Social Media Marketing Is Not Direct Marketing

Creative Commons photo by Rosaura Ochoa via Flickr.

Social media for business is difficult. I don't mean difficult to do, because using social media in general is pretty easy. It's a different ball game from a business viewpoint, and learning how to use social media for business can be overwhelming if you don't have any direction. Either they run their business accounts as a personal one (posting too much, being too casual), or they only push their product with no other interactions.

I understand where a business is coming from. The goal of a business is to sell a product. Every move it makes, every step it takes (h/t The Police) is calculated and designed to reach that goal of making the sale. A business should have marketing systems in place that do this; whether T.V. or radio spots, fliers in the mail or email. A social media marketing campaign should help support these other systems.

Support. That is the key word to remember.

I have heard of businesses who do business strictly through social media, but it's a rare occasion and should not be considered the norm. Facebook in particular continues to make the site more business-friendly, adding options for shopping and signing up for newsletters right on the main Page. In essence, it could be used as a website, but I wouldn't recommend it.

People are on social media first and foremost to find other people. No one joins a site with the thought "Wow- I really want to join Twitter so I can follow Pepsi and Nike!" They join social media to follow people, discussions, to learn more (from other people) about something. Adding businesses is secondary, because once they are using it, they see the ease. It's easy to communicate with other businesses in this way, and it's more passive than talking to a customer service person on the phone, yet there is still interaction.

Things to keep in mind when using social media for business:

1. Be social, yet remember you are a business. If you run your business social media like they are personal accounts, you are going to turn people off. Decide based on what your business is how personal you want or should be, and then go from there.

(Some ways to be personal on social media: Photos of the office, highlighting team members, acknowledging birthdays and work anniversaries. I'm also a firm believer in the Throwback Thursday.)

2. Be a place of information. Rather than sell, inform. You know your product better than anyone. You know that everyone would benefit using your product. Show that you know what you're talking about and be on top of trends, reports, and other things pertaining to your industry. Give your thoughts whether you agree or disagree about what you are finding.

3. It's not direct marketing, it's PR. Remember the key word from above: Support. The goal of social media is not making the sale, it's making people want to buy. There's a difference.

Every business is different, and I'm always open to talking more about your business in particular and helping you bring your social media marketing to the next level. Contact me anytime dcutler@danicutler.com. For general tips and tricks, subscribe to my monthly newsletter.

Have fun!






Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs!

The Crazy World Of A Teen Fan Girl On Twitter

Of course you bring cake to a tweet up!

We all know the basic rules for Twitter. Even if you are new to the social media site, there is still a basic etiquette. Don't post 100 times a day, post meaningful content, engage and interact with other users. Don't spam, don't beg for follows, etc. etc. 

Unless you are a teen girl obsessed with her favorite band on Twitter. Then all of the "normal" rules go right out the window. 

My daughter is your typical teen girl, and obsessed with the band you see in the photo, 5 Seconds of Summer. I mean, obsessed. Magazines, posters on her wall, videos on You Tube. Reads almost every bit of fan fiction written. Photos on her phone are nothing but screen shots of them. Then there is Twitter, and that's a popular place for bands. It is also where all the fans go to connect with this band, its members and other fans. I was looking at my daughter's Twitter account, which is just a fan account. She connects with other fans, tweets at the band members, and yes, begs for follows. By beg I mean, spams this account over and over.

At first this freaked me out. Why is my daughter being such a spazz online? Doesn't she know this is going to follow her around forever?? Then I started clicking on the accounts of those she follows and re-tweets. They are all exactly the same, and do the exact same things. No one uses their own names (including my daughter), accounts are just some morphed band name or band member name. Profile photos are pictures of their favorite band members. My rule is no last name, address or phone numbers. No personal identifying information. I also check to make sure location tagging is off. It's such a cesspool of crazy teen hormones, as I read through tweets I can hear squealing in my head. I don't know how the band can stand it. It makes my head hurt describing it to you.

