How often do you go into an empty restaurant, bar or shop? Probably rarely; a lack of interest or demand can become a vicious circle. The same is true with social media, a weak presence can be hard to break if you don’t know what you are doing.
I am going to provide you with advice and tips to implement on Facebook and Twitter firstly to give your business greater exposure, increased interaction with potential customers and ultimately more business.
I want you to personalise this section and the advice given to make it unique to your business. There is no magic formula to social media success, if I wrote precisely what to do it would only apply to certain types of businesses, an example I often use is; how would the social media strategy of a funeral directors and a night club be the same? In short, they wouldn’t, for obvious reasons. This is why you will personalise this section around your business, implement and then gauge the success.
Getting Started
Facebook:
Firstly you are going to need a company page.
If you already have a company page please still read this section as there may be areas that you have not implemented to allow maximum exposure for your page.
Creating a company page is a very simple step by step process so I won’t spend too long on it. If you don’t know what to do visit YouTube and search for ‘how to start a Facebook page’ and there will be lots of free step by step guides to watch.
Although creating a page is a simple process there are many people doing it wrong, by this I mean, for whatever reason (whether laziness or a lack of knowledge) they do not fully complete all sections of their pages description, for example:
- Not creating a Facebook web address which they can share with ease e.g. facebook.com/examplebusiness
- Choosing the incorrect category and subcategories for their business page – if you have a page make sure you check to see that you have chosen the correct one.
- Not including a physical address, email address, website address or contact number (if you don’t have a business address it might be better to leave the physical address blank, unless you don’t mind putting your home address – just be aware that it will be available for anyone to see).
- A weak short description with no ‘call to action’ (more on this later) or sentence to entice a potential visitor to like the page to find out more.
- ‘Company Overview’, ‘Long Description’ & ‘Mission’ – these all need completing and in detail, I don’t advise just copying and pasting information straight from your website, make it unique for your Facebook page.
First impressions count, there are an incredible amount of Facebook pages, you need to be different in order to stand out from the crowd.
There are many companies and individuals who can design you a fantastic Facebook page for your business; I couldn’t recommend this highly enough, my advice is to have your Facebook company page designed so it looks similar to your website. It can cost as little as £15, for what could be a potential customers first impression of your business I think it is money well spent.
If you don’t want to make an investment at this stage then at the absolute minimum you need to make sure that your business page has quality images for both the cover and profile photo. These images need to be unpixelated (not blurred) and in the correct size format to ensure they are a good fit. You can find the correct dimensions by doing a quick search online (I’m not including them here as the sizes do occasionally change). Carefully select your images, this is your opportunity to grab the attention and or interest of a potential follower. If you have a company logo which doesn’t explain your business (for example if it’s just initials) then it can be better to select an image that does represent your business; if you ran a martial arts club you might have a photograph of an impressive type of kick, if you run a clothing brand you might use a t shirt design that really stands out. Stand out from your competitors, be different and create interest from your images.
You do need to be careful with the images you use for your business profile and cover images. Facebook does not allow you to include promotions or links to your website; but that is absolutely fine. Many businesses break this rule, let them. Think about it, someone might visit your Facebook page for a few seconds, your initial objective is to get them to LIKE your page so that you can build a relationship with them over time. Your images need to create a spark of interest to give this potential fan a desire to ‘like’ your page to make them want to find out more. Your website url in the cover photo won’t create that spark of interest.
The type of images you use are going to be different depending on the product or service you offer. Don’t just choose any image, carefully think about what images grab your attention, make you look twice or curious enough to look into the page further to find out what they do.
It has worked for many of my clients to use the cover photo to give reasons why to click the ‘like’ button, sometimes even pointing an arrow at the ‘like’ button they want them to click! Most people are incredibly lazy when online, literally pointing out the ‘like’ button tells them exactky what you want themm to do and where you want them to click.
There are a number of companies offering some great apps and templates which you can integrate into your Facebook page. These apps can work in two ways, firstly making your page appear more professional and successful, secondly it can make converting fans into customers that little bit easier. Some of the apps we recommend include:
- Integrating a shop with items available on your page for fans to buy without leaving Facebook (apart from the act of making payment).
- Easy to see and fill out contact forms.
Just about every company offers a free trial period which is normally thirty days, take advantage of these opportunities and see if their software improves your businesses social media presence. Just don’t forget to cancel the recurring payment if you’re not impressed with the service.
