3 Simple Steps for Generating Leads with Social Media

3 Simple Steps for Generating Leads with Social Media

When business owners think of social media, they usually think of the process of building a brand image, and not so much of generating leads. But that’s where they are wrong. Social media can be a huge addition to your overall lead generation strategy, that is if you know how to use it to its fullest potential.

However, before you begin generating leads through social media, it is important to position yourself as an authority figure in your line of work. You can achieve this through your website, blog, your newsletter and by establishing good rapport with your customers. That means being responsive and attentive to your customers’ needs.

Once you’ve mastered that, it’s time to harness the power of social media for lead generation. Below are three basic ways to get started:

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#1: Join relevant Twitter conversations
Twitter can be a great source of new leads once you start searching. There are thousands of people who are interested in what you have to offer, you just have to find them. Luckily for you, Twitter has made it easy to explore conversation threads already in progress. Here’s how you can search Twitter conversation threads and dive deeper into your search for leads. In addition, you can also create your own threads and generate leads that way.

#2: Follow brand mentions and maintain a positive image
Maintaining a positive brand image is crucial when it comes to generating leads through social media. Brand tracking is important, especially across social media. With this method, utilizing special monitoring tools, such as Hootsuite, Mention, Social Mention, Topsy, Talkwalker, etc., is key.

Monitoring what others are saying about you on social media is important so you can respond to critics when necessary, and engage in relevant conversations. By doing this you’ll be able to keep your brand image positive and (relatively) untainted. This is crucial, as when potential prospects start researching about you, they can see negative comments which can discourage them from doing business with you.

#3: Create Facebook contests
Contests are huge on Facebook, and they tend to attract a lot of people. A Facebook contest is a great way to get tons of likes and comments, and collects email signups by offering a prize in return. The downside is that not all leads will be ideal, but at least you will gather emails which you can use later on for targeting.

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Don't forget to maintain and track your clients and leads within Client Relationship Management (CRM) software, such as AddressTwo's simple CRM and Email Marketing solution. Staying in contact with your prospects and on top of your sales efforts is crucial to generating sales. Don't allow follow-ups to slip through the cracks and miss out on potential business. Sign up for a Free Trial of AddressTwo, and see what the power of Two, can do for you!

Increase Your Facebook Fans Using AddressTwo in 10 Minutes or Less

Over the last few weeks I have been struggling with the fact that AddressTwo has several thousand users and yet we only have just a handful of Facebook fans.  I have tried everything; targeted emails to customers saying things like "Hey! Like Us on Facebook and We'll Like You Back!," or including our Facebook links in our monthly newsletters.  Yet, every time I would only see our Facebook fan number grow but a few likes.  Until I discovered, in ten minutes, a great way to use our Simple CRM and a few simple Facebook features, to add more than twenty new Facebook fans to our page.

Grow Your Facebook Fans with AddressTwo

Step #1

Log into your AddressTwo account and run a query on who you want to be your fans.  Personally I ran a query where I was the account manager and the people I wanted to fan us were my personal customers of A2.  Then hit search.

Step #2

Once your query is ran you will come up with your search results.  To the right at the top of your AddressTwo screen click on use this list.  From that drop down menu select Export CSV.  Your CSV will be downloaded to your computer.  

Step #3

Open up your CSV file and do just a bit of cleaning up.  The only fields you need to import into facebook will be First Name, Last Name, and Email Address.  Delete the extra columns (Red), keep the other columns (Green.)

You should be left with a CSV file that looks like this.

                                   

Step #4

Save this file as a CSV file on your desktop.

Step #5

Go to your facebook fan page for your business and look to the top right and click on "Build Audience."  A drop down menu will appear click on the link that says Import Contacts.

Step #6

A pop out window will appear that says "Invite Email Contacts." Select Upload contact list file, click on Invite Contacts.

Step #7

Next will come a window that says to choose a file.  Select the CSV file that you just saved to your desktop.

Step #8: Select Your Contacts

In this screen you will be able to review who you are sending this invite out to.  You can review and check them off one by one (see arrow on the right) or you can select all contacts you have imported by clicking the box at the top left of your screen (see arrow on the top.)  Once you have selected who is going to get this invite you will want to click on preview invitation at the bottom right.