The crazy part is, the band members encourage it. They will tweet teasers letting everyone know they are going to start adding followers. Then this part of the Twitter universe explodes with the clicky sounds of millions of teens spamming the band account asking them to follow. Then when someone gets a follow by a band member, they tweet about it and that takes on a new surge of tweets begging for a follow. It's brilliant if you think about it. I imagine they have lists set up (or probably pay someone else to manage it) so who cares if they follow thousands of fans? It drums up excitement and gets everyone talking about the band. 

The most interesting part of this for me is the way engagement works. My daughter has 8,000 followers, including one of her favorite band members and the official band account. Her Klout score? 59. That's higher than mine, and I have a pretty respectable score. It is one big group chat about the bands, music, which one is the hottest, why don't the other members follow, and on and on. They interact. Continuously. ALL THE TIME.

When she told me there was a tweet up (I'm not supposed to call it that, that's the 'old people' term) for fans of 5sos at a local mall I raised an eyebrow. I mean, I don't know who any of these people are! Visions of middle-aged sex offenders stalking girls online flew into my head. I asked my daughter to show me who the organizer is. I received a photo with a girl my daughter's age holding a sign saying "I'm not a serial killer." 

So I took her. Of course I stayed at the mall, but my other daughter and I went shopping and avoided the group. It was quite a group too! About 20-25 girls gathered, and someone even brought a cake (the photo above). My daughter made new friends and met some of her online friends in person. They took a big group photo and tweeted it to the band. They ate cake. It was a good afternoon. 

I don't interact with my daughter online, but I watch. I will talk to her offline about things she posts (mostly good, there have been a couple of tweets I told her were a bit over the top). I stay indirectly involved in her online activity, because not only can I step in if something is amiss, but hopefully when the fan girl stage ends and she wants a more permanent Twitter account she will have learned one or two things about how to use it.

It is such a different world now from when I was my daughter's age. Some would argue it is more dangerous. I look at it as not so much more dangerous but simply... different. The online world is here to stay, social media is here to stay, and it's up to us to be aware of the younger generation and what they are doing with it. Embrace it, learn it, and always pay attention to what your kids are doing online. 

Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs!

When Your Name Is Your Brand

Taking the leap to running your own business has many challenges. Do I have the money to do this? Do I incorporate or become an LLC? Do I need an employee? Do I need a name? What if I fail?

When I took the leap and started my business, I toyed with many different names, but nothing fit. The few ideas I did come up with were taken (which questioned my creativity, because they sure seemed original to me!). After awhile, I realized that I was trying to brand myself by coming up with a business name. I then decided I didn't need to come up with a name, I would just use mine. I would be my own brand.

Being your own brand has its own set of challenges. It’s the first and foremost way you will advertise your business, always. When I first made this decision, I had a small panic attack. I’m a very open person online. I pretty much communicate online as I would in person, what you see is what you get.  No one has ever said to me “you are not how I expected you to be!” when they meet me in person (other than the occasional “you’re shorter than I expected.”). I’m actually proud of that, because it is my belief that you should just be open and honest, good or bad, in how you present yourself online. But that is a different post for a different day. However, I noticed I was beginning to be a little more conscious of how I interacted and presented myself online.

Here are some tips for having a strong personal brand:

1. Google your name. The first thing you need to do if you want to use your name as your business is see what comes up in a search. Is it public photos from your last weekend in Rocky Point? The weekend you have fuzzy memories about? That’s probably not good. Is it the Twitter account you created so you can talk politics and argue rudely with anyone who disagrees with your position? That might not look good either. Here is another reason to have a good online profile. A Google search of your name is a great start to figuring out the next step, which is-

2. Have a Facebook Page for your business. Facebook is still the most used social media site. If you don’t separate your business from your personal account, you’re going to get in trouble. I have a Facebook page for my business, and that is the link that comes up when you search my name on Google. The same applies to Twitter.

3. Know your business. If you are a media personality and your shtick is to be outgoing and offensive, then these tips probably do not apply. If you are a bikini model, then scantily-clad photos probably won’t hurt your personal brand. If you are an attorney who practices family law, that’s a different story.

