It all started about two weeks ago when we had to disconnect our home phone and internet, to change providers (yes, I know – hello people, it’s the Millennium??!! 2 weeks without phone and internet??!)

At VSM having recently moved offices, neither do we have internet at work – we have been reliant on my trusty dongle to actually be productive.  So when I leave work, so does the dongle and PC – because that’s been our internet connection at home also.  Of course, the overworked iPhones are never far from our sides either.

Last Saturday, I headed over to the office to produce a couple of quotes and tidy up in the quiet of a deserted Saturday.  My laptop, dongle, iPhone, handbag, car keys and usual paraphernalia came with me and I set about working.   I didn’t bother with the airconditioning, instead, just removed layers until I was working in a singlet top (and jeans!).

As I took a five minute break and stepped outside of the office. I felt terror course through me as I heard the door latch behind me.  Now what?  EVERYTHING that connects me with ANYTHING is stuck in the office – I can’t call anyone who has a key, because the phone with the contact numbers are now locked in the office.  My car and office keys are in there, it’s 4pm, cold and if I leave the floor and enter the lift, that’s it – I cannot go upstairs again because I have no security pass for out of hours entry.

Inevitably I made the decision to leave the floor and see if I could find someone who would take pity on a scantily clad 40 something, let me use their phone and contact King Geoff (my husband) – at least he could come across to the office with the spare car key so the parking nazi’s wouldn’t have my blood on Monday for parking in the courier spots!

A cleaner in the complex took pity on me – handed me a sad and broken Nokia 1240 complete with cracked screen (insisting that he would drive me home) – and I rang King Geoff’s mobile three times – no answer.  Of course, I can’t ring the home number, which the 13 year old ALWAYS answers because there isn’t one – thank you Optus and your 1998 ways.

I ended up catching a cab and praying that Geoff and the kids were home and could pay for the cab fare – because I had no cash.  The cab driver asked if Geoff would be angry at me – and I said “oh no, he’ll see the humour and be fine about it….”

On arrival – Geoff barrels out the door  “where have you been?!” he exclaimed “My phone’s in your car – I can’t find it anywhere!! I’ve been waiting for you!”.  The phone wasn’t in my car – I knew it wasn’t in my car and his challenge had been we had no internet, so he couldn’t turn on the iPhone device tracker online.  He needed my car to check for his phone and then he needed my computer and dongle to trace the phone.  The joys of disconnectivity.

Back to work we went, so I could pick up my car, with my spare car key and to wave my phone, computer, dongle, handbag, wallet, cards (no cash) and jacket farewell until 9.30 Monday morning when I knew someone would be in.

Geoff’s phone was not in my car and he felt it had been stolen off the back seat of his car, whilst he washed the car that morning on our lawn.

I had so little petrol, that I had to go straight home – with only 50km of petrol and no cards – I had to ensure I could get back to work on Monday.  This meant I couldn’t be dutiful and support him and go to  his office to offer the appropriate “oohs” and “aaahs” as he put a trace on the phone.

Needless to say, in our weekend of disconnectivity, his phone too was rendered useless having been been stolen and turned off – untraceable (Apple, you need to do something about that app’s functionality).

Once our position of disconnectivity had been truly established, we went out to dinner with the kids – Geoff paid – I had no cards….  During that meal with the family, on at least 6 occasions we were discussing something that caused us to say, “I’ll just check that” – it was simple, banal conversation – “Was Simple Minds a Scottish or Irish band?” (I said Scottish) – no phone research to back me up.  “What time is Graham Norton on tonight?” – no TV Guide app to check.  “What’s the temperature tomorrow?” –  the unreliable but constantly checked weather app missing too.

It got me to thinking about how connected we have come and is it “good”, is it “bad”, or is it “just how it is”.  The kids are beside themselves – they are unsure how to go on without a daily fix of YouTube.  Funnily enough – they’ve taken to riding their scooters outside more.  And, with them outside, others kids in the street are outside on their skateboards and scooters too!

Once I came to terms with the fact that I was truly disconnected and had NO easy way to be connected, my 36 hours of disconnectivity actually was ok.  I soon found other things to do.  Generally,  as soon as I have “nothing to do”, I work.  So it was a real treat not to be able to work.