Step #9: Preview Your Message

Here is where you will see what the message your contacts will receive.  Take note of how many people you are sending the message to at the top.  Then at the bottom right click send.

#10: Keep an Eye on Your Stats

You'll see in a little over 10 minutes my Facebook likes for AddressTwo have grown 23 Likes!

Any questions on other quick and easy ways to use the power of AddressTwo to grow your business we are here to help!  Oh yeah and don't forget to like us on facebook too! :)

Click Here To Like Us On Facebook

Incorporate LinkedIn with Your B2B Digital Marketing

With over 2 million company pages and 161 million users, LinkedIn offers a wealth of digital marketing options to businesses and professionals around the globe. Any digital marketing agency will tell you that this social media outlet offers exposure that is as valuable as word-of-mouth advertising, but has the added benefit of measurability.

B2B Digital Marketing Benefits of LinkedIn

Promote your blog. LinkedIn has a simple tool that allows you to add a link from your website to your business’ LinkedIn page. A digital marketing agency can even help you connect your blog to the LinkedIn account so your connections can see new posts as they go live, which can simultaneously increase traffic and brand awareness. 

·        Enhance website SEO. When you create a company page on LinkedIn, you have the option of making the information that you provide available for search engines to index. If you want to enhance the SEO of your business’ website, this is a good thing. Because of its popularity, LinkedIn ranks high on search engine results. This can influence what people see when they perform a search on your business or use specific key words, especially if you have your business’ public profile set to “Full View.”

·        Reach beyond your connections with sponsored updates. When you post updates on your business’ LinkedIn page, only your connections see them. LinkedIn now allows you to extend your reach with sponsored updates, which appear in the news feeds of other LinkedIn users. Digital marketing agency experts share that sponsored updates are simple to create and are non-intrusive. A well-worded update can drive users to check out things like new products, events, videos and white papers in a way that is more effective than a paid sidebar advertisement. You can also choose your target audience with just a few clicks.

·        Generate leads. Social media is a great way to engage with prospective and current customers, nurture relationships and enhance retention. It’s also an effective tool for generating new professional leads when you position yourself as a thought leader. To do this, you must have a consistent LinkedIn presence and offer valuable, relevant information to your target audience.
      
      After you create a rich profile for your business’ page, establish a presence by leveraging your existing network and offering timely status updates. Join and participate in up to five LinkedIn groups that are relevant to your target market and/or geographic location to offer expert insight, share valuable content and educate. As your LinkedIn presence increases and you extend your connections, the trust that you build in others will drive new leads.

Digital marketing extends beyond your company’s website, blog, Facebook profile and Twitter account. As with any other social media platform, B2B marketing on LinkedIn takes time, thoughtfulness and intentional efforts to build a following and get the returns that you seek. Speak to a marketing consultant to learn more about building your company’s LinkedIn presence or revamping your efforts.

Cameron Madill is CEO of PixelSpoke, a digital marketing and web design agency located in Portland, Oregon. PixelSpoke works with small to mid-size companies to design websites and create marketing plans which will expand their business. Connect with PixelSpoke on LinkedIn for other marketing insights.

One Fun Way to Boost Your Social Media List

Sitting around wondering what email content I should post in our September Monthly News letter was taking me forever.  So what did I do?  I went and surfed around Facebook for a little while trying to come up with a topic for my headline story.  After about an hour of getting lost in Social Media it hit me, I could use a boost of fans on our AddressTwo Facebook Fan Page.    Here is a picture from my main story in our monthly newsletter.

Guess what, it worked!  Over the next few days we gained 77 new facebook fans of AddressTwo.

So what did I learn?

• Sometimes the most random ideas are the best ideas.
• When you "like" another company's fan page with your fan page, it doesn't count for a "like."  Check out the story on Social Media Travelers.
• A good idea is worth repeating.

Social Media List Building #2

With my facebook idea going well in September, I’m going to try it again this month….

