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How to Choose the Right Social Media Channels to Target Your Ideal Audience

These days it’s probably safe to say that most businesses have a presence on at least one social media channel. In fact, according to a 2021 Entrepreneur article, 97% of Fortune 500 companies rely on social media. The number is probably less for smaller companies, but it shouldn’t be. Social media can be a very cost effective way to raise awareness, generate leads, and build business.

There are a lot of channels out there, though, and not every channel is right for every business – or audience. Just because a channel is getting a lot of attention – take TikTok, for example – doesn’t mean that it makes sense for your business.

Continue reading “How to Choose the Right Social Media Channels to Target Your Ideal Audience”

7 Steps to Social Success

In October 2008 I launched my firm Strategic Communications, LLC. Not the best timing for such a move given the bad economy at the time, but it’s all worked out for the best; 12 years later and still going strong! One big benefit of starting a communication firm during a recession is that I had plenty of time to learn about social media which was rapidly emerging as an important channel for marketing communications. I jumped on board early, primarily with LinkedIn and Twitter, and since that time I have managed social media accounts to help my company and my clients’ companies drive awareness, website traffic—and business. I have a good following on my social channels and people often ask me to share my tips for building a solid following. I’m happy to share! Here I share “7 Steps to Social Success.” Continue reading “7 Steps to Social Success”

Don’t Slack With Your Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing should be a key component of the marketing mix for virtually any company. Not only is social media marketing relatively inexpensive, it also provides a greater level of engagement than mass marketing efforts because it’s targeted at those who have some connection with your brand—shared interests, common connections, etc. At the same time, many companies pay lip service to social media marketing. They are technically doing it, but they aren’t putting in as much effort as they could, or should. Continue reading “Don’t Slack With Your Social Media Marketing”

Social Media Shifts Hold Both Challenges and Opportunities for Marketers

Not so long ago, social media was the wave of the future in online activity. Sites like Facebook and LinkedIn revolutionized how we connect with one another; and apps like Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat altered how an entire generation communicates online. These applications aren’t likely to go anywhere soon, but the landscape has changed drastically in recent years, and social media giants like Facebook and Twitter have been slammed over concerns of privacy, data sharing and online trolling.

Let’s take a look at some of the recent developments and the potential for user impact—whether for personal or professional purposes. Continue reading “Social Media Shifts Hold Both Challenges and Opportunities for Marketers”

Let’s Get Visual: A Look at Some Popular Visual Social Tools

The old saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” has been around for decades and for good reason—visual images get attention. Studies indicate that adding visual images to online communications boosts the odds that audiences will both notice and engage with that content. For instance, according to HubSpot, an inbound marketing software platform company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts: Continue reading “Let’s Get Visual: A Look at Some Popular Visual Social Tools”

Social Media Best Practices for SOHOs: You Don’t Have to be Big to be Successful Online!

One of the benefits—and potential downfalls—of the online environment is that it is a great equalizer. The smallest company, including solo operations, can present a “big company” feel, effectively competing against the big players in their industries. This can also present a downside, of course, for those seeking goods and services from online providers; all that glitters is not, necessarily, gold, so caveat emptor certainly applies.

Still, for small companies, and even individual practitioners in service industries like consulting, law, accounting, engineering, etc., it can be relatively easy to establish a strong presence online.

We’ve done that for our own marketing needs, and we work with a variety of other small businesses and independent consultants to help them establish a “big brand” online. In doing this, we have found some very important best practices that really must be adopted to generate results: Continue reading “Social Media Best Practices for SOHOs: You Don’t Have to be Big to be Successful Online!”

Engaging Your Audience Through Social Media

Social media is critical for most (but still not all) businesses these days. It is a key communication channel that allows businesses and individuals to connect with a wide audience very cost-effectively.

As a business owner I maintain both LinkedIn and Twitter accounts for myself and have used them to successfully connect with prospects, clients, the media and other audiences. I’ve gained more than one client simply through my LinkedIn profile.

As a marketing communication consultant I work with clients to develop and manage their online communications presence through content marketing and management. These activities generally involve a strategy around driving traffic from various social media activities (LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, blogs, etc.) to their web sites to generate some specific action, ultimately leading to a sale or new client interaction.

In my work I’ve found the keys to success to involve primarily two things: Continue reading “Engaging Your Audience Through Social Media”

How to Use Social Media to Grow and Market Your Business

The wide proliferation of social media sites–from Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to Pinterest, Google+ and Instagram–provide a myriad of opportunities for businesses of any size to connect with their target audiences. That can be good news and not-so-good news for marketers. Why? Because while the out-of-pocket costs for using most of these tools is low to none, the time investment can be significant. Add to that Continue reading “How to Use Social Media to Grow and Market Your Business”

Is Facebook Fading Away? Why Continually Monitoring All Communication Options is Important

Once upon a time, many, many years ago, advertising on network television was all the rage. That’s where the big brands connected with consumers and drove sales. And then the landscape became fractured. Cable networking emerged, offering a wide range of new opportunities for advertisers to reach more narrowly segmented markets. The same thing was happening in the print environment. And then, of course, the Internet emerged and the rest is history.

But what’s happening today in the communication world will also, ultimately, be history. And recent reports Continue reading “Is Facebook Fading Away? Why Continually Monitoring All Communication Options is Important”