Spend Less Time on Social Media and Still Get Results

Many people get overwhelmed by spending so much time on social media that it takes away from other important tasks each day. Here I share some of my tips on how to spend less than an hour a day on social media. The key is to focus on the most important aspects of social media: Observe. Participate. Grow.

First, spend 15 minutes a day observing your network. See what others in your professional network are saying. You will often find useful information just by looking at updates within your network. Plus this will give you some opportunities to engage communication with those in your current network.

Next, spend 15-20 minutes participating in your social media network by updating your status or adding information to your network. Impossible you say—not if you know how to take shortcuts! If you haven’t yet check out Ping.fm. This is a wonderful application that will automatically post your updates to all of your social network sites at once-yes all at once. Meaning you type it once and it sends out your update to Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. Here are some other things to keep in mind when you consider what you are going to post. It is never a good idea to send out meaningless posts or pointless messages-this may make people skip your meaningful posts later. Always try to post substantial information on your network that will actually be worth reading. It is also a good idea to separate your professional and personal contacts on your networks—that way you segment the information appropriately to each group.

Finally, spend 15 minutes a day developing new relationships. This will help you to continue growing your network each day. This can be accomplished through participation on social networks, through reading new blogs and commenting, or participating in group discussions, etc.

P.S. Don’t forget it is okay to say NO to requests for access through your networks-you don’t have to accept every application request people send you-especially when you use your social media network professionally—this can end up being a real drain on your time if you let it.

For more tips on social media marketing check out this article Starting a Social Media Marketing Campaign.

Starting a Social Media Campaign: Basic Ideas for Social Media Marketing Strategy

Here are a few social media ideas designed for those companies who are just beginning to engage with social media marketing. This initial strategy will help show some benefits of social media marketing services while limiting the risk involved.

1. Internal Communication - One of the often overlooked social media advantages is that they can often be used privately for internal communication. You can create a password protected workspace for collaborating, a corporate blog, a private intranet or you could start with some online training.
2. Web Conferencing- Another great option would be to utilize professional web conferencing. This is a wonderful way to engage in social media. The next time you have a planned conference that would normally require travel utilize a free trail from a web conference company online to try it out. This is a great social media tool and as a bonus, it is a great way to save money on travel expenses!
3. Content Sharing- One of the concepts becoming a huge force in the future of social media marketing is the idea of content curation. First, you simply find content that already exists and then share it in some sort of useful format, such as a blog. The greatest advantage with this activity is that at first it requires no content creation. It also helps brands to ease into social media simply by finding what is already out there and bringing it together in a useful way. This is a great way to share relevant information with your audience without the pressure of coming up with new content (just be sure to observe copyrights and always post sources).
4. Industry Tracking- Though it is common to hear that you should be listening online, what is often disregarded is how you should be focusing on keywords for the industry that you are in. See what words people are using to talk about your industry online and you can learn how you might be able to make your business or brand more shareable with your social media marketing efforts. Twitter is a great tool to use for searching keyword content for your industry—simply enter your industry as the search term and see what posts come up—you can easily scan the posts to see what words people are commonly using within posts that are relevant to your industry. This will help you better target your market with your social media strategy.
5. YouTube Channel - Many businesses or brands have videos that were produced for some reason, maybe for sales training or as advertising. Posting these videos onto YouTube is an easy way to share content that you already have. It is cost effective and gets you started with the process of uploading, tagging and sharing your content online. If you are worried about possible comments on your channel simply disable the commenting option-instead offer a link on the page for private feedback if you wish.
   
   As an internet marketing specialist and social media marketing consultant I have developed this initial social media strategy to assist those companies just beginning to use social media and internet marketing. If you are interested in social media but are not sure where to start with the technology involved a virtual assistant may be a great option to get you started with using social media marketing.

Capturing More Consumers with Social Media Marketing

In the world of Social Media Marketing the obvious goal for most business owners is to capture new customers. In order to do that there are certain things any successful plan should include. First things first, you should always direct new customers to your social media pages online-this means adding the information to your current marketing materials, corporate website, blogs and any other media outlets you use. One way to increase participation is to offer an incentive or promotion associated with the act of becoming your friend, fan, or follower. Capture current customers by offering those who have just made a purchase a discount for the next purchase if they become a fan, etc. Another great way to promote your business is to add sharing options within your website—for example offer a share this with your friend’s link after a purchase-this can easily be set up using applications that are already available with many social network sites, like Facebook.

After you have users signed up to follow you, you need to consistently engage them with new content, exclusive offers or useful information they can’t get anywhere else. The best way to develop your social media network is to consistently offer them quality content. Another key aspect is to offer exclusive promotions within your social media network-this makes it more valuable to your consumer and creates customer loyalty.

Engage your audience—most consumers actually like to participate in conversations about products or services they use—utilize polls and allow commenting on your posts—you might be surprised by what you learn from your consume. As an added perk you are actually getting market research without the hefty price tag.

Follow these simple steps to help capture more consumers with your social media marketing campaigns.