Updates
How annoying is it when your timeline is filled up with boring/useless/irrelevant updates from either individuals or businesses? It’s boring, if you’re anything like me you will skip past them and after a while either block, unfriend or unsubscribe.
The majority of people go on social media when they are bored. It is your job to alleviate that boredom! Whether it be through humour, quizzes, competitions or facts (more on this later).
So how many times a day should you be posting updates? It is a tough question, and one that will be different from sector to sector. If you sell something fun (such as toys or gadgets) then you can get away with doing quite a few posts a day, as long as you’re not outright selling! If on the other hand you only offer one or two products/services that are a bit drier than gadgets, for example if you run an opticians, funeral directors or accountants then constant updates are not likely to yield great responses from those consistently seeing them.
When to update?
You need to update when most of your followers are likely to be online, it sounds obvious but I’m often shocked at how randomly some businesses update their status with seemingly little thought to who is going to be online at that time of day. We’ll initially assume the vast majority of your fans are residents of your country and in your timezone (if you have a large number of fans in different timezones, which you can find out in your pages admin area then you will need to create updates at times that are applicable to their timezones).
Now you need to do some thinking:
- Who are my target ‘fans’?
- How old are they, what type of job do they have?
- What times of the day/night are they likely to be online and what mood are they going to be in at those times?
The reponses you give here should create a good level of insight into the most effective time of the day or night to post updates. Remember that this is not an exact science, if you don’t see results go back to this task and reassess.
Now you have an idea who your target fans are you need to get thinking about how to create updates that are going to interest them at certain parts of the day and or night when they may be using social media.
Let’s imagine you’re targeting a mid 20s office worker, break down his/her day:
6-7am – Wakes up, maybe checks Facebook on their phone before getting up – a motivational update to fire them up for the day.
8-9am – Breakfast and commute to work – potentially bored on public transport, a puzzle, brain teaser or quiz to keep them entertained.
9am-10.45am – They’re (probably) hard at work now and not checking social media.
11am – Morning lull, probably a bit tired/bored of working now and need some stimulation, this could be a great time to post a joke or funny image (more on use of humour later).
12noon – 1.30pm – Lunch time, possibly at their desk (or if not they can still access social media with their phone) – this can be an opportunity to push a product or service that they might purchase from you .
2-4pm – Hard at work (probably!)
4-5pm – Afternoon lull/watching the clock for 5pm – Post a link to an interesting article or news item (doesn’t have to be your website – again, more on this later)
5-6pm – The commute home, targeting those on public transport again. Keep them entertained, potentially create excitement for a post you’ll be doing later on e.g. “We’re making a huge announcement at 7pm about a new product”.
7-10pm – Your target audience will either be at home or out doing a hobby or maybe at a meal. Monday-Thursday (and Sunday) they’re more likely to be at home than on a night out so on these days you can again target a product/service to push that is relevant to them. Friday and Saturday fewer people will be online during these times so either alter the timing of your updates accordingly or try to interact with those who might be staying in on a Friday/Saturday night.
This is just an example, but look at the volume of updates that don’t push a product or service. I advise business pages to be a source of interest/amusement first and selling second. If all you do is push products throughout the day your pages fan base will almost certainly not grow.
Reasons For People To Become a Fan Of Your Page:
Part 1 – Fun
Very few people are going on social media to be serious. It’s time to unwind, see what their friends are doing and generally be entertained.
As long as your industry allows it, your page a some of the time should be fun (not recommended for funeral directors!). Your fans should enjoy seeing your updates and interact with you whether that be through ‘liking’ your update or posting a comment.
If you find coming up with funny/interesting updates difficult then start sharing updates/images that you find amusing on your business page for your fans to see. When you start to get a good idea of what your fans like (you can monitor this by seeing how many likes, comments and or shares an update gets) you can start testing the water making your own updates and or images using a similar kind of humour.
Quizzes can be a great way to interact with your fans. I advise many of my clients to create questions specific to their industry and or products, then posting the answers on a page of their website so that fans have a reason to visit the website. The page with the answers on should not merely provide the answers, it should give the visitor the opportunity to look at your best selling products, read something interesting, find out more about you; in short work hard to make sure that they don’t read the answers and then click off.
Part 2 – You Are An Expert
You’re in business and you know your sector inside out so don’t be shy about it!