Follow us on Twitter and we’ll follow you back – It’s that easy!  - Read our October newsletter for more details.
Subscribe Here

Using Social Media For Online Business Networking

No matter what generation you claim membership to, if you aren't taking advantage of social media as an online networking opportunity you may be missing valuable connections.

Social media sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and even Facebook allow professionals the opportunity to by-pass the gatekeeper and develop relationships with prospects and suspects. For example, we have an intern whose dream is to work in Public Relations for the Disney Company. She is a sophomore at a local university and has already developed enough of a LinkedIn profile for future employers to get to know her. Through some careful searches and respectful connection requests, she is now conversing daily with team members in the Public Relations department at DISNEY! Do you think this activity will give her a leg up when intern or direct hiring positions come available? We certainly think so.

Using social media to network is a lot like online dating. The goal is to meet your perfect professional match, get to know each other in the safety of your office (talk about decreasing business expenses!), establish trust, then meet offline to further the professional relationship.

Just like watching how someone conducts themselves on the golf course can be a window into how they will conduct themselves in the board room, conversing with or following someone on social media can be an indicator of personal and professional integrity as a client or strategic partner. You can learn a lot about someone by what they post on social media as a status update or how they interact with you when you ask to connect. (HINT: Sending a sales message to us on LinkedIn right after connecting is a good way to get you un-connected.)

Not convinced? Try it out and let us know what happens. Connect, follow or fan a prospect or suspect on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, then leave a comment about your social media networking success (and not so successful) stories.

Social Media Myth- My Target Market Isn't On Social Media

Have you found yourself uttering these words when a marketing or advertising agency recommends promoting your company on social media? We sure have, and it couldn't be further from the truth!

As company's begin planning their marketing for 2013, invariably they will run across a superbly written blog, newspaper article or even well meaning business associate that will toss out the idea of using social media as an economical advertising tool. If you are in an industry whose target age demographic is largely over the age of 45, you may be tempted to dismiss social media as a viable marketing outlet. The tragedy in this misnomer is that you could be opting out of connecting with the fastest growing demographic on social media.

Not only are Baby Boomers eager to join in the social media revolution, with a little education (that they are receiving from continuing education and senior centers across the country) they are the most loyal and savviest content contributors of all the demographic groups! Mature citizens may have been pulled into social media kicking and screaming, but they have the loudest voices and their online reputation has high value.

Want to see what YOUR mature target market is doing on social media? Visit our Social Media Audience tools on the Marketing Media Management website to find out!

5 Holiday Tips for Ecommerce Website Success

If you are a retail business you know that the holidays are one of the most important times of the year to convert your visitors into buying customers.  By taking some simple steps you can ramp up your sales this season and be able to relax when the snow settles.

We are going to look at 5 things you can still do this season to attract and convert more customers.

1.       Keyword Research - Do some research to find what keywords people are searching for to find your products online.  You can take this data and incorporate into your page titles & meta data within your website for better search ranking results.  You can also incorporate this into your online ads that you may be running to bring in some new targeted customers.

2.       Email Marketing - Even if you don’t have a regular email campaign that you are contacting your customers on a regular basis now is the time to get some information out to current and past buyers. 

3.       Blog - Use your blog to talk about your upcoming deals, products or packages.  Blogs can be extremely effective at reaching your customers through an RSS feed or the search engines.  Your customers won’t know what your specials are unless you let them know!

4.       Traffic Statistics- Analyze your traffic statistics to see what pages are getting the most attention.  You will be able to notice trends quickly.  For example if you see that one product has had multiple hits but you haven’t sold a thing you may have an issue with that page, your shipping may be high or the price of the product is higher than your competition.

5.       Social Media- Use your social media outlets to keep your business in the minds of your customers.  Again, your customers won’t know you have a great deal until they see it or hear about it.  Engage your customers this year and you will see the returns.

Put these tips to work right up to the last shipping or sales day of the season and you will see a difference in the amount of sales and customer response. 

Need assistance with these tips or want to see better results with your website?  Contact us at Elemeno Design in Kansas City – Affordable Online Assistance.  

Branding Social Media for Your Business

Would your suspects, prospects, customers or clients know you by your social media profile? They should.