I’m actually even thinking about repeating the whole escapade again, because then I can be guilt free about being disconnected and having some well earned time off over a weekend.

How do you go about “disconnecting” or don’t you?  Do you think we’ve taken it too far, being able to sleep, eat and play whilst connected?  I love social media and I love my work.  I love the lights coming on for business when they see that their business can shine online.  To be successful, does that mean we have to be connected 24/7?

Have we taken the business of staying in touch, all too far?  Let me know what you think.

Turning social media to business profits

Meredith

Image courtesy of getentrepreneurial.com

“Socia Media doesn’t work.”

“I spend so much time in social media – and I get nothing back.”

“Is anybody reading my stuff?”

When we work with clients, we absolutely guarantee to increase your activity online and in turn, drive traffic to your website, create newsletters worth reading, have a social media presence of which you can proud – provided the consistency and commitment is there to work social media to it’s potential.

What we can’t guarantee when we work with clients, is that they will convert any additional business.  Generating activity and increased traffic to a website is one thing – and that’s what we’re good at.  Capturing and converting leads is another.

In fact, it’s a whole different part of the sales process.  We had a client lamenting that they were paying good money to have social media support and when we started to trouble shoot what was happening, we found that social media sites were actually responsible for 50% of the traffic to the website.  But alas, no additional sales.

That’s not actually a social media issue, that’s a website issue.

Or maybe you are finding that you are generating more enquiries, but not converting them when it comes to “the pitch”.  Face to face sales can be daunting and some people naturally do this more effectively than others.

Once again, generating the leads and converting them often require two different skill sets – and not all of us are fabulous at both!

Because we look at business in a holistic way when we work with them, we work to drill down to what the issues are.  NOT that we are website experts, or sales experts or even offline marketing experts – but all of these business aspects go hand in hand to create a successful business.

For this reason, when we hear about an event that might be incredibly helpful to business owners (or their staff) to improve any aspect of the sales and marketing process – we feel a need to share.

Suzy Jacobs and her fearless team (Danita Needleman and Monica Brewer) at SHE Business Australia have also seen members of their Business Club being “pipped at the post” through sales processes that let them down.  We always talk about a cohesive sales and marketing wheel that drives each other – and with this sales ‘gap’ Suzy has responded to assist in improvinng conversion when we get to the point of sale.

On 18 May Suzy is encouraging you to “Release Your Inner Sales Guru”.,  She invites you to  join her, her team and to conquer your fear of selling and watch your business soar!

During the afternoon you’ll learn and get real practice with:

•   Crafting your sales pitch

•   The ins and outs of selling anything to anyone

•   How to really listen to your customers’ needs

•   Thinking on your feet

•   Getting past the limitations of price

•   Overcoming objections

Sounds like a dream come true, huh!  These events are a lot of fun – be prepared to be pushed and learn and who knows, you may even close a sale or two.  You can register for the event here. (I am in no way being paid or an affiliate of SHE – I just think it’s an uber opportunity!).

Make sure your social media and other forms of marketing are able to work for you effectively, by improving other processes in your business.

Turn social media to business profits.

Meredith

GREAT image by Weever Media - drawn by Tom Fishburn

You’ve decided you have to have a social media presence, but we don’t have time to run it. Then some well meaning social media “expert” gets involved and says that you can outsource your entire social media strategy to them. They promise to “listen”, “post”, “monitor” and “report” and you don’t have to do a thing!

Or maybe, you’ve discovered the 0ffshore, outsourced worker – happy to work the hours you want, you provide some content, maybe find a copywriter to work with them too and you’ve saved a heap of money as well as have your social media under control.

Better still – you have a 19 year old son, or a 22 year old niece at Uni, looking for a bit of extra cash – they LOVE Facebook and are all over it.   That’s it!  There’s your social media (for your business) taken care of!

Possibly great solutions!  Are you right? No!  It’s all WRONG!

I’ll share with you what I know to be true. You cannot TOTALLY outsource your business social media presence to an agency or service provider.