Provide useful updates that answer common questions that you get in your business sector (obviously some sectors will not allow this, e.g. financial advice). Don’t be shy, portray yourself as a fountain of knowledge but try not to be arrogant with it (make sure you’re not posting really industry specific, uninteresting updates though). Giving snippets of information can be a great way to create interest in you as an individual/as a business and make readers come to you to find out more.
Part 3 – Provide your fans with links to updates that are genuinely interesting and relate to your business sector
If you run a sports supplement company and a new type of product, formula or scientific study has been released, this is the sort of thing you should be sharing to your followers. Of course you are not the author but you will be seen as the individual/company that provides them with the access to the most relevant/interesting news/updates within their hobby/sector/field.
The effort required for this is very little, you will know what is happening within your business sector so when you find an interesting article share it to your followers.
Part 4 – Review Products/Services (Independently!)
This one is aimed more at retailers, or if you’re in a service industry that use products it can still work, you just need to think of the right angle.
Let’s think about a gym owner or personal trainer this time as an example. Reviewing workouts can yield excellent results for example “I did xxxxxxxx type of bicep workout and I saw xxxxxxx results, the workout begins with…………” This is not pushing a product or service, this is giving fans a reason to be fans. It is something interesting which they can read and maybe try themselves. This idea also goes back to Part 3 being seen as an expert. Imagine this personal trainer posts a review maybe once a fortnight or once a month and gets a really good following from people reading his reviews and trying his workouts, he/she could potentially get new clients from people wanting to train with him/her in person. Think about your business sector, what sort of reviews could you offer that your fans (and potential fans) would find interesting and want to keep up to date with?
Reviewing products can again yield excellent results if done properly. First thing to note is, you weren’t born yesterday so neither were your fans, if you give everything you sell a glowing 5 star review and anything you don’t sell a poor one then it won’t take long for everyone to see that your reviews are not independent or trustworthy.
If you have a fantastic product that you’re currently stocking, go in detail about what makes it so good, how would it benefit potential users? Look at its weak points also, is it too expensive for example? If it is expensive then feel free to say so but then justify why it is expensive; this way you are showing both the positive and the negative sides of your products, highlighting the positives, explaining the negatives and overcoming reasons why people might not buy the product in question.
Part 4 – Special Offers, Discounts & Sneak Peeks for Fans
Make your fans feel special, maybe even as if they are forming the future of the business.
A number of companies use social media extremely well in asking their fans/followers for their opinion in what style of clothing/design they prefer. This can be a great idea as it performs in two ways; firstly it is customer research giving you insight into what they like/dislike and why, secondly your fans/followers can feel that they are helping you shape the business with what you bring out and when.
The next way to create a sense of loyalty with your fans is to offer them special discounts, promotions or deals which can only be claimed by Facebook fans. Many of my clients offer a discount code for use at the checkout which deducts a certain amount or percentage of the value of the goods – this code is shown only through the social media channel (many also use separate codes for Facebook, Twitter YouTube etc. to see which channels are performing most effectively). Announcing a 10% discount for your Facebook fans will not result in a mad flurry of sales, however if fans are aware that they have access to this code it may tip the balance in your favour when they do need a product/service that you offer.
What could you offer your fans for free? Think about it for a while, obviously you don’t want to be losing money but do you have an informational product or a service that you could offer to your fans for free? The majority probably won’t take you up on the free product but it is just another reason for an individual to follow your business.
Being Active Without Updating Your Status
Updating your status at the right time and with the right comment can be great for exposure. Now we’re going to look at adding comments to other companies pages updates.
When using Facebook as your business you can ‘follow’ other business pages, when they make updates you can add comments or ‘like’ what they have written. Before we look into this further, don’t try to ‘hijack’ another page owners update by pushing your own product/service, you will look desperate and weaken your brand/company page.
Start off by following a range of other business pages; competitors, similar businesses, large corporations and most importantly pages your target audience are likely to follow. Now when you login and manage your page your timeline will have updates from the pages that you follow as a business.
The way to add comments successfully to business owners is very similar to the advice already given when creating your own updates; be insightful, give your opinion, provide useful links for further information or even just ‘like’ the update. In short, you’re trying to make people like you and find your opinion valuable
Advertising
Paying for adverts on Facebook gives me mixed emotions.
The benefits are (for ‘Boosting’ your post):
- More people will see your update if you pay to ‘Boost’ your post, from about £5 you can have approximately 500-1000 people view your update – great if you’re saying something important or announcing a special offer.