How often have you tried to look for a business connection on LinkedIn or your favorite restaurant on Facebook only to be befuddled by the graphics or cutesy cover and profile picture? If you aren't branding social media profiles and pages to match your company's overall brand strategy, then you are asking potential consumers to "guess" if they are connecting with the right social media profile. I don't know about you, but I simply hate thinking I'm connecting with my favorite local pet shop in Louisville who is featuring Auntie June and her adorable pug Jonesie on their cover photo this month only to find out it's really the Rottweiler Patrol in New York City who forgot to change their April Fools Day cover photo. Talk about brand confusion!

A brand is the personality that identifies a product, service or company and how it relates to key constituencies: customers, staff, partners, investors etc. Some people even associate a brand with thoughts, feelings, experiences or attitudes that become linked to the brand. Brand awareness is a customers' ability to recall and recognize the brand under different conditions (such as social media) and link to the brand name, logo, jingles and so on to certain associations in memory.

Proper social media branding can result in higher adoption and engagement rates that not only leading to sales, but to word of mouth advertising (aka- sharing). Bottom line: Don't miss out on opportunities to visually brand your business on social media. Here are three things you can do NOW, to help visually brand your identity on social media.

• Do the basics. Your visual vocabulary starts with a strong foundation—a solid logo and corporate identity.
• Use Photos as Brand Enhancers. Post interesting photos that tell your company story and can act as conversation starters.
• Photos are SEO (Search Engine Optimization) too. With the addition of Pinterest and other photo "bookmarking" tools, remember to use large interesting photos that will stand out in a sea of visual boards and utilize the alternative title, caption and description fields when uploading.

Video and photos are making the social Web more visual. People can scan pictures faster than they can scan hundreds of characters contained within text. Image content helps us feed our need for immediate visual gratification. As brand builders, we need to make sure we are accommodating for our audiences need for graphic stimulation on our social media profiles and that we are easy to identify.

Social Media, SEO and Bees

Social Media SEO is "honey" to the search engine bees!

Each time I meet with a prospective coaching client, I ask them to bring along their keyword research and SEO plan. 95% of the time they respond, "But why? I want to learn about Social Media, not SEO. I'm a business owner, not a website developer."

I simply cringe when I hear those words coming from the mouth of a seasoned entrepreneur. Understanding good SEO practices and keeping an up-to-date list of the keywords relevant to your business or industry are the cornerstones to having a good Social Media presence.

Each and every profile or page you set up on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, etc. is an opportunity to attract search engine traffic, but you can't do that without the right combination of words and phrases. In short, yes Virginia, you ARE using SEO (Search Engine Optimization) when you use Social Media Tools.

Need proof? 
Do a Google search of a competitor or the name of an industry professional you trust and take a look at the web links that are returned. I'd venture to guess their Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn profiles will come up.

Why?
Search engines companies are concerned with user experience. They want you to use their product repeatedly so that other businesses and individuals will pay to advertise on their sites. In order to keep you coming back, they want to make sure they provide the most relevant answer your search query. Status posts, tweets, recent uploads and blogs are like honey to the search engine robot bees. If a company is optimizing their frequent posts and profiles (aka- using the right keyword combinations), they are more likely to be the recipient of a visitors search engine query because the "bees" see it as new information.. a new and nectar filled information flower growing within the internet meadow.

What Now?
Examine your current Social Media profiles and evaluate if there may be opportunities to optimize. One of our favorite free tools is Live Keyword Analysis. Once you understand the connection between SEO and Social Media, a brand new marketing world will open up for you. Implement this simple marketing tactic and you may find yourself to be the next rose growing amongst the thorns of your competition and a swarm of search engine bees vying for your information elixir.

Social Media Strategy? What’s the Point!

Some would snicker at the idea that a business would require a strategy in order to approach their social media marketing campaign effectively.  However, it isn’t as black and white as many may think.   

Your social media marketing strategy requires an extensive amount of consideration, from the status updates your company posts, graphics, consumer sentiment evaluation, brand strength, to industry conditions.   