Social media marketing’s success is largely about how well businesses engage with their markets, the business’ online visibility, the connections and endorsements they receive from their market and how well they listen and respond to their customer base.

In order to maximise opportunity, companies need to engage in regular, sometimes even daily conversations and content production. This conversation and connection has to come authentically from you and your staff.

Believe it or not, every business has a personality (it’s up to your team to make it a personality that’s appealing to your audience!) and this will develop and evolve when you use social media. This personality or voice needs to be consistent and needs to be able to respond to your market, share news, provide a reason for your market to connect with you…. No one knows the business like you know the business!

Given that the way the social web has changed the way we do business  you can no longer just push a message out to potential consumers and expect them to buy.

People have access to more information than ever before and they take advantage of this.  On top of this, people like to look at a business social media presence – whether it be Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, the Blog or something else.  People expect current information, including endorsements, from complete strangers to them, to see if they want to use your services.  This all feeds our “now” mentality.

So, there is an expectation in social media that responses will come quickly. There is an expectation that information posted will be current and regular. An agency or outsourced solution can certainly monitor your online presence and what we refer to as “sentiment” amongst your market – what they’re saying about you, how they’re feeling and more.

But, there are some things an Agency cannot do – there are some Facebook Posts, or LinkedIn connections or tweet from a conference or topical events that require a blog – that need to come from the business.  It needs to be current and it’s purely because you know your business and can respond in a timely and appropriate way.

So, is there any social media support you can get?  Let’s face it – we want life to be easier – so what CAN we outsource??

Getting out of the starting blocks in social media is daunting for most businesses because it’s a different playing field– for all the reasons outlined previously. Businesses large and small can certainly benefit from the expertise of a social media agency, especially in the initial phases of a social media implementation. A great Agency will assist in determining the platforms, the ongoing strategy, educating, mentoring and supporting a business in their social media start up phase. Ideally, they will also work with the business to develop business benchmarks, social Key Performance Indicators, develop and implement processes that can track the analytics and keep your business accountable to those outcomes on an ongoing basis.

If there is ANYTHING that social media marketing requires, it’s drive, discipline and determination followed closely by content, conversation and commitment! A great Agency can support a business in this and with accountability to drive results, your social media marketing will yield results in anything from the short to medium term.

Turn social media to business profits

Meredith

Excerpt of a Chapter Meredith Collins contributed to a book outlining Social Media Marketing for the SME.

The themes coming through strongly have been around “can our business DIY it’s social media”, “why should I pay someone to help us with social media”, “aren’t social media “gurus” over-rated”…… And we even had questions around building an eCommerce website – DIY.  Just quietly, that’s like the Mount Everest of website building.  And, don’t you have ENOUGH to do already??

The answer to these types of questions would be so much easier if the answer was definitive!  Given that no two businesses are ever the same (even if it’s say, two accountancies firms in the same town) and no two businesses ever have the same resources available to them (time, money and human resources)so the answer can never be the same.  On the third question – I’ll save that til the end.

Clicking the link to set up a Facebook Page is easy.  Accepting a Linkedin connection request is pretty dang easy too, as is creating a Twitter profile, blog through WordPress, Blogger, Posterous or Tumblr  or even setting up a YouTube channel initially – we can all do it – easily.

What many business owners or managers do not think through are the repercussions of setting up these sites and how to:

• Create a longer term strategy and tactics
• Resource the sites with content on an ongoing basis
• Create appropriate content and provide, what I call, a social “hook” for your market
• Create a management plan so you don’t burn a stack of daylight in managing your social media presence
• Choose a “voice” and “personality” for your business (this is probably not so important on a site like LinkedIn)
• Determine how the sites will be monitored, measured and reported on, on an ongoing basis
• And the list goes on

Just because we CAN set up the sites, doesn’t mean we SHOULD do this in isolation without help from someone who’s been around and understands, not just the platforms, but the business application of these platforms.  I CAN build my own website with site helpers, but I don’t.  I CAN do my own bookkeeping, but I don’t.  I CAN do the administration in my business, but I don’t (not all of it anyway).   These tasks are not what I’m good at and keep me away from doing what I love to do – and that’s connect businesses with their market.  Sometimes it’s a false economy NOT to pay to outsource these services and I certainly received a plan from the experts I hired.