- You can choose very closely what sort of demographic will see your advertisement/update so you can target your ideal customers.
Now looking at the benefits of paid advertising on Facebook:
- Again you can target your advertising very closely so your ideal potential customers view it.
- Advertising on Facebook can be a good way to advertise your page as well as your website and potentially increase the number of ‘likes’ you have.
- As with all Pay Per Click (PPC) – where you are only charged if someone actually clicks on your advert – it can be cheaper than other forms of advertising and is very accountable.
The negatives:
- In my opinion there’s only one negative for advertising on Facebook and that is as I’ve mentioned a few times throughout this book that most viewers are not in a buying frame of mind. If someone wants to purchase a product/service then the more traditional route will be to go to a search engine, visit some websites and then potentially make the transaction. Ask yourself, when was the last time you clicked on an advert and ended up buying something? Against this frame of mind though there are all of the benefits listed above and what I believe must always be remembered with social media for business, which is the ‘long game’ – someone has seen your ad today, they might not buy, they see your updates, again they might not buy however they are now aware of you as a business so if/when they come to need/want your product or service you will (hopefully) be in their mind.
If you do decide to advertise, as with everything do your research. Look at current advertisers when you login, what stands out, what doesn’t? What intrigues you/makes you want to click to find out more?
Adverts are going to differ widely depending on the industry you are in but the usual key features remain:
- If you have a wide range of products/services don’t try to offer everything, try promoting a single product or service with each advert.
- Create interest
- Have a call to action
- Stand out from the rest
- Give some form of incentive if possible (e.g. a discount code like mentioned above)
Your Task
- What products/services are you going to advertise on Facebook?
- Who are your target audience? Age, sex, location.
- When are they online?
- What words are you going to use to entice someone who sees your ad?
- What is the call to action? E.g. find out more, buy now, sign up etc.
- Create your advert on paper – give it an eye catching heading, and a few words.
Using Twitter For Business
Twitter is both separate and different to Facebook; you cannot post the same updates on both platforms and expect success.
You can follow the tips from the above section on Facebook with how to update (track their day, make things fun, interesting, shows yourself as an expert and promote special offers) but the way in which you update needs to be different in order to gain maximum exposure.
There are two things need to understand:
- #
The hashtag. This is simply a way for people to either find a conversation and interact with people from around the world on the same subject. Or as you will learn here for businesses to use to interact with their target customers.
Your Task
If you don’t fully understand the hashtag go to Twitter and in the search section enter #football and you will find updates from people around the world who have put updates including the hashtag ‘football’. Understand that they’re all talking about football, some are having a running conversation, sharing opinions or having a difference opinion…but they’re all talking about football in one way or another. Next be more specific, try a hashtag for a local sports team e.g. #Arsenal. Then try searching for a hashtag that relates to your business industry, for my business I would look at #marketing.
Now you should have a reasonably good idea of why people use hashtags and why they are important. If you update your Twitter account without using a hashtag you’re missing out on potential views. For example here are two updates we could use to increase awareness of this book:
“Our new book is available to buy, learn how to start your own business”
“Our new #book is available to buy, learn how to start your own #business. #startup”
The first update would only be seen by our followers. The second update would be seen by our followers as well as those looking at the hashtags #book #business #startup. I usually recommend no more than three hashtags within a tweet.
You should be starting to see the potential for your business. I’ll take a gym based in Manchester as an example for how the hashtag can be used effectively. Updates could look like this:
“Come down to our #gym in #Manchester for a free trial. #fitness #health”
Using the above hashtags means your update will show up when people search any hashtag including; #Manchester #Fitness and #Health. It’s a good idea to play around with the hashtags to see what words are most effective and provide you with the most exposure. Exposure can be measured in ‘favourites’, ‘retweets’ and new followers soon after the update (more on this later).
The next powerful way to use the hashtag for business is to search hashtags. Using the gym in Manchester again as an example; it is in a certain geographic area so it is common sense to target geographic areas that are within a commutable distance. Example hashtags to search include:
- #Manchester
- #Salford
- #Levenhulme
- #Didsbury
- #GreaterManchester
- And other reasonably close areas
Have a search through some of the recent updates that include the hashtag and interact with a few people. This can be done by clicking ‘reply’ on a tweet that you find interesting. I have just searched #Manchester and found this update (I conducted this search on 20/8/2014 at 21:00):
“Anyone know of a good gym in Salford? #Salford #Manchester #Gym”
Clicking reply, introducing yourself and your business with a direct link to your website and maybe a free day pass to get them through the door would be a great start for the gym owner based in Manchester.