Social media strategy allows your business to build on a continuous premise in order to effectively manage your engagement.  Engagement allows your business to learn what is being said about your brand and to evaluate what is being said about your competitors’.  Being able to stay updated on industry trends, as they occur, is the new way of ‘staying in the know’. Customers feel valued when they are heard, are receiving assistance, or have an opportunity to validate their understanding by helping others within the community. This interaction reverberates intensely and in the end.... facilitates loyalty. 

The importance of knowing the key performance indicators for your business, setting and enforcing clear policies and procedures, and defining marketing activities is clear when moving forward into implementation and measurement of activities and their effectiveness.

SO, the point is.......A social media strategy encompasses so much for a company just by formulating strategic page partners in social media, monitoring communities, and staying involved in the conversation, a business is more likely to succeed in the long term with building customer loyalty, gaining awareness, and identifying possible trends.  THAT’S THE POINT!!!

Facebook Timeline: 5 Big Changes For Business Pages

A guest blog post from SteadyRain 

As Facebook Business Pages start to settle in to the new timeline, there are a few important things all businesses need to acknowledge during this transition. Several new features will be introduced, which will enhance the business’ overall presence on the social network. Consider these five changes and how they could help improve your overall online marketing strategy.

1.    Cover Photo

Every new page will be able to implement a cover photo, which will be posted on top of the page, adhering to the size of 851 pixels by 315 pixels. Positioned as a page’s first impression, a cover photo is a great branding opportunity to highlight a business’ photography or basic information such as service or product offerings. But one thing is not allowed on the cover photo: calls to action.

Brands and businesses cannot include items such as website URLs, phone numbers, or verbiage that encourages action that will take the visitor away from Facebook. Although a business is unable to use the cover photo in this way, it is still a great promotional opportunity for organizations that can be updated when needed. 

2.    Profile picture

The updated profile picture is now designed to feature a business’ logo only. It will no longer be cropped to live next to Facebook page stories. Instead, the 180 pixels by 180 pixels image will shrink down to 32 pixels by 32 pixels. The new profile picture is meant to be only a brand signifier. Additional design elements and company information, minus calls to action, can be added to the cover photo.

3.    Landing / Welcome Pages

The new timeline for businesses will no longer be able to use a Welcome page or “Like” gate for a user’s initial interaction with a Facebook page. Although these items can live on separate tabs, just as they have in the past, a user cannot be directed to this page from an outside link.  

Therefore, it is important for brands to provide thoughtful labels and icons to draw attention and encourage visitors to click on the tab. Give visitors a reason to want to see what is featured.

4.    Star a Story

Have a great story that you want to highlight on a business page? Each page will now have the option to not only hide but also star a story. When an administrator stars a story, the story spans the width of the page and the image becomes larger, drawing more attention and making it the “star” of the page. 

5.    Pinned Posts

Perhaps a business doesn’t want to “star” a story but make it the top story on the page. In addition to hiding or starring, an admin can pin a post, which will anchor the story to the top of the page for seven (7) days. Pinned posts could be a great way to highlight an ongoing promotion or upcoming event. 

Now you are prepared with some of the most prominent changes to Facebook business pages. Have you switched over to the new timeline or are you waiting until the end of March to make the transition? Curious about how these social network updates as well as new social platforms could fit into your business’ current online marketing strategy? Contact SteadyRain’s social media marketing team today.

Using Content to Make Your Social Media Strategies Work

Social media is probably the single biggest change that our world has seen in since the invention of Television. Television gave us a great new way to consume content and it provided lots of opportunities for brands to increase their exposure.

Social media provides the exact same opportunities for brands that Television did, but it is a very different medium and the tactics you'll need to utilize to win are very different. Television is a unidirectional medium. The video is consumed by the audience, but the audience can't talk back. There is also limited choice of what to watch, so TV networks can pretty much guarantee brands that at least a certain percentage of the viewing audience will pay attention to the ads that are shown.

With social media, not only can the audience talk back, but the audience is also creating their own content, discussing that content, and there is so much choice, that very often advertising is completely ignored. You can't buy your way in. The only thing you can do is participate with the crowd at a high level.