4. Decide overlap. I have friends who knew me before I started my business. I also have made new friends who found me after I started my business. Some I add as friends on my personal Facebook page, and some I don’t. It’s really your discretion. Facebook has the best privacy settings of any network. I have lists, and have control over who gets to see what in my personal life. I also do not need everyone who I friend on Facebook knowing everything about my life, so I make sure I have the proper settings for anything I do online. Twitter is the same way. Many posts are the same, but I also know it is a more public forum, so I take more discretion when posting things there. My life is mine, and I will choose how I want to share it with you. 

5. Stay true to yourself. Never change who you are because it might cost you business. If you know your brand, and for the most part keep your business separate from pleasure, you should be fine. Also go with your gut. If you question something you are about to post, maybe you should think twice about posting it. Things can always be interpreted the wrong way, and you have no control over that. If you are ok with what you are posting or saying, then don’t worry about how it will be perceived. If someone has an issue with something, most likely they will come to you anyway. If it keeps someone from doing business with you and you don’t think you did anything wrong, then you do not need their business.

Do you have anything to add? Tell us in the comments! Being your own brand can be a little terrifying if you aren't used to being so exposed. Be conscious of your actions, follow these tips, and always have confidence in yourself and who you are. That is what is going to bring you business, and success.

Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs!

What Exactly Do You *Do*?

Random Instagram Photos. Yes, I love social media!

I get that question alot. I'm new at this business thing, and I've blogged recently about how I finally made the decision to branch out on my own. Still, I haven't done a whole lot of advertising. I cross-post things occasionally on my personal Facebook page, but for the most part I don't want to turn people off by talking about my business all the time. I even feel weird blogging about it now, though I absolutely love it. I've always been a connector, and social media is all about connecting with others. It just fit to help small businesses do the same.

So, as my business Facebook page says, "Content Creation and Management." What the heck is that? It's exactly what it says. I create content in the form of posts, tweets, updates, photos, memes, podcasts and video for use on social media. I've been volunteering my time for many years now with KWSS radio and TechPhx, and running their social media. I've learned so much, and am fascinated with the way social media works, and how people respond to it.

It's also interesting to see how small businesses use it, which is another thing that prompted me to start this business. Number one thing I see? Businesses don't put enough into their social media. This is not their fault however. As one of those small business owners, I get it. Time is hard to come by. When you are out there working on the other 5,000 parts of your business, you can't exactly stay connected 100% of the time on social media. You've got things to do!

This is why I made my business social media. I make the posts, I check the comments. I interact with other people and businesses for you. I find information to share that is relevant to your brand, so that you become a valuable source of information for anyone who follows you. My philosophy is if people get to know you and what you are about, they will want to know more about your business. After all, we started our businesses because we have something worthy to share, right? That's what you want people to see, and I help make that happen. I help you be seen.

I can also help you be heard. With years of audio and podcasting experience, I know the value of using a podcast to further your reach with current and potential clients. People love to listen to stories and learn more about who they are seeing in their social media feeds. Podcasting is the perfect compliment to social media promotions.

So that's really it. That's my business. My business is helping small businesses be seen and heard. I help them make it more personal and engaging. There's alot of content out there, and my goal is to make a small business stand out from all of the other content out there, so their name is what comes to a person's mind when they are looking for something specific.

Not only do I do this to help businesses be successful, I want to get to know you too! Social media works for me because I'm so social! Find me over on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

If You Don't Invest, You're Going To Miss Out

See full infographic HERE

Do you find yourself searching on social media for a business more and more? You're not alone, according to this Infographic from Balihoo, 91% of local searches use Facebook to find a business online.

Ninety-one percent. That is saying pretty much anyone who has a Facebook account has searched for a business while browsing around on the site. I know I do it- and most of the time I get better information from their social media pages than I do if I visit their website. Or *shudder* call them on the phone.

In another infographic, it states that 81% of small businesses see the value of using social media as a business tool. In this quarterly Small Business Wellness Index survey from Mantra, it states that 80% of businesses have increased or kept their time invested in social media compared to a year ago.