Next comes searching for hashtags that you think your potential customers would use. So using the gym here are some hashtags potential customers might use:
- Gym
- Fitness
- Training
- Bodybuilding
- Running
- Strength
- Protein
- Supplements
- Sport
Searching for these hashtags will bring up people who are likely to be interested in the service provided by the gym (although many will not be within a commutable distance); so it’s a good idea to start interacting with these people as it will increase the exposure of their business.
The final stage for searching hashtags is one of the most effective for making sure you get results from people closely matching your target audience. Using the search function to search for two hashtags at the same time; the gym owner might use:
#Manchester #Gym
Or
#Manchester #Diet
This will bring up individuals/companies that very closely match your industry who you can interact with.
- @
Using the @ symbol is a way of creating a tweet that ‘tags’ an individual or company of your choosing. ‘Tagging’ someone basically gives them a notification that you have created an update which includes them. An example might be:
“Hi, @getrich we’ve just built our new website, check it out: www.example.com”
We would receive a notification that this person had have tagged us.
The most important thing to point out is that the @ symbol cannot be used excessively. If you tag people for the sake of it or do it excessively it becomes a lot like SPAM emails, you will annoy people and will find yourself facing a suspended or even banned Twitter account if you continue. An example of how not to do it would be:
Visit www.example.com @test12 @test123 @test124 @test987 @test676 @test324 @tes656
Each of these people would receive a notification but if they’ve never heard of you before or don’t understand why they’ve been tagged they’re within their rights to report the update to Twitter and of course it isn’t going to endear your business to them.
A more intelligent way of doing things would be to identify a key influencer within your sector and create a tweet like this:
Hi @test124 I enjoyed your tweet yesterday on….I’ve created a new website & would love your thoughts.
This way you aren’t sending tags out ‘en-masse’, you’re explaining why you’re getting in touch and I’ve always found that a bit of flattery can go a long way.
How to find key influencers within your business sector
I would describe key influencers as people who are very active on Twitter (5+ tweets per day), have a large number of followers (in excess of 5,000) and receive a large number of ‘retweets’ and ‘favourites’.
You can find these people by searching hashtags as mentioned previously. If you ran a marketing business searching the #marketing would bring up all of the people tweeting about this subject. Your task would then be to go onto the profiles of who you think might be key influencers and find out how popular they are by viewing the number of followers they have.
It can be a good idea to make a list of people/businesses that you feel are key influencers that you would like to interact with. It’s not a good idea to fire out messages to them all at once; instead keep them in mind, when you have a blog update or a link etc. that you think one of them might be interested in send a message over e.g.:
@KeyInf120 – I have just wrote a blog on …… would really like your thoughts on it.
If you have sent something that they key influencer finds worthwhile they may well ‘retweet’ you which will provide you with exposure to their followers which can be a massive boost in both increasing your credibility and your volume of followers.
Retweets
A great way to increase your exposure. If you have 100 followers and you post a tweet perhaps 5-10 of your followers might see it, the goal is to get ‘retweets’ from others. A ‘retweet’ means that another account holder presses the retweet button which in effect is similar to copying and pasting your update and sending it out to his/her followers. If another Twitter account has 10,000 followers and retweets you it’s realistic that a few hundred of those will then see your tweet.
It is a potentially powerful tool in gaining exposure. All you need to do is make your updates interesting, funny, useful or even just a link to something that is funny, interesting or useful!
YouTube
YouTube is often missed out by a number of companies as part of their social media strategy. YouTube can be an incredibly powerful tool when used effectively. It is one of the few social media channels which allows your one update to be viewed 24/7, around the world days, weeks, months, even years after it is published. Post an update on Facebook or Twitter and you can get some great exposure but that exposure will range from a few minutes, hours or if you’re lucky days. Create a YouTube video and your message will be out there for the forseeable future.
One of the main challenges I hear from people when I tell them they should be on YouTube is that they don’t want to be in front of the camera. This is a fair comment, very few people are confident public speakers and struggle with talking to a camera but the best thing you can do is give it a try and make a start. You will be surprised how quickly your ability can progress but if you simply cannot face the thought of looking at a camera why not ask someone else to do it for you; this way you can still have your company message on YouTube. You might have a really confident friend or family member who would relish the opportunity. Failing this getting in touch with a local drama school has yielded great results for many of my clients with amateur actors charging very little and in some cases doing it absolutely free.
