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marketing monday

July 7

Be a good Facebook Friend #marketingmonday

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As Facebook has changed it’s algorithms drastically, Facebook pages are getting less traction, and personal accounts are getting even more notice than before.
So, depending on your business, you could leverage your personal network to promote or market… but you want to be careful!

Facebook is a little like church. If you stand up in the middle of the service and invite everyone to stop by your grocery store, you’ll get some dirty looks… because it feels a little, well… dirty.

I know my business survives on personal connections. Most of my business comes from a friend of a friend who saw my blog posts or facebook posts, and they referred people to me because of that. You CAN turn your friends into a referral marketing machine… but you want to do it carefully, or else you will turn them off.

So let me give you some simple advice for using your PERSONAL facebook to promote your business….

1. Don’t be a idiot.
Remember that everything you post matters. I shouldn’t HAVE to say that Saturday Night Drunken Selfies, and personal and family drama will hurt your public reputation, but it’s true. It can hurt your chances at landing jobs, getting into schools, and in promoting your business.  Potential clients and customers WILL remember the things you posted on facebook.

2. Politics and Religion.
I won’t say that you CAN’T discuss these things publicly, but understand, that these discussions DO influence your friends opinions about you. If you are going to discuss them, do it with reason and compassion. Don’t bash or hate. And don’t post things that could be misconstrued as bashing or hating.  Check your sources, and make sure you back up your claims with reasonable arguments… and that leads us to our next point…

3. Be NICE.
Take the time to say THANK YOU on facebook when someone does or says something nice. Send thank you notes, either privately or publicly(where appropriate) for things that happen OFFLINE as well.

Be sure to offer complements, encouragement, and hope.

4. Be authentic.
It’s okay to ask for help. It’s okay to express your feelings. It’s okay to BE who you are… but you want to make sure that your expressions are NOT overwhelming.
If you make a mistake, own up to it.
Be sure to demonstrate that you ARE a good person without tooting your own horn. And if you have to toot your own horn… you might want to spend some time working on the person that you are… so that you ARE a nice person… and not just pretending….

5. Josh’s Rule of Thumb.
You have five fingers, and one of them is a thumb. If you are going to use your personal account to promote your business… imagine your thumb is your business post (a “thumbtack” if you will) and your other fingers are real life stuff.

You should post a minimum of four or five real life posts (pics of your cat, inspirational quotes, and interesting discussions) for every one business promotion.

Some say this number should be closer to 1:7… and that might be more accurate… just make sure you don’t go past 1:4. If you do… your personal page starts to feel “spammy” and uncomfortable.

6. Be a good friend.
This should go along with being nice… but there’s a great blog post here that describes proper facebook friend ettiquete. It’s a great read.
http://mashable.com/2013/08/04/facebook-friend-etiquette/?utm_cid=mash-com-fb-main-link

7. Don’t overdo event and group invitations.
You can invite people to events… but you’ll want to be sure NOT to be too annoying with it.

As far as inviting people to groups… especially a group where you are going to market products to them… do it sparingly. It’s best to ask them first.

8. Be careful with tags.
NO ONE likes to get tagged in a photo they are not in. Unless it’s a photo of their grandkids….

but I don’t want to get a notification and then have a picture on my profile of your discount sneakers flyer. No one does. So tag people in photos they are in… don’t tag them just to make sure they see it.

9. Wall Posts – use sparingly.
You can share your blog posts directly on the walls of friends that you KNOW want to read it. Your mutual friends will see it too…  but I would do it sparingly. Try to do it if they are already interested in what you are sharing…

10. Relationships are golden.
Remember the girl scout song? Make New friends, but keep the old… one is silver and the other gold.

If you have an existing relationship with someone… you want to do whatever you can to make that relationship stay. Tick them off with too much marketing, and you lose a friend.
You wouldn’t wear your sandwich board to their house for dinner… so make sure that your communication is NOT JUST about your business.

11. Don’t be afraid to invite your contacts.
When you meet someone in real life, get their business card, and look them up on facebook. Send them a friend request. Don’t be offended if they don’t accept… but adding them to your personal network can be a GOOD thing!

12. Don’t send game requests.
People hate them. ‘Nuff Said.
Besides… if you are working on your business, you shouldn’t have time for Farmville.

13. Do Post Often.
And do comment and engage on your friends pictures and posts.
A fresh post on your personal profile daily would be a minimum.

