media than traditional advertising. Do it, stick to it and you will enjoy the results. Develop Your Strategy Wordpress and Tumblr Wordpress and Tumblr are two of several popular blogging platforms or tools that make it simple to create a blog and get it online in no time at all. Goo- gles Blogger offers another simple (and highly searchable) drag and drop blogging tool. The technology allows you to play around with a blog to get the feel for it, easily making changes (deletions or addi- tions) as it becomes more 18. In the world of Social Media, never forget your party manners and always remember; somebody (or everybody) is listening. You meet people, chat with them, and ask ques- tions. Then you join the discussion more often, becoming part of the community. As you do this, you begin to add value to the community. You begin to ask questions and trust the responses. This leads to answering questions and helping oth- ers. It becomes natural, nice, fun, and easy to do. Unlike a party, Social Media is not limited by time, space, or geography. Other people can easily listen and join in from anywhere, if you give them a good reason. Your community grows, and your friends bring their friends, growing your commu- nity even more. The most party-like aspect about Social Media is that its fun. In the beginning it might feel like a lot to figure out and keep up with, but dont worry, it will get easier! You will come to enjoy this new world, especially as you watch your business grow! Remember: Youre at a Party. 19. Copyright 2007-2012 All rights reserved. Soci@l, Soci@lJumpstart and SocialJumpstart are trademarks and tradenames exclusively owned by Moose & Wallaby Consulting, Inc. and Social Jumpstart, Inc. All other marks are owned by the respective third parties. www.SocialJumpstart.com www.Facebook.com/SocialJumpstart Twitter: @SocialJumpstart This book has been created from some of our extraordi- nary seminar and workshop material as part of the 2012 Video Training Series. If youd like to stay in touch and up to date with the latest version, join us at SOCI@L JUMPSTART Social Success Strategies Social Media for Business Written by Mike Wolpert and Jordan Louis, Produced and Designed by Peter Ivory