Look around as you're out and about. What is everyone doing? They are scanning their social media feeds. On their phones. On their tablets. On their laptops.

If you don't make a true investment in social media, and budget appropriately, they are not going to see you. When they need your product, they are going to choose someone else.

Social media is a science. It takes work. It takes an investment of time, and yes, money. Here's some motivation, the top brands using social media and their growth. Here's another list of the best brands on Facebook. Here's a list of the most engaging brands on Twitter.

It's worth it. Don't miss out.





Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs!

Posting Etiquette: What's Right And Wrong?

I read many posts about the correct way to post on Facebook and Twitter. I'm using these two as the example because they are the two most popular, but it really applies to other social media sites as well (Google+, LinkedIn, etc.). There are some things that those of us who manage sites are in agreement with, such as knowing your audience and knowing how each site works so that you can get your posts out there and seen in the best way possible.

One thing I vary on with my colleagues is auto-posting directly from Facebook to Twitter and vice-versa. I have read in several places it's considered a huge no-no. Business-killer. Makes you look like an amateur. I agree with this assessment, but only to a point. While I agree that you should not post as actively to Facebook as you do Twitter, in some cases it is ok to have updates automatically post from one place to another.

Facebook now allows you to choose the type of posts you would like to automatically go to Twitter. I keep mine at Photos, Video, Notes, and Events. Status Updates are definitely a no-no because you need to keep posts to less-than-10-a-day (some say 5, I say it depends on your business). There is also a different dialogue on Facebook versus Twitter. At times you will talk about the same things, but you have to present them differently. Not to mention if your all of your Facebook updates post automatically to Twitter, then you are never on Twitter (and again, vice-versa). How would you know if someone is responding to your posts, or trying to connect with you?

Links are are also bad to auto-post. On Facebook when you post or share a link, you can set up the link in your status with a comment. Most of the time that goes way over 140 characters (I always try and say a little something about the link I'm posting, rather than just share with no comment). When that link is automatically posted to Twitter, your words are cut off, and the link will go to whatever story or blog post you were talking about. It takes away from your message, and looks sloppy. It's better to make two separate posts.

Again, and I really can't stress this enough, you need to know your business, and more importantly your audience. For instance, if you are a photographer, it could be a good idea to have your photos automatically go to Twitter. I would hope in this case you are using Twitter for more than just a Facebook post dump. People are looking for different things on each site, and cross-posting can work if you use it smartly.

This post applies to Facebook Pages. I'm not a big fan of suggesting how to run your personal page, because that's YOUR playground. You do with it what you want, and your friends can decide if they want to see it or not. To me that is a completely different thing than promoting a brand.

Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs! 

5 Positive Things About Social Media

Who knew that a little website helping students at a University stay connected would become what we know as Facebook today? Or that the stream of consciousness known as Twitter would not only let us know what you are having for lunch, but keep people aware of what is happening when their entire country is falling apart?

It's no secret at all that I absolutely love social media. You don't make it part of your business if you don't like it! I see the value in it, personally and professionally. Recently there have been some negative things circulating about the social media world, and being online in general. Some I have all ready addressed on this blog, and some are earmarked for later. At times it feels like an uphill battle dealing with knee-jerk reactions to every single bad thing that happens via social media. So, that being said, I'm going to give you 5 positive things about social media, on the personal side, and the business side. These are some of the reasons I love social media!

Personal:

1. I can keep in touch with my family, spread out all over the country, and they can keep in touch with me. Any time we want. Day or night. Time zones do not matter!
2. Information. I love politics, news, and information in general. I also love telling others about it. Sharing this information has never been easier with social media. Learning information from others is also a plus.
3. Living vicariously through others. My brother is an avid traveler. I am not, but I love watching his adventures unfold when he posts photos, status updates or blog entries.
4. It takes a village. Once a friend's daughter posted some scary stuff on her Facebook page. Red-flag stuff. Immediately three of us started messaging to see if anyone had contacted the parent yet about this. It turns out the child was just playing an attention card, but what I take away from that is how quickly we came together to figure out what to do, should it have been a real emergency.
5. Silliness. I love the memes, music videos, check-ins, and everything else that you never even thought to share with others BI (before internet). It makes the world seems smaller, and I feel that's a good thing.

