Social Media Sites and How to Use Them Effectively In Your Business

In Today's Lesson...

Lesson 1 - Introduction to Social Media Marketing

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Do you remember when businesses, small and large, focused lots of time and energy on advertising? When nearly all businesses placed an ad in the local Yellow Pages? Social media is the Yellow Pages on steroids! Through social media, you can market your business and services worldwide, educate consumers, receive feedback from customers, run special promotions, provide coupons to targeted audiences, and more. AND YOU CAN DO SO EASILY AND AFFORDABLY. The power of social media is almost limitless for small and large businesses.


There are dozens of social media sites all of which have unique features, users and possibilities for marketing your business. I have 10 articles ready to provide an overview of the top social media sites and ways that you can use each site to promote your business. The social media sites included are:
• Twitter
• Facebook
• LinkedIn
• Digg
• StumbleUpon
• Squidoo
• Ning
• YouTube

Like any marketing or advertising campaign, it is important to start with the end in mind. So before you jump on board with any of the social media sites, I recommend that you spend time developing a social media strategy that will help you achieve your goals.

Here are some questions to ask yourself before you get started:

1. Who is your target market? Which of the social media sites are they hanging out at?
2. What products and/or services do you want to promote?
3. How much time do you have to spend on social media marketing? Do you have family, friends or staff that can assist you with your social media efforts?
4. What do you hope to accomplish through your social media efforts?

Social media marketing is a powerful tool for your business. You can reach people who you otherwise would have never known your services or products existed. By spending only minutes a day, you can influence your audience, build customer loyalty and increase sales and spend only the value of your time. Social media can boost your business in ways you never imagined!

In my next post I'll introduce you to Twitter and how you can best use it to benefit your business. In the meantime, give some serious consideration to the questions asked above. Your answers will influence which social media platforms you choose, how you use them and what results you will achieve.

Until next time,
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