Jan 11
25
To begin, your social media platform right now could be compared to a clean slate, and you are going to begin to build it and grow it from its foundation upward. The foundation is going to be you – by building your brand and all that you bring along with it.
You are the first and foremost social media tool! The rest are the ways to promote, grow and channel "You" most effectively.
Let's start with the foundation. Your first objective is to get your name out there. Here's what works best.
- Keep your eyes and ears open to what is going on and to what is being said around you at all times! Begin training yourself to focus in on what others are saying in your industry, about your industry, etc. You could have the greatest product or service around, but if you are not keeping in mind the needs of the people and hearing what they are saying, none of it will really matter.
- Do Internet searches on your company, the company that you are working for and the competitors in your industry. Read and really hear what is being said. Find those topics online that people are discussing most about your company or your industry.
- Familiarize yourself with the social media top guns, such as LinkedIn, Twitter, etc, if you haven't already, and be sure to make it a habit of updating and checking those websites regularly to keep them current. Make sure that the information and the message that you are sending them is the same one that they are actually "hearing." Always put yourself in your customer's or target audience's shoes.
- Participation – You must find a way of engaging your target audience by continually offering new ways to keep them engaged. This is where your creativity is necessary; leave them with the feeling that they are "gaining something" from visiting your site or using your social media channels. You are building a virtual "relationship" and trust and this takes as much time as the relationships take in "real life" to cultivate. Always make it you top priority. If you cannot manage this yourself, hire the appropriate people to help you.
Most importantly, remember that you have a life and that social media is supposed to enhance it and make things run more efficiently. It should not take over your life. Period.
In order to still maintain your life outside of social media, keep the following points in mind:
- Know how to filter your information by being selective in choosing what is important and what is not. Discipline yourself early on to only look at what you need to know, otherwise it will consume you in an instant. With so much information streaming in from all sides at all times, be sure to link in and follow only those who provide you with what you need. At times, it's like being a kid in a candy store, where they want everything that they see with their glossed-over eyes! So, you must train yourself to notice the smaller details in order to help keep you on track.
- Keep your communication skills refined and perfected. You should not only be "data-driven" and analytical. Rather, you need to be both cerebral and creative in order to succeed. You need to be able to communicate your information and abilities to people whose impressions of you are going to be made only by what you say and put forth. So, be sure that you are creating a "masterpiece" before clicking the "post" button.
Conclusion
As nothing in life is written in stone, you should keep the continual mindset on the phrase "subject to change." Your media and its management will be an ongoing sprint and each mile marker will be a place for you to note what is working, what is not, and to alter your course of action appropriately.
As McDonald's has said, "Our head of social media is the customer." If you keep this first and foremost, it will keep you grounded. Always focus on the fact that without the customer, a business has nothing.
About the Author. Marco Giunta is a Senior Business Development Executive and the author of the book: Rethinking Sales.
He is a leading expert in Global Outsourcing with a focus on banking, financial services and other Industry sectors and has a long list of clients. Mr. Giunta is a speaker and presenter. He has led start-ups, business strategy groups, technology think tanks and has experience as a career coach. Visit Marco’s website at marcogiunta.com.
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These are Social Media Word to live by. Thanks so much for this article. Back in late December, I decided that I would take an active role in shaping the future of television as we know it. Being a Customer first, I found it quite interesting that Commercials have taken over the medium as in fact it should because advertisers keep the lights on.
Can you imagine being a customers and someone striving to be a media exec who hates commercial breaks? But how many of us pay anywhere from $30 to 130.00 or more a month if Pay TV Fees? Are we satisfied with the diversity of choice with more than a 100 channels and upwards per MSO or Broadcast Network? The programming choices chosen for us to prompt us or PUSH us to buy certain brands over others.
Will this model work on the Social Web? Will GoogleTV, AppleTV, and the Networks block access to what consumers want more of not less.. CONTENT, Content, content, of all shapes and sizes, varieties and flavors that show off the mosaic of creativity that exists but is channeled through a small funnel.
Can the Social Media and its techno partners that can enable the download the Library of Congress in seconds show Hollywood, Bollywood, and Commissions all over the world that product placement in streaming videos accomplishes several benefits to our customers. First if Advertisers understand the lessons of history that technology changes the game. Can you imagine seeing Avitar on Beta. Well I am not saying that TV is going the way of Beta but could it? Could convergence mean that individual Social Media Centric Networks can broadcast and build and Direct to Consumer model that Advertisers will flock to when Spray and Pray is replaced with a Geo-Targeted Brandcasting strategy where viewers PULL the information and entertainment they want on any device? Branson did it for the Airline Industry. Only time will tell if the Social Network Guru's Facebook will outpace Google's Youtube and every other media outlet as the new distribution platform for TV as we know it. What a exciting time we live in. Thanks for the insightful article…
Via LinkedIn Groups
Group: ForbesWoman
Discussion: Social Media – What Matters Most?
Cool one golden brick at a time works best. Trying to smother the social networks with announcements will take time and yield little.
Posted by Patrick M Dacre
Via LinkedIn Groups
Group: Professional Writers
Discussion: Social Media – What Matters Most?
I like your post. While my two blogs overlap, sometimes content differs. One can always tips that will help them. For example, today's blog is a major life lesson I've learned and am still learning — Less is more. What we type is a reflection of who we are.
If I can be a help to anyone, please advise.
Quoting the South African goodbye,
GO well. And quoting me, DO good.
John Fox
SLC, UT — USA
Posted by John Fox – The Golden Rule Guy
thank you for the statement that we must learn to filter out….
As an entrepreneur new to website ownership and marketing, I am becoming very aware that it is crucial to have a coach that has been through the ropes of building successful websites as I am inundated daily with calls from companies saying their way to build the website is the best and for only this much money we can make your website #1 on search engines. What is the answer? Are there website entrepreneur coaches out there?
Jane,
Although we do not call ourselfs coaches but more like web presence strategiests, we can help answer your questions.
Contact us via the Contact page on this blog with your availabilty and how to reach you and let’s have a chat.
Regards,
Michael Cohn
CompuKol Communications
Via LinkedIn Groups
Group: AOL Small Business
Discussion: Social Media – What Matters Most?
I would remind everyone of the quotation "The moving finger writes, and having writ, moves on … " Please be sure that you are clear, concise, and honest. It's easier to remember the Truth … and careless mistakes have a habit of coming back and biting you in the ***
Posted by Peter Hartley