Social Media Outreach

Leveraging social to go beyond blogging

Zach Jory

April 3, 2014

Blogging is just the start• Blogging is a great way to share expertise• “Sharing” expertise is an even better way

• Share what you blog on other social networks. Don’t stop once you’ve written the blog. Promote yourself and help others find your work and engage with you!

Image credit: Flick user C4 Chaos

Want your social media experience to actually be social?Social media is a powerful tool for making connections, showcasing expertise, and building influence….

But you actually have to be social!

This is social This is not

Follow these steps to get social

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ListenSuccessful social interactions start with listening.

The value of social listening is twofold.

1.Understanding the conversation• Social channels are filled with experts. There is always someone

who would love to call out your lack of understanding.

2.Taking appropriate action based on understanding• Once you understand the conversation, and the tone, your

contributions are much more likely to be noticed and engaged with.

Leverage listening tools

• Use Twitter Hashtags• Set up a stream in Hootsuite or search in Twitter

• Tagboard• Search by hashtag across all networks

• Google Alerts• Latest web results, news, blogs, etc. by keywords - delivered to your inbox

• Google Blog Search• Same as Google search, but only yields blog results

• LinkedIn groups• Join relevant LinkedIn groups and

monitor the conversation

Join the conversation• Share your expertise, but don’t forget to listen and respond to others• Be authentic. Authenticity matters in social!

• People want to connect with people• Brand accounts already exist, you don’t need to be another one of

those

Image credit: Flick user Andrea Stenberg

Share content pertinent to your audience

• Chances are you have a good idea of who is in your network• Be mindful of them and share content you think they would find

valuable

Image credit: Flickr user thinkmedialabs

Share content pertinent to the platform• Make sure what you’re sharing is appropriate for the channel

• Links do well on Twitter, and don’t forget hashtags• Google+ and Facebook posts should almost always include an image• Articles are well received on LinkedIn, SlideShares do especially well

Image credit: Flick user Lee Traupel

Share outside of your network

• Conversing with your colleagues is fantastic, but even better is conversing with a wider network that will grow your opportunities

• Leverage listening tools to get into organic conversations and reach outside of your networks

• Sharing expertise in 3rd party communities is a great way to be recognized as an expert

Or you can just buy this shirt

Image credit: Flick user jgarber

Pay attention to how your content is responded to

• Monitor whether or not what you share is being responded to/engaged with• If it is being engaged with, great. Keep at it• If not, try new things. Social media is meant to create a conversation

Participate in social happenings

• Take advantage of Twitter chats, Hangouts, interactive webcasts, etc.• These are great ways to identify peers with common interests and extend

your network

Acknowledge those who engage with you

• Continue a conversation whenever you can• Even favoriting a tweet or liking a post shows you are engaged with

your audience

Keep listening

• It’s easy to get complacent and stop listening once you become a “social guru”• Make sure you keep responding to others and engaging their ideas

Image credit: Flick user jeffrendick

Take advantage of all the opportunities• Social media opens many avenues that would otherwise be out of

reach.• You’ll be amazed by how social media allows you to become known

as an expert, exchange ideas with peers, and identify new opportunities in your career and personal life