Social media possibly falls into the same category in the initial stages – maybe not on a longer term or ongoing basis, although we do support many clients beyond their initial implementation.

Think about the initial implementation – this is when you need assistance in creating a plan or a roadmap and then in having the business supported in walking (or running) the new road.  The “expert” could be very helpful to start and give your business and strategy a fighting chance of success.

In choosing an “expert”, it has to “feel” right – and you may want to consider the following:

• are they social in their nature and have good ideas
• do they speak commonsense around the essence of social media
• does what they’re saying sit well with you
• do you feel they’ve listened to you and understand your business
• Check their social profiles – don’t necessarily look at the number  of connections – because this isn’t always important – but do their profiles look solid, have good interaction, are they up to date – not left for weeks or months at a time
• Have a look at their LinkedIn profile and see if they’ve had recommendations and over what period of time.  Does it all “add up” – is the message offline consistent with the message online, that you are hearing from them
• ASK for references – ask to speak to some of their other clients.  I always give at least 3 clients’ details that a new prospect can chat too

The BIG takeaway from this week has most definitely been around the investment it takes to create a great social and online presence – and the initial investment may well prove worth it – particularly if you’re unfortunate enough to discover the cost of bumbling through a social media labyrinth on your own.

Turn social media to business profits

Meredith

As with many business forums that I attend, in the capacity of an expert, the theme was really around “HOW” will social media work for my business and “HOW” do we choose the right social mediums for our business.

Peter Switzer says – “go where the fish are” – if your business is a professional firm (I sat with some IT hardware/infrastructure specialists this morning and spoke with an Engineering firm) – then LinkedIn is probably a great place to fish.

If you’re a business that is in the wedding or travel market or has an inherently social aspect, then Facebook, YouTube and maybe even the new Pinterest is where you can consider fishing.  There’s no doubt, the fish are out there – it’s whether they can see and like your “hook”.

To continue Peter’s fishing analogy, you will never catch any fish if you have no substance on the hook.  And, how will you know if there is no substance? Your market will quickly tell you!

The way they will tell you is like this – there’ll be no engagement with your posts, specifically no comments, likes or shares.  Your profile or page will be like a ghost town with tumbleweed rolling down it’s centre.

There will be no connection, fans or follower growth and you’ll be left talking to yourself.

Substance IS NOT having a call to action or telling people how you can help them, in EVERY post.

Substance IS sharing news, articles, information, insights, quirky information or creating a hub where your connections can go for more.

Substance IS having your act as a customer service portal that is answered and people feel cared about.

Substance IS about creating a relationship with your customers and them knowing that your business is a business that cares about them.

Soft and fluffy?  Maybe – but can we ever put a price on customer care?

Can we put price on solid, online business visibility?

Can we put a price on customers’ endorsement of our business?  Social Media has the ability to deliver all of these positives to your business.

Start by knowing what you will set you to achieve in social media (beyond the final result of more leads and sales!).   This will also help a business create a strategy that might work for your business – and be prepared to change it!  Be prepared to “listen” to the market and react to what they are saying (or not saying!).  Be prepared to be consistent and be prepared to not over-commit.

Pick one social medium and do it well!  If you are easily managing one, then look at another – but not before you have decided you have the time or resources to commit.  One social media site done well is far more powerful than several done badly!  Remember, we want visibility for our business that makes people want to connect with us – not have a site that we commonly refer to at VSM as “the social tumbleweed of sites”.

Turn social media to business profits.

Meredith

There’s no doubt, that the economy in Northern Queensland has slowed and it was a sentiment echoed in the room today by close to 200 business people.

Both Peter and Craig expressed the need to “do something differently”.  In a changing world, we hear it all the time.  But really, what CAN you do – or maybe you could be asking “what CAN’T I do?” You can do anything if you can think of it – and it might just work for your business and bottom line!

Offline marketing is still important.  Peter acknowledged that as did I.  I think people are surprised to find that as a “Social Media Strategist” that I would advocate for other, comprehensive forms of marketing.