A morning of filming can result in dozens of short video clips lasting from just 30 second to a minute in length. This stock of videos can be published systematically (maybe once a week) and give you ammunition for your YouTube channel for months. What else could you do that will cost nothing but your time which will advertise your business indefinitely?
It doesn’t matter how many clips you film if they’re not interesting or useful they won’t get much of a viewing. It’s time to think about what sort of videos you should be filming. Every business is different but I believe all business should look at doing videos containing:
*Tips/Advice.
*Information and or demonstrations.
*Showcasing their product(s) if applicable.
*Blog/diary.
*Customer testimonials.
As every business is different I’m going to take a second hand car dealer as an example for the type of videos that could be created out of each of the above categories. Really think about how the below information could be applied to your business, it can yield great results and portray you as an industry authority/expert when done correctly.
Tips/Advice – For a second hand car dealer I would advise them to create tips that are actually useful for their target market (i.e. people thinking about buying a second hand car) and answers questions that may be on their mind. Creating videos such as ‘questions to ask a salesman before you buy a second hand car’, ‘problems to look for when buying a second hand car’ or ‘things to ask about the car’ could get a real following. If you create videos with good content that people will genuinely find useful then there is every chance your channel will become a real success and significantly promote your business.
I have chosen these video titles as they; target the car dealers potential clients, they would give the viewers genuinely useful information that they can put into practice, they would help to build a relationship/trust by helping those who don’t know what to do and makes the business appear as an authoritative figure within the industry.
If you’re thinking that there’s no videos that you could film for your business then I’m 99% sure that you’re wrong, you just need to think more creatively.
Informational Videos – Similar to the tips videos but created with a different angle. Don’t answer specific question but give information, for example the used car dealer might be looking at a second hand BMW 3 Series; whilst the informational video would give things to ask a car dealer the informational video would look at the car itself. The informational video would perhaps look at the vehicles paintwork, give some of the history of the vehicle or perhaps BMW, explain why it is a good/bad car to purchase, examine the interior etc. Think about your business, you will have a wealth of information in your head and at your fingertips relating to your sector, products or services what informational videos could you create?
Showcasing Products – Videos showcasing your products can work really well for two reasons. Firstly it shows potential customers what your products are, their good points and some information about them. Secondly and very importantly it can be used for SEO purposes to drive traffic to your site. If you film a clip for YouTube that showcases one of your products, by giving it a detailed description with keywords and a strong title (see the SEO chapter for more about this) your video can be picked up by potential customers using search engines to find your product. YouTube is a very powerful tool, you may not be able to get your website onto the first page of major search engines however you may be able to get your YouTube video onto page one. At the end of the video make sure you give a link to your product page so it’s very easy for viewers to go and buy it, I also like to give a call to action/incentive as well e.g. 10% off when you enter ‘YOUTUBE’ at the checkout.
Video Blog/Diary: The success of creating good video blogs/diaries will be depend on two things; how interesting your business is and how interesting you can make your business – just because your sector is perceived as dull doesn’t mean that you have to be.
If your sector isn’t perceived as interesting/exciting/fun then it will be harder to gain a following initially compared to an interesting/more exciting business e.g. a martial arts business that posts videos of moves, self defence tips etc. should gain a following pretty quickly. If your sector is perceived as a bit dry it doesn’t mean your videos have to be; get creative and think of useful, insightful, interesting videos that you can create that relate to your sector. If your business is in the professional sector make sure you don’t let your videos get too unprofessional (without a good reason). In this scenario the car dealer could keep a weekly video blog/diary of cars that have come in and have been sold. Taking it a step further it might also be an interesting angle to show cars as they come into the showroom and what has been done to make them ready for sale, e.g. MOT, service, valet etc.
Customer Testimonials: These can be fantastic to embed on your website and push through other social media channels. People can be very cautious when doing business with a company they have never heard of before; written testimonials can be very easily falsified however a video testimonial can make a real difference. The second hand car salesman could do a very short clip with someone who has purchased a car, of course not every customer will want to do this but it is worth asking.
In addition to embedding on your website YouTube videos can be a powerful social media update that can receive likes, shares, retweets and quickly give your business serious exposure.