Business:

1. Everyone is using social media in one form or another, and they are looking for your business.
2. You can communicate and engage with customers or clients at any time day or night, not just during business hours. Again, time zones do not matter! If you are doing it right, they will see what you're posting.
3. Social media is the greatest opportunity to show customers that you care about them, and not just getting their business.
4. Social media draws traffic to your blog and website.
5. All of these social media sites are available for free!

There are many more positives to social media, but this is a good start. This is a way of life now, and I don't see it dying off any time soon. It's better to embrace it, understand it, and use it to your advantage than fear it. Happy socializing!

Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs! 

How Does Satirical News Cross A Line?

I am one of the millions of people who are sucked into the Academy Awards each year. Thanks to social media, they have become even more fun to watch, since with social media you are never alone watching them. Naturally, everyone has an opinion, and Twitter, Facebook, and a couple glasses of wine always give us the courage to really say what we think. I think most of the conversations were disagreements! For some reason it's always more fun to argue than agree, especially about creative topics.

Even with my watchful eye, I follow way too many people and hashtags to catch everything that goes by. However, that is what retweets are for. Not everything slides under the radar on the internet for very long. This is how the satire-news site The Onion got into a little hot water Sunday night.

For those who are not familiar (and even those of you who are), I would like to repeat: The Onion is a satirical news site. It's fake, and most of the time, pretty tasteless. So how could a well-known satire site that always tries to up the shock factor possibly get in trouble? Well, by this tweet. Warning, it's definitely "R" rated and not for work. Or children. Or those who are offended easily (who also probably do not read the Onion).

My first reaction was the same as everyone else. Too far! You don't say that about a 9 year old! The nerve! Where's the decency? Apparently the entire world (i.e. Twitter) wanted the offending tweeter's head on a pike. It is definitely a fine line between a parody and just being an offensive jerk. It caused so much controversy that The Onion actually had to issue an apology.

That's what made me rethink the entire thing. The Onion, satirical news site, apologized for doing what they do on a daily basis. Here's a sampling of headlines from their website:

*While I'm Glad I Won, I Personally Believe Abraham Lincoln Deserved To Die ("written" by Daniel Day-Lewis)
*Sonny Bono Foundation Prevents At-Risk Youths From Skiing Into Trees
*In Focus: Parents Of Suicide Victim Saw It Coming A Mile Away
*Oscars Fashion Report: Kathryn Bigelow Stuns On Red Carpet Wearing Blood-Soaked Rags Osama Bin Laden Was Killed In

Now, granted I am more tolerant than most when it comes to language. I personally don't believe that there is bad language, only appropriate places to use certain language. I tend to be colorful with my language, but you certainly aren't going to hear it in a client meeting or at a conference. If MSNBC had tweeted the same thing as the Onion? Probably not the best of ideas. It's not their normal policy, so yes there should be action taken (I'm not even mentioning all of the radio hosts out there that work for major news outlets who routinely offend on a daily basis, and never have to worry about losing their job). But the Onion? Honestly, I don't feel an apology was necessary. It's what they do. That's the point.

I was on Twitter following along while watching the Oscars, and I didn't even know this happened until the next day when I read the post from Social Media Today. That leads me to think that unless you were completely glued to Twitter and caught the re-tweet, a lot of people didn't see it either. It certainly wasn't a story the local 10pm news talked about. I think this was made out to be a bigger deal than it needed to be.

There is a lesson in this though. A reminder that what you say online stays there. Once you hit "send", it can't be undone. For those of us who do not run satirical websites that borderline on vulgar, it's good to remember that as you're typing status updates.

I'd love to know what you think, not just about this, but about appropriate use of language in different contexts. Comment below, or over on the Facebook page!

Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs!