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Aim: Identify and articulate your purpose.
Arm: Shape yourself around your purpose.
Act: Achieve your purpose.
Twitter or Twit?
Social Networking in Small Business Part 2
©2009 About Purpose, Inc. 
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Breaking News: Since I wrote Part 1, Twitter and Facebook have been all over the news as effective means of getting information into and out of Iran during their political crisis. While that isn’t a direct business use, it does cause us to pause and reevaluate the power of social networking sites.
Last issue, we examined the possible reasons for social networking. (Read Part 1) Sit down with your strategic plan and ask yourself whether social networking will advance your objectives. If so, read on.
It’s time to wade in and get your feet wet. At its very basic, networking is nothing more than interacting and sharing for the purposes of accomplishing your goals. Your first job, just as with any activity you face in your business, is to decide what form of networking serves your strategic ends and how best to implement it. Here are some things to consider:
Face-to-face networking. First, carefully consider the membership of the group or event. Are they your target? For example, do you need to be networking with business owners or are you better off with the sales and marketing people or operations people? Be sure the group or event you are considering attracts the right audience. Second, in the case of a networking group, commit to regular attendance and involvement. Unlike on-line networking, your physical presence is essential. If you aren’t there, the business will go to someone who is.
1. Online networking.
LinkedIn is my preference for professionals and business. Do a bang-up job on your profile, focusing on what you really want people to know about you. Customize your information (beyond the default “My Website”) and use the apps that help you communicate (SlideShare and WordPress are two examples). Schedule regular updates to your status box (the area right below your name). Join and interact with groups that will keep your name in front of the people by whom you want to be noticed. Make and ask for recommendations. Weigh in with Answers to the Questions posted in your areas of expertise. And finally, build your network of connections by inviting others and accepting invitations. Keep those connections relevant, don’t fall into the trap of building connections as if it were a contest. All of these ideas are vital to raising your visibility with the search engines. There are other sites, as well. I belong to Plaxo and an industry specific site for corporate ethics called Development Crossing. I am certainly not an expert, but here is my LinkedIn URL to give you an idea of some of the things you may want to do to your site.
Facebook visitors will notice a very different tone from LinkedIn. More social and more casual, Facebook serves a different purpose. What used to be a college-age audience has morphed into a broad-based social site. Having said that, I use Facebook for two reasons. One is to connect with my social contacts whom I have never (consciously) marketed for business. I want all of them to know what I am about and what my values and beliefs are so that when they want to do business, they might think of me. Secondly, I want to be able to intelligently consult on the value of Facebook to clients whose audience is more likely to be reached there. Again, your profile is key, and regular updating is essential. Facebook contains lots of extraneous, inane little side roads. Unless they help promote your product or service, avoid them. If you like to play, then create a separate, purely social Facebook account. Here is my Facebook link if you’d like some ideas.
2. Blogs are a must, in my opinion. It is hard for me to imagine a business who could not benefit from a thoughtful, well-written blog. Regularly share information of value to your customers. This is brand-building for the marketing budget-impaired people. Advertise your blog site everywhere. And make sure your blog steers customers back to your website. Not a writer? Then watch the online news sources for items of interest to your customers and reference them in your blog with a short comment on the value to them. Reference your blog postings on your social networking sites, or use an app that will post them automatically. Here is my blog for your reference: http://swimstartingwithme.blogspot.com/
3. Twitter. Hah, you thought I’d never get to it. Still think people who tweet are twits? Well, if you decide to use it, remember it is nothing more than a mini-blog. It is ideal for pushing out short news items, sales information, and event notifications. Imagine a non-profit keeping donors up-to-date on milestones met and people served. Imagine being able to summon trade show participants back to your booth several times in the same day with specials, information give-aways, etc. It is also a brand-builder, so make sure your tweets are consistent with the image you are trying to project. Your tweets can double as status changes on your networking sites. If you visited my LinkedIn or Facebook pages, you have already seen my Twitter material in the status boxes. Follow me on Twitter.
Okay, now it’s time for you to make some decisions. Is social networking a viable marketing tool for you and your business? Which method(s) will net you the best outcomes for the time and effort expended? Who on your staff is best suited to working those marketing venues? When will you start? One hour will get you started on any online site.
Used wisely, social networking can be a powerful force in your business. Align it with your strategic plan and monitor its effectiveness. Then sit back and tweet while your competitors are still twits.