"Social Media Revolution 2011"

If you haven't seen this, it is really good. It provides a realistic picture of where social media has taken business in 2011.

http://youtu.be/3SuNx0UrnEo

Using Newsletters in Email Marketing

September 15, 2011

Posted in Articles, Business Development/Planning, Sales & Marketing, E-mail Marketing Print By Hollie Clere

If you have a website, maybe a social media presence and the need to reach a large base of vendors, partners and customers, email marketing — and specifically email newsletters — are a great way to nurture those relationships. Sharing company blogs, links to company social media sites, company announcements and surveys are ideal for email distribution plus the cost for newsletter subscription services are low and the reach can be substantial.

So, where do you start?

Content. It all starts with content, including blogs, promotional pricing, links to specific sites and topics that could be of interest to the reader and are relevant to your company’s products/services. Remember to include only original information; do not plagiarize other sources. However, you may be able to secure permission from an author or publisher to use their work.

When developing your own content, think about every word as a driver for a specific goal. For example, if you are promoting a 10-day discount on widgets, you will want to specifically mention the widget, describe the details behind the discount, provide information on why the widget is a “hot" commodity, why the viewer should choose your widget and provide a link for the viewer to get more information about the widget.

It is also a good idea to embed images relative to your topic. Like articles, you need to have permission to use these images, so you should consider using your own photos/charts or subscribe to a stock photo service where you can purchase the rights to use the photos.

Length. The goal of the newsletter is to encourage the viewer to click through to a desired Web page with further information. Here is an example:

DISCOUNT ON SUPER FAST PINK WIDGETS
10% discount on our Super Fast Pink Widgets through October 21, 2011. Click here to receive your discount code.

or

5 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD ALWAYS MAINTAIN YOUR WIDGET
It is a good idea to maintain your widget by cleaning the parts monthly. (Insert the URL LINK to the page that talks in more detail about this topic.)

What are your thoughts on Google+?

Curious on your thoughts of Google+ . Have you checked it out? Do you like the features it offers? Do you think it will last? Do you will sign up for it? Open feedback is welcome.

Why are companies not found on LinkedIn or Facebook?

We have been working with multiple companies developing social media profiles lately. In the efforts of building a branding and consistent character basis for companies, we have seen more and more that there are too many companies without a presence on LinkedIn. Not talking about an individual profile - which is very concerning that over 3.5 million users are on the site, but yet millions more haven't ventured into building a profile is overwhelming. To start there, if you don't have a presence on this site as an individual, you are telling the world that either you don't want to be connected to, you aren't savvy with the Internet, or you would rather spamming sites publish information about you instead. One of the most beautiful things about LinkedIn is the searchability factor through google. 4 out of 5 customers will search LinkedIn for their potential vendor representative (or potential new hire) to gain character perspective and knowledge about this person. If you don't choose to put information about your history that you want people to see, they will find out information about you on sites that pay a lot of money to Google to post personal things such as pictures of your home, family members & so on (an example of this is 123people & there are many other sites out there who "phish" for your information & post it freely online). Should you ever find something like this - you can contact the publisher for it to be removed. Know that the most important piece of us mentioning this - is the fact that THE INFORMATION YOU WANT POSTED ON THE INTERNET - SHOULD BE THE INFORMATION THAT YOU CHOOSE TO BE POSTED - NOT WHAT SOMEONE ELSE DECIDES FOR YOU!

This holds true about information for your company. If you don't have a website - how will your customers know what you offer & if you are a real business person? Same with social media. If you are not "out there" and "current" how will people know how to do business with you, connect with you, follow you and want to maintain relationship with you????

With that being said, as a business owner you have thought about a few things:

(1) what is my logo?
(2) what is my brand?
(3) where will I market?
(4) how will I market?
(5) who will I market to?
(6) build a website

Will all of these things in place, there is still a laundry list of things that need to happen as well.

FACTS:
(1) If you have a website, it will have either detailed - or not as detailed - information about your products/services
(2) You may be choosing some print marketing or mailers for your potential or existing customers

These are important - but what should go in hand with this?

***SOCIAL MEDIA***

If you have a personal presence on Facebook, you should NOT be marketing your company on your "personal" page, rather you should have a business page where people can "like" your company and follow your updates.

If you have a personal profile on LinkedIn, you need to be sure your company profile is established as well so people can easily find you through your company or your personal profile. Individuals can also "like" your company page for updates. You should also have recommendations of your work that your customers, vendors or staff can post about you - this is a great character building piece and can also encourage a history of your experience.

A newer feature of LinkedIn is posting products & services. The great thing about this is you can get recommendations for these products or services right on the company page - a great marketing tool.

My challenge for you - If you have a personal presence on FaceBook or LinkedIn - then create a company profile for them both. It will increase visibility, credibility & ownership of your brand.

Gotta Share - Video

Really enjoyed this video & had to "Share" it with you.

Time Management Tools: Social Media Series - Part 5

Tools are the most important key to help you manage all of your most important social sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Utilizing tools like HootSuite, TweetDeck, Radian 6, UberSocial, etc., will change how you interact with your connections online. . . .

Check out my post on the topic here:

http://www.integratedalliances.com/social-media/twitter/management-tools-for-managing-your-time-in-social-media-part-5

Hollie Clere, The Social Pro is a social media manager, trainer and author in the LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog and social media world.

Time Management for LinkedIn: Social Media Series - Part 4

LinkedIn is a great tool to connect with friends, coworkers, and professional acquaintances; but, most importantly it is most used to build your network to access resources for business. It is very important to maximize your time in this professional social site due to your visibility online. Your new LinkedIn connections find opportunities to connect with you on a business level because of your activity on the site. Somewhat like Facebook, but in a professional environment, you can post a status update (“Share an update”), send internal messages, communicate through Groups, create or answer polls and also embed applications in your profile to share in your travel, presentations, video, books you are reading and other applications to boost your presence in a creative way. . . .

Check out my post on the topic here:

http://www.integratedalliances.com/social-media/linkedin/time-management-for-linkedin-social-media-series-part-4

Hollie Clere, The Social Pro is a social media manager, trainer and author in the LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog and social media world.

Time Management for Twitter: Social Media Series Part 3

In the world of posting whatever, when ever, there is a lot to be said about quality time with Twitter. Twitter can be utilized in a multitude of ways. Any user can post updates about news, links, promotions, events, topics of interest, engage in customer support and participate in online discussions. As an individual or business, you need to decide how you will engage in this forum.

If you have over 100 people you are following, it can be difficult to keep track of the latest updates as twitter is an active stream of personal opinion, back and forth discussions and buzz about thoughts or activities. . . .

Check out my post on the topic here:

http://www.integratedalliances.com/social-media/twitter/time-management-for-twitter-social-media-series-part-3



Hollie Clere, The Social Pro is a social media manager, trainer and author in the LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog and social media world.

Attending Channel Partners Expo 2011 in Las Vegas? Schedule a Meeting with a Social Media Specialist!

5 Sites where you should have presence:

LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Slideshare
Youtube

For consulting, support or ramp up into these spaces with optimized SEO, SMO and key placement, our team has developed a process to quickly get you up to date, active and searchable on these major sites. Build your client portfolio, grow your business and stay in touch with your customers on a weekly basis using customizable tools to manage your spaces. Just having a business card or website isn't enough anymore to manage an effective retention base.

Call us today to learn how we can help you grow your Agency Business.

Our availability during Channel Partners is as follows:

Monday 03/14/2011
8:30a-9:30a breakfast meeting
10:00a-11:00a
11:30a-12:30p
1:00p-2:00p lunch meeting
2:30p-3:30p

Tuesday 03/15/2011
9:00a-10:00a
10:00a-11:00a breakfast meeting
11:00a-12:00p

Please let me know which 3 times may work best for you. We can allocate 30 or 60 minute meetings.

Direct: 303-927-7398
Email: hclere@clerecomm.com

Time Management for Facebook: Social Media Series Part 2

When exploring the world of social media you will find that it is easy for the social sites to claim time you have allocated to work. It is best to put into practice time allocation to optimize your online schedule. With Facebook, you have probably connected to family, friends, coworkers, business partners and a myriad of other individuals that you find yourself “living life” with online. The ability to visit their pages to view pictures, post comments on their status updates, read notes and view videos; you can quickly become inundated with the absence of time. . . .



Check out my post on the topic here:

http://www.integratedalliances.com/social-media/facebook/time-allocation-in-social-media-series-part-2-facebook








Hollie Clere, The Social Pro is a social media manager, trainer and author in the LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog and social media world.

Time Management for Social Media – Part 1

You have created your social media presence, your branding is consistent and you find yourself spending hours each day on any given social media site scrolling, searching, reading and posting for hours on end. But the question begs to be asked, is this how the social media world was intended or is there a better way to coordinate your time in these spaces?

Check out my post on the topic here:

http://www.integratedalliances.com/social-media/winning-with-social-media/time-management-for-social-media-part-1

Hollie Clere, The Social Pro is a social media manager, trainer and author in the LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog and social media world.

"Real Life Twitter" video via collegehumor.com

For those of us who have a personal Twitter - you can relate to this cute video. "Real Life Twitter". View directly on the collegehumor.com site:


http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1909386

"Facebook in Real Life" Video on Youtube

This video of Facebook in Real Life never gets old! Enjoy the laughter!

Social Media: The Challenge, the Reward, the Victory!

When considering branding & building of social media presence, the thoughts behind it can be daunting for business owners. After talking with multiple businesses over the last few months about the best social media solutions for them, the theme remains the same. Business owners want a presence, the edge of this type of retention for their customers, but don’t know the first place to begin.

The Challenge is taking the plunge in developing a full social media profile, managing, maintaining it and building your corporate character presence.

The Reward is retention for your customers, industry recognition, the opportunity for online prospecting, growth and a solid network of followers interested in what your company has to offer.

The Victory is an industry edge, your visibility will increase far beyond your competitors, successful growth, a network awareness of your brand and services.

The question we ask, are you willing to make a plan, stick to it and watch it bear fruit for your company? Paper marketing is becoming less of a standard and a thing of the past. The possibilities are endless and having “just” a website isn’t enough to get your name out there any longer. What costs are you willing to sacrifice in order to retain relationships with your customers, agents, partners and vendors? Consider the time you have, experience in the social media industry and the bandwidth to maintain your presence successfully.

Are you following our corporate company sites on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook? Click here for our full portfolio: Click Here