social networking - Small Business Internet & Video Marketing

The Power of Video + The Power of Networking = Value

Mar 282011

What Happens When People Meet Online and Have The Same Background, Training, & Goals?

They meet online, they network, they exchange ideas/expertise/goals/programs/etc. and the end result is a super-duper awesome training ground and helpful blog called TheWebVideoAcademy.

AND I am lucky enough to have met both Susanna Hess and Bertram Heath Sr. online as well and look forward to networking more with them.

Without further ado, I would like to introduce Susanna Hess and an excerpt from her latest blog about the WebVideoAcademy which offers both a paid membership and free advice via their blog and a perfect addendum to my last blog post about how to produce and use video to promote your brand.

Susanna Hess Is Stepping Up Her Game!

You heard me right, I’m stepping it up!

I’m making a major change, that almost doesn’t even seem like a change. Perhaps a better word would be “improvement”, or even “upgrade”!

As I’m sure you can tell by looking around this blog, I’m very passionate about video.

I love creating videos, editing videos, sharing videos, and even teaching others all I can about video!

I’ve taken it to the next level and would be THRILLED to have you join me.

Although I’ll still post here from time to time, I will primarily be writing and doing videos at a brand new blog.

Read the rest of Susanna's blog here and please join me in wishing both of them luck with their new project.

Online and Offline Networking Etiquette

13 Responses »

Mar 162011

Is There a Right Way and a Wrong Way to Behave While Networking?

Yes! There are certain agreed upon behaviors that are not considered acceptable when networking on and offline. Jumping right in with a sales pitch is frowned upon in both online and offline social networking. Would you go to a wedding or a Bar Mitzvah and try to sell the other guests your blue widgets? No – I wouldn't think so. And if you did, you would more than likely find that others steer clear of you.

If you are part of an online community and all you do is talk about yourself and your product, you will either be tagged as a spammer or in some cases, asked to leave the group. As we all know, there are TONS of social networking sites out there and it becomes our challenge to decide which ones provide the most value for us and which ones we will devote our valuable time to. I have found that some of these networks are akin to large numbers of people standing in a stadium all just shouting out their marketing message, not listening to anyone else, and not engaging in any conversations. Needless-to-say, I do not participate in those groups. Why should I? I don't need to listen to myself speak – I already know what I have to say, right?

Marc Gordon shares his insights with his usual humor in Five Awesome Tips for Networking Success. Click on the image below to watch Marc on the Marketing Tips from New Horiozns 123 Web Show.

I am “Linkedin” – Now What?

9 Responses »

Sep 062010

Linkedin is a very powerful professional ONLY networking site. Unlike Facebook which is HUGE having a Google page rank of 10/10 and an Alexa rating of 2, Linkedin doesn't share photos of our children, latest vacations and what we had for breakfast with our professional connections. To me, this is a good thing

How can we make sure we are utilizing our Linkedin profile to its fullest potential? Shari Weiss in her blog post How to Improve Your Linked ROI By Tweaking Your Profile offers some extremely valuable tips such as giving special attention to your profile headline and status updates.

Check out her article and get started enhancing and maximizing your Linkedin profile.

How to Improve Your Linked ROI By Tweaking Your Profile

How to React to Nasty Comments on Social Sites

6 Responses »

Jul 222010

People come in all different sizes and shapes. They also come with different levels of maturity, professionalism and tact. As a matter of fact, some people have NO tact, are totally unprofessional and have no problem broadcasting their character on the social web.

So what do you do when you meet up with such a person on a social networking site? Well, that depends. If you want to be viewed by others as immature and unprofessional then you can respond in like to their comments. However, if you would like to maintain a level of professionalism, that would not be a good idea.

The first thing to do is sit back, take a deep breath and DON'T write anything immediately. If you do, your response will more than likely fall in the category of a "reaction" which is emotionally-based and not thought-out. If you are a small business owner, remember that anything you "say" on the social web is a reflection of your brand and your reputation.