The Role of Content

Participating at a high level requires creating content that can be distributed and consumed and talked about socially on the web. Creating content on the web is the equivalent of buying ads on TV and it is the only way to build your online brand in a scalable way over a long period of time.

Ads don't work online (at least not very well). They get ignored. People don't have to look at them or click on them, so they choose instead to focus on content. Therefore, if you're a brand, then it makes sense to focus 100% on building content.

Content on the web can take one of 4 forms:

1. Text: Which ideally would be posted on your company website or blog.
2. Audio: Which can be posted on your website or blog, but can also be effectively distributed as podcasts on iTunes, Soundcloud, or other audio sharing sites.
3. Video: Which is highly viral and can be shared on most social networks as well as Youtube (don't make the mistake of not putting your video on youtube).
4. Images: Images can be photographs, infographics, or any other still image that engages people online. With the current popularity of Pinterest, Instagram, and even Facebook, I would say that images are one of the hottest and fastest growing ways to share your brand's story.

I generally recommend to my clients that they focus on creating text and at least one other type of content. Text is important because of search. Search is the #1 way that people discover new content online, so it makes sense to create lots of blog posts and web pages that can then get you lots of search traffic.

The choice between audio, video, and images depends on the nature of your business. Images make a lot of sense in most cases, because they are low-cost and easy to generate. Audio works really well for certain verticals, but video is highly engaging and sharable, so it definitely pays to try creating lots of different types of content and seeing what works for your business and industry.

The most important consideration when creating content is to make sure that you create content that is useful, sharable, and cool. Tell us what you do and give us examples of why we would want to do business with you in an entertaining way. Make sure all your content can be shared on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and other social networks. Spend time creating content that we want to consume online and your brand will thrive online.

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Colin Clark is the CEO of Tribeswell LLC, a design and consulting firm based out of Bloomington, Indiana. Tribeswell helps its clients build full-featured websites and web apps and create sharable and cool online content to build their brands online.

What Social Media Questions Do You Have? w Sheryl Connelly of Marketing Media Management

Join us Tuesday March 27th at 4pm for our podcast with Sheryl Connelly from Marketing Media Management.

Click here to listen: u.addresstwo.com

We are looking to hear from you for this podcast, please visit our Facebook page or send us a Tweet with your questions on Social Media and we'll get those answered for you on this podcast.

Sheryl Connelly started her career in social media in 1997 when it was trendy, but definitely not cool, by using forums, blogs, discussion boards, and instant messaging.

Over the years, she experimented with using social media platforms and quickly discovered the power of using online and social media marketing techniques.

Sheryl’s first case study in using online marketing tactics was with her first published fiction work, Celtic Sacrifice, written under the pen name of Sheryl Brennan. When the first print run sold out, the seed of using social media tools to promote businesses was planted.

In 2009, a lay off from a 13 year sales career propelled Sheryl into the role of business ownership in Marketing Media Management, a full service social media management agency. Her experience and techniques have earned her acclaim as a presenter to national and local groups such as the Financial Executives Networking Group, National Association of Automobile Museums, Association of Bridal Consultants, Execu-Net, and Louisville Sales Leaders. Sheryl is also a contributing author for Inside Self Storage Magazine, Indiana Small Business Development Center, and The New York Enterprise Report.

Sheryl is not only a multi-published author and consummate speaker, but a single mother to three teenage daughters and the CEO/Partner of four companies: Marketing Media Management, MMM Entertainment, Louisville Diva On A Dime, and Online Marketing Pros.
For more information about Sheryl or to engage her services, log on to:
Marketing Media Management- http://www.managemmm.com

Social Media with Web Media Expert

Join us Tuesday March 20th at 4pm on to hear from CEO of Web Media Expert Michelle Hummel

Click here to listen: u.addresstwo.com

Michelle, CEO of Web Media Expert LLC a full service social media agency. She holds an Internet Marketing Degree and 10+ years of successful online business development, sales and marketing experience. Michelle has a proven track record of internet marketing success and is a highly sought after speaker demonstrating her knowledge and passion for social media marketing. She is a current contributing editor to The Social Media Monthly Magazine and writing a book to share her best kept secrets to success. She is available for interviews via email, telephone, Skype video, news segments on location and more.

Michelle Hummel is also an ambitious entrepreneur having founded several social media businesses under the Web Media Expert brand:

Web Media University: provides on-going Social Media Training and Certification. Learn the best kept secrets from the top experts in Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Video, Networking and more!

Like Social Media: offers free tools to help businesses connect and grow with the “Like Exchange”, "Follow Exchange" and “Directory”. Monitor your growth with the “Social Bug” ranking tool that lets you track your Facebook engagement and ranking scores.

Send Social Media: #1 Social Media Management Dashboard. Join the thousands of businesses using this service for Social Media Management, Email and SMS marketing. Engage with customers, measure results and monitor your brand across 30+ social media channels all at once.

Social Media Matcher: makes it easy for you to get your business started on the right track with the social media business tools directory. Discover the best apps for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Google, WordPress, Mobile and the Web!
Linkedin Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michellesummaiyahummel

How to Super Charge Your Business with Social Media

Join our Podcast today with Krista Neher CEO of Boot Camp Digital

Listen by clicking here:  u.addresstwo.com

Krista Neher has over 10 years of marketing experience and is an educator, best-selling author and international speaker on digital internet marketing  and social media.  Krista is currently the CEO of Boot Camp Digital – a marketing consulting and training company that emphasizes the creative use of technology and social media to grow brands online.  Krista is also the Managing Director of the Institute for Social Media at Cincinnati State where she created and runs the social media marketing certification program.  Krista is also co-authoring a textbook on social media marketing and is a contributing faculty member to ClickZ Academy and Instant ETraining.

Krista has trained thousands on social media and internet marketing including creating customized training programs for the biggest and best companies.  Krista has provided marketing solutions for Fortune 500 companies as well as start-ups and small businesses.  With over 10 years of marketing experience, Krista brings a unique combination of traditional marketing skills and experience, technical knowledge as well as creative new marketing approaches with an emphasis on online and social media marketing.

Krista has deep roots in marketing having worked at Procter and Gamble (originally in Canada – EH?)  for 5+ years in a career spanning sales, finance and marketing. While at P&G Krista worked on the biggest brands and on some of the largest and most successful product launches in product categories including customer sales teams, laundry detergents, coffee and Pur water.  She also created and ran a variety of successful corporate training programs and was officially trained and certified as a P&G trainer.  Krista had a strong track-record of performance and was consistently promoted and recognized for outstanding work.

Social Media and Lead Generation Potential

Take advantage of Social Media for your lead generation, and you’ll realize what a diverse range of opportunities it can provide you. But as the availability and variety of social mediums continue to increase (to an exponential degree), you may find yourself overwhelmed or confused as to where to start. These platforms’ intuitive structures lend themselves to new, inexperienced users, but before you jump in too quickly, take a moment to consider these tips and truly take advantage of the potential that lies untapped.

Stay on top of new trends

Social Media platforms are changing and developing faster than most companies can keep up; by taking advantage of the newest areas, you can keep an edge over your competition, and do well in securing your company’s image as a well-informed innovator.

Be Creative

Today’s audience thrives on the new, the fresh, the exciting—don’t let yourself fall into a generic, boring presence online. Show your personality. Do something different. Rise above your competition by engaging your customers’ craving for something original.

Embrace Minimalism

You want to stand out—but you don’t want to turn people off. Avoid gimmicks or too much “sales speak” in your social media lead generation campaigns. People have short attention spans, especially when they’re online, so don’t bog them down with too much fluff.

Deliver

Give people something they want. Make sure to incentivize your potential customer base, through one means or another. Consider a contest, giveaway, or other direct means of offering something significant as a way of gaining attention and trust. Otherwise, make sure you have enough solid content to make your presentation worthwhile.

Have a Game Plan

Most important of all, think ahead! Have both broad and smaller, specific goals for your new means of lead generation through social media. Develop a plan of attack, and in following through, measure and track your progress frequently to make sure you’re still on pace. And don’t be afraid to consult an expert if you’re feeling stuck, or if you need that little extra push in finding the right direction.