14. Klout
Facebook PAGES has insights to track and measure your engagement. But there isn’t an internal feature to track and measure how well you are using your personal page to connect.

I recommend signing up for Klout.com, which gives you some good metrics. You can use Klout to track a Facebook Page or a Facebook Profile, but at this time… it can only do one or the other.

Don’t get too hung up on your klout score… but you CAN use it to see how people are engaging with your content.

July 7

howtobeatnegativesocialmedia

How to Beat Negative Social Media

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howtobeatnegativesocialmediaThe climate is changing. It used to be – that if someone had a problem with you – they came to you to tell you to your face – or they gossiped about you behind your back. These days, social media means just about anybody can give you a black eye, and think nothing of it.

I’ve had my share of trolls try to knock me (and my billy goat friends) off the bridge. So let me give you some tips for handling negative social media.

 

 

 

  1. Monitor your Social Accounts regularly.People often “set it and forget it”. You’ve got to make sure to check to see if someone has messaged, tweeted, commented, or tagged you in a post. Stay on top of it – every day. Even if it’s just a quick check. Monitoring is important. It’s also good to be sure your employees are monitoring, and let you know if they see anything posted elsewhere. It’s also helpful if you set up a Google Alert that will email you anytime something new is posted about you online.
  2. The Customer is always right…. most of the time….Make “The Customer is Always Right” your mantra. Chances are good that you will get the occassional customer who is just being a tool that bashes you, and they are not right. But if we are honest with ourselves, and keep our egos in check – nine out of ten complaints are legitimately from a customer who had a bad experience. Sometimes they want compensation – sometimes they might just want a public apology. Before you assume that you complainant is just spouting off, or is a deadbeat, or is just trying to get their meal for free – START with the assumption that you are at fault, and that your desire is to make it right.
  3. Don’t Delete – EngageIf it’s an obviously insulting or “trolling” comment  – just delete it. Mostly – you’ll get something like this: “I had a burger at Bob’s Burger Shack. The burger was undercooked and my server was rude.”   These comments shouldn’t be deleted. Just reply with an apology, and encourage them to contact you offline (give them a number or email address) so that you can make it right.
  4. Make it Right.How much can it cost to give the guy another burger, right?
    Now obviously – some situations are going to be different. But hopefully GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE and QUALITY are hallmarks in your business model. If the customer is not happy, than you’ve got to do your best to make them happy. You will NOT make everyone happy. But you can try!
  5. Don’t Freak Out.Don’t insult. Don’t panic. Don’t REACT. Just calmly try to make it right. Sometimes – you just can’t beat the negative PR. You screwed up – and now the world sees it. DO NOT REACT IN ANGER to the situation. Even if it is not your fault. Try to turn the online conversation into an offline conversation – so that your other readers see that you are doing something to work it out.
  6. Bury it.Do you have a negative review on the front page of your YELP? Can’t delete it? Than work hard to BURY it. Start soliciting every positive review that you can – and direct those clients/customers/friends to the place you want them to post. Usually, a website like that has five to ten “top” reviews that show up first. So solicit enough to bump the negative review down a few pages!
  7. Don’t assume that because someone challenges you, corrects you, disagrees with you publicly that they HATE you. Most likely they are either “trolling” (posting negatively for the fun of it), or they have a legitimate customer service complaint, or they are just ignorant fools. But don’t assume that the public confrontation is motivated by hate – and then be sure to respond with kindness and patience. It works most of the time!
how often should i post

How Often Should I Post?

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When it comes to blogging and social media, there is no right answer to the question “How Often Should I Post?”

The truth is this: The more you post – the better.

I can’t give you a magic number, because a lot of it has to do with the amount of time YOU want to spend posting!

But let me give you a few guidelines.

  1. Facebook and Twitter – at least once a day. Even if it’s sharing a meme, a picture, or a quote.
  2. Blog – At least once a week. Even if it’s a company news item, a photo, a weekly special, or a quick cell phone video.
  3. Email Newsletter – at least once a month.

I know. That seems like a lot – but again – the more you post, the more effective your social media becomes. I’d highly recommend posting a lot MORE than these numbers…. but these are the minimum.

If you take the time to plan out your posts a month at a time, this becomes a lot easier. Blogs and Facebook have built in scheduling – so you can work ahead. Try hootsuite or buffer if you want to keep your scheduling in one place!

Whatever you do – post often. Post more than you think you need to post!

Need some ideas for what to post? Start a conversation with me! – mail@joshhatcher.com
how often should i post