Many people think about LinkedIn as the place to go if they’re looking for a new job. It is great for this but it is so much more, if you are in business and not on LinkedIn then you’re missing out. LinkedIn is in some ways very similar to Facebook but for business people. Your LinkedIn profile will be you as an individual, within your profile you will say what you do and the name of your business. There are some very different ‘rules’ for a successful LinkedIn personal profile compared to your Facebook personal profile.
Your profile picture needs to look professional (make sure you don’t have a drink in your hand or on a night out! This type of image is perfectly acceptable on a personal Facebook page, your LinkedIn page needs to show you at your professional best). It may be an idea to have a professional photograph taken or have the background of the image manipulated. If you’re a professional it’s a good idea to use a picture of yourself in a suit whilst if you’re a gym instructor or personal trainer this type of clothing wouldn’t represent you or your business so do think about what you wear and how you look, first impressions count.
On Facebook you might post updates about what you’re doing at the weekend, if something funny has just happened or a joke. On LinkedIn updates are quite different, I would advise you to keep all updates focused on your business, your industry or sector – keep your personal/social updates to your personal Facebook page. As you get used to LinkedIn you will get a better understanding of the type of updates members use; the majority will post updates such as motivational quotes, tips, links to news articles etc.
Give your profile page a detailed description, the more that is on there the easier people will be able to find you. Where you went to school, college, university, where you have worked, charity work you have completed, your skills etc.
Now you need to start making some connections. Get your address book open, think about as many people that you know, have worked with and done business with, search for them and if they’re on LinkedIn send them a connection request. It is against LinkedIn rules to add people that you do not know in real life.
I try to stick with the philosophy of quality not quantity. Having a few hundred connections can look impressive but I see very little point in the account looking impressive but not actually making you any worthwhile connections or money. Take a while to think about the type of person you are looking to connect with on LinkedIn and then think about the type of people who knows lots of people like this and try to connect with both. An example of this would be a website designer, they would want to connect with business owners in the hope that they need or will need a website creating. If the website designer also thought about who knows lots of business owners (accountants as an example here) their task could be made much easier. If they were to connect with one accountant who may know fifty or more business owners their task of connecting with the right people is made much simpler.
When this has been fully completed it is time to create your company page. Again, you need a well detailed company description explaining exactly what you do, how long you have been operating for and why other members should follow you or be intrigued enough to find out more.
Many new (and experienced) LinkedIn members make the mistake of joining ‘groups’ that aren’t right for them. A group is very much like a forum, there are groups for just about every business sector, country, major city, hobby, interest and more. Groups are one of the main ways you will use LinkedIn to increase exposure of yourself and your business. Unfortunately it’s not as simple as using Twitter and Facebook, you can’t join a group and actively promote your business as advertising isn’t allowed (unless it’s paid for).
I’ll take an accountant as an example, he or she may join LinkedIn, create a personal and company profile and then go and join a number of groups relating to accountancy as that is what he or she does. I’m always surprised by how many people I meet in just about every sector who do this, they join groups filled with people just like them. An accountant looking to find new clients or gain increased exposure will only find other accountants (or similar) in accountancy groups, you can be pretty sure that they won’t be looking for an accountancy service in there! This will have hopefully got you thinking. What groups could you join which your target customers are a member of? As an example the accountant could join groups for new start ups, company directors etc.
Groups will take some getting used to as many groups that look great for your business can actually very inactive with only a handful of posts and views per month. Join groups, introduce yourself, try to interact but if there’s nothing going on some leave the weak groups and try another.
What to say in groups is very important. It is your opportunity to portray yourself as the industry expert; as briefly mentioned above you can’t actively advertise or promote a particular product or service but there’s no rules against being knowledgeable within your sector. Lets think about the personal trainer profile, a person such as this may join groups such as accountants and solicitors as they’d be a target market due to their disposable income and lack of physical activity during the working day. When entering the group(s) this person could initially introduce themselves to the group saying who they are and what they do (your first and only chance to directly push your business a bit). After this they would need to think more strategically about how to promote themselves ‘under the radar’. Examples such as posting statistics about obesity or the effects a lack of exercise can have on a persons health are things that can get people talking. When others in the group begin talking about your sector it is your chance to answer questions and offer advice. Again as mentioned a few times already in this chapter, this will be a ‘slow burner’ but the rewards can be significant. If you consistently answer questions, give advice and tips you will be surprised how many people start getting in touch with you through private messages to find out a bit more about you. I have won a number of clients of all sizes this way.