I prefer to take the high road and behave in a professional manner – which is what I just did when faced very recently with a really nasty comment on a social networking site. This particular person attacked my character because she didn’t agree with what I wrote or the video I posted. Will this person come back at me with both barrels? Perhaps – only time will tell. But as long as I know that I am responding in what I refer to as a professional, mature manner, there is nothing else I can do. In life, we can’t control what others do or how they behave; we can only control our own behaviors and reactions.

Have you been faced with a similar situation? How did you handle it?

The Proof is in the Pudding

4 Responses »

Jun 252010

Social networking works. Period! If you participate in social networking groups you will benefit in one way or another. If you are engaging with others in your industry, networking sites like Linkedin are a great source of idea sharing and learning.

Connections you make might not always immediately lead to increasing your bottom line, but the knowledge you can gain is invaluable. The relationships you make on social networking sites can and will lead to referrals. People like to do business with people they know and trust.

The more people you know, the more likely you will be referred to potential customers. It is not always easy to keep up with all the networking opportunities and discussions going on so we have to be selective and use our time wisely. When something pops up that attracts our attention, we should jump into the conversation and participate.

One such conversation about web hosts was started recently on Linkedin. I have been having "issues" with my web host and was very grateful for the opinions and suggestions offered to me and others on this particular post. The conversation was so insightful and valuable that it inspired Sherryl Perry, who started the conversation, to write a very helpful blog post for anyone who is interested in what things they should consider when choosing a web host. Read Is Website Hosting More than Just a Server? for some great insights to what things you should consider before choosing or moving to another website host.

Does Your Business Still Need a Website?

8 Responses »

Apr 172010

Today I dared to open one of the archived newsletters from Entrepreneur. Since I am a web designer I don’t like reading titles such as this: Does Your Business Still Need a Website?

The article discusses the idea of establishing accounts on social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn instead of a website. They evaluated an individual for whom this business strategy worked out. You can read the whole article here. Before giving out my space to social networks, I would like to look into this discussion further and let you know my opinion.

Rudy Mendoza totally abandoned his corporate website saying “We spent tens of thousands of dollars on our website and got almost nothing out of it” I’m really sorry for the designer team who created the website for Rudy Mendoza. They didn’t do a great job. A good website can be profitable.

3 Main Reasons Why Businesses Shouldn’t Ditch Websites for Social Networks:

1. Social networks serve a different purpose than a website. They serve as a tool to communicate directly with customers and achieve real time feedback. The functions of third party applications are complementary to a website but should not replace them.

2. Most social networks are found to be useful when companies and individuals link to additional information about them. Social networks are just a platform to jump from, not to jump into.

3. A website can drive as much sales as, and often times more than these social media networks. Although I have achieved leads and sales from social networking sites, the majority of my business has come from my website.

A brand cannot live without a good website that provides their customers additional information or the ability to purchase the product/service they are interested in. If the company tries to remove this component they risk damaging their branding. Who said you can’t have your cake and eat it too?

Companies should use websites and social media networks to market their products or services. Why should you have to choose when you can use both?

Note: I use social media networks and find that they have been useful in increasing brand awareness for Furlong Design but I would never forgo my corporate website for those sites. Let me know what you think by leaving comments below. Original source: http://furlongdesign.com/2010/04/14/does-your-business-still-need-a-website/

Big Brother is Watching YOU!

No Responses »

Mar 172010

Social networking is a great way to meet new people, share ideas, learn new things and promote your business.

HOWEVER, what you write on your profiles, statuses, updates, comments, etc. can and will be read by anyone.

Yes, sites like Facebook allow you to set your settings as private if you wish, but can our right to privacy be taken away?

Check out How US Government Spies Use Facebook (Updated) to see how the government can get past your privacy settings.

Effectively Managing Social Media Marketing

5 Responses »

Mar 172010

There are TONS of social networking sites on the web that we can choose to participate in and engage with.

New ones are popping up daily that it is easy to get lost in the black hole of social media.

Creating and following a social marketing plan with goals, objectives and measurement becomes paramount.

5 Ways to Electrify Your Social Network lays out a nice foundation on just how to go about managing your social profile. Lee Odden says “Showing up to the game doesn’t mean there will be an audience”. How true this is and goes along with my main mantra “If you build a website, does it mean people will visit it?”