NAWBO Insider - winter 2009

Promoting Your Business Using Social Media

By Angie A. Swartz
January 2009

It’s easy to find traditional media experts who’ll tell you that social media tools like Facebook and Twitter are only good for contacting family and friends. In fact, I heard an uninformed speaker tell a large audience just that at the Entrepreneur Magazine Growth 2.0 Conference.

I couldn’t help but bring this up with Executive Editor Charlotte Jensen, noting that, “Your speakers are doing a disservice to your audience of small business owners in a down economy, because they have a large pool of free resources available to them with social media and your speaker just said to discount them all.” She agreed and said that Entrepreneur often writes about using social media to promote small business.

That warmed my heart because I’m a social media evangelist. Why? Because I see that social media offers true value to small business owners to really grow their businesses.

What is Social Media?

There are many definitions to social media, depending on where you look and with whom you speak. You’ll also see it referred to as new media. Here's my definition of social media:

Social media is using the Internet as a conversation tool to create meaningful, two-way connections and relationships with your friends and customers so you can offer them what they want and need in the most effective, efficient and entertaining manner.

Ten Easy Ways to Get Started

Social media can be complex and a comprehensive plan requires brainstorming with an expert. However, here’s a list of 10 tasks you can implement on your own. Have fun and watch the attention to your business grow!

  1. Review your calendar and allocate at least 20 minutes each day to social media tasks. Think of this as time you’re redirecting from your current marketing time budget.
  2. Determine your top five social media marketing goals, e.g., seek out like-minded virtual friends who are in my industry and power partners, or develop high-quality conversations and relationships. Write these out clearly.
  3. Acknowledge that your social media efforts are like virtual networking. You’re developing relationships, so always be thinking of what you can do to help your new contacts.
  4. Establish accounts on Facebook, LinkedIn and Plaxo.
  5. Write articles and research where they are most appropriately placed given your business.
  6. Ask questions and respond to questions on places like LinkedIn and Facebook status updates.
  7. Perform a Google search for blogs in your subject matter. (http://blogsearch.google.com/)
  8. Make comments on other people’s blogs. Make sure your signature includes your name, blog/website address and your Twitter name.
  9. Consider establishing a blog.
  10. Attend a class or seminar on social media.

Angie Schwartz Angie A. Swartz, a recovering telecom professional, is a writer, blogger and executive coach. She is the co-owner of Square Martini Media, a social media consultancy, and the founder of Six Figure Moms Club, a live and virtual support network for executive moms. You can find her on Facebook, LinkedIn and Plaxo as Angie A. Swartz or @aaswartz on Twitter.