A mentor once said to me that there should be many marketing pillars to business success (both on and offline) – and today, social media is very powerful and can form a cornerstone of a marketing plan.

There is no doubt about it that we do have to change our ways and some forms of marketing have most definitely become more obsolete than others.  This morning I met a fantastic couple – he’s clearly a working dynamo and been in business for himself for 40 odd years.  She was a fantastic, efficient woman who clearly runs the back office of the landscaping business, very effectively.

She asked me if they needed a website – “non-negotiable in this market – absolutely ” I replied.

“What other forms of marketing or advertising do you do?” I asked.  She talked about the full page ad in the Yellow Pages.  This is an investment of $20,000 per year.  “Wow” I said, “how’s that working for you – are you getting any calls?”.  She didn’t think it was as effective now as it had been in the past.  I wouldn’t doubt it – given the changing buying patterns of consumers.

In that instance, that kind of money could be put into Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and really make a difference.  SEM is beautiful in that it can target a very localised area – these lovely landscapers work in a 10km radius – and search engine marketing can target that specific 10km area, via the internet, for your specific keywords or search terms – to a budget.  You ONLY pay if the ad is clicked! Wow – and for that same $20k you can (and I’d guarantee it) get hugely different results.

That is a far more powerful way, to access the market you are looking for and to drive leads.  I can’t actually remember the last time we picked up a Yellow Pages from the porch and didn’t take it straight to the recycle bin.

Yet, to use Yellow Pages in 2012 to advertise is a very scattergun approach; it reaches way beyond a target market of a 10km radius by the nature of it’s delivery there’s probably at least 100km of people we don’t service and can’t help – even if they do ring us!

Remember, approximately 80% of people search online for ANY product or service that they buy.  So, suddenly considering online visibility (in social media, SEM or a website) seems far more sensible way to promote your business and will provide a return.

The lovely landscapers had their lights turned on this morning and suddenly saw the world in a new way – and the possibilities are endless for them.

What are you going to do differently to create and seize opportunities?

Turn social media to business profits

NOTE:  VSM has aligned and recommends an SEM partner Reach Local – if you would like us to introduce you – just contact us and we’ll make sure we facilitate that introduction for you.

This will come as no surprise to many of you and it is part of the process when building a business.

Which brings me to my post….. In recognising that I am a Social Media Strategist, my strength is not in actual website development or optimisation.  I absolutely know enough to evaluate a website and work out if a clients’ website is going to be a worthy site to convert leads, support their business and make their effort in social media worthwhile.

What I DON’T know, is about all the hidden “stuff” on a website – the header data, meta tags and all the bits and pieces that Google and other search engines look for.  I certainly know the principals of this and I ask clients reguarly about their own long tail keywords and keyword optimisation – but in knowing how to “do this” – that’s not where my expertise lies.

In the last 3 years, 3 times I have paid for “experts” to “fix” my website and ensure that all my keywords and meta data and headers within the website are “right” and optimised – and to my horror, 3 times this has not happened.  And the shocking part to me – I only ever get this news when another “expert” assesses my site, or I am looking to change something or I sense that we are not functioning as we need to be.

My point is – as business owners, it is our responsibility to conduct a process of “due diligence” on contractors or “experts” we employ.  I think for the most part, we are trusting and we want to do business with people we know, like and trust.  And sometimes, this isn’t enough.

I urge you to seek out references, use social media to check endorsments and third party testimonials.  This is the power and the beauty of a site like LinkedIn.  People cannot fake a testimonial or recommendation from another.   If you are a supplier, ASK your clients for a recommendation.  This is a very accepted part of business in the Web 2.0 arena.  People are busy, but not adverse to getting this kind of endorsement to market – if you’ve done a good job.

In my humble opinion, we need to know a little about a lot in business and taking the time to run a few basic “due diligence” checks may save you a lot of time, effort, money and more to the point, frustration in the long run.

Turn social media to business profits

Meredith

PS – If you are a business owner with no social credibility, you may just find that educated consumers move onto a supplier that can be found and passes the “due diligence” and research phase – get your personal and business social media up to date – ASAP!

The temptation to sell is always there and up front, in a buyers market, we have to be thinking more about “relationships”, “value”, “positioning” and “offers” when we think about social media.  Once you have these four pillars bedded down, then the odd bit of promotion is far more acceptable to your fans and connections.

This week I read a great article from Steve Olenski from SocialMediaToday and he presented research on what it is that consumers actually expect to receive when they engage with business or brands through Facebook (and social media).  The results are shown below.

Marketers and business owners, utilising Facebook were asked “Why do you think fans engage with your Facebook Business Page?”

Then consumers were asked “Why do you connect with Facebook and other social mediums” – the answers were surprising…. to marketers and business owners…. they got a big fat FAIL on THEIR understanding of reasons for fan engagement!

Finally, consumers were asked “how will you continue to use social media in 2012” and the results were as follows:

So what does all this mean to You?  Social media is an important cog in your marketing strategy for 2012 and it also means that you need to be thinking about your offering.  Maybe it will be some sort of a “(Facebook) Friends with Benefits” program or incentives that are only offered to fans engaged on Facebook with your business.

Whatever it is, ensure you have a plan and for many clients with whom we work we will be encouraging them to develop new offerings that are ONLY for Facebook (and social media) Fans – this in itself is enticing to your market, when you are closing your marketing loop and ensuring that the business’ on and offline marketing drive each other forward.

May 2012 be socially prosperous for you and that you are completely compliant and do not violate Facebook’s onerous Terms and Conditions, when it comes to offering Facebook Specials and programs!

Turning social media into business profits.

Meredith

It’s that time when people are saying things like “I can’t believe how fast this year has gone”, “Hasn’t it flown”, “Christmas already” and of course “How crappy is this weather!”, which is a new addition for 2011′s summer.

For many of us, it has been quite a year.  We’ve had clients that have struggled under the weight of the GFC, others who are reporting their best year ever and some who have planned to make 2012 a cracker.

In 2011, social media really ‘bedded down’ – it became a main stream marketing activity for business and absolutely necessary where searchability and indexability by Google is concerned.  Remember 10 or 15 short years ago, a website was not necessary?  In 2011 any business without a web presence was (and is) doing themselves a serious disservice.  Given that 80% of people search the internet before they make any buying decision, to be without a web presence ensures that you are missing a huge slice of any market.

Social Media has become the next layer of the web – first we adopted email, then we began to realise the power of a website and now, social layering is critical and adoption of social media of some description is required.

We saw the rise of Google + although it’s still in it’s infancy, I do think it will gain traction for a number of reasons, particularly as I am sure the Google Apps will all interface in a nice and easy to use system.  Of course, anyone utilising Google apps will gain themselves some traction in the search engine rankins and with that said, YouTube is also a Google site – so make 2012 a year you use video for your business!  Video says it better.

Facebook continued to change and whilst some love it – clients often struggle with the constant changes.  Business pages have not seen significant change for a few months but the changes to personal profiles always keep clients guessing.

Twitter is on the verge of launching widely available brand pages – we’ll see how these take off in coming months although I find that even companies tend to have individuals who wave the batten for tweeting, rather than necessarily having an ‘organisational voice’.

LinkedIn is still a great way to touch your database and to use as your online “rolodex” – why business people don’t use this fantastic, highly indexed social site more effectively is just beyond me!  LinkedIn provides us with so many opportunities and I encourage clients to use this – even if this is the ONLY social site they use.

Finally, 2011 has been an enormous year for me and Video Social Marketing.  Professionally the business was awarded a “Highly Commended” award in starting a new business and the absolute highlight was being awarded “Entrepreneur of the Year”.

To have been named as an award winning business person, in a category of business that is still in it’s infancy was truly amazing and humbling.  So as 2011 comes to a close, I thank all the clients that gave me the opportunity to become an official “award winner” and sincerely look forward to working with clients in 2012 to put their businesses on the (new) Google and online map!

With greatest of thanks for a fabulous year, the team at VSM wish you and yours an outstanding and restful Christmas and I look forward to being part of your winning team in 2012.

Turn social media to business profits

Meredith