I’m going to forego the introduction for now in lieu of getting right into the good stuff. So get a good grip on your mouse, make sure your wireless keyboard has batteries to spare and lets get into it!
A Good Foundation
Firstly, let us answer the question “what is social networking?” Social networking on the internet is exactly what it sounds like. It’s simply interacting with other people to exchange information and develop contacts for fun, to expand a business or further a career. If you’re reading this blog, your goal will be one of the two latter goals.
The amazing thing about the internet is it has connected the entire world in a way that allows a business relationship to exist between John Smith in the USA and Hiro Nakamura way over in Japan without either of them ever having to meet in person. Welcome to the wonderful world of the internet, social bookmarking and social networking brought to you by the Social Networking Ninjas!
You may be wondering what all this means to you, the business owner. Well, we are living in an age of free internet applications that allow a user (you) to connect with his/her entire market (your customers). Today, you can find potential customers based on their interests, their age, geographic location… you can essentially search for, find and market your business to THOUSANDS of contacts based on any demographic, FOR FREE. Ever hear of Twitter or Facebook? Zannel? How about Flickr, YouTube, Myspace… are any of these names ringing a bell? Odds are you already have a profile set up on one or more of these amazing websites. The question is, how do you figure out how to use these free internet tools to make yourself filthy stinking rich? The good news is, you’ve already found the website that can help you do it. The bad news is, there is a lot of reading to do (or you could stop reading now and hire us to get your network off the ground today).
The first thing you need to do is create an identity for your business. A “brand” so to speak. Who are you? What do you do? What do you specialize in? What is your public persona? Are you fun? Serious? Insane? Brilliant? Having an answer to all of these questions is not only necessary to launch your social network but is important for any marketing campaign. Already have a brand? Read our next article “How to start your networking empire”.
Building your brand is the single most important thing you can (and must) do to set yourself apart from your competitors. So before you even set up your business’s twitter page, be sure that you can answer the following questions:
-What does my business do?
-What separates my business from the competition?
-What is my persona? ie, if my business was a person who would it be? Brad Pitt, Patrick Stewart… Hillary Clinton? (you have more control over this than anything else!)
-Who do I appeal to? ie, what is my demographic?
-Why buy me?
One client we’ve branded very well is a small Lincoln Mercury dealer in Denver, CO. Small in size yes, but after a few years of building their brand, they have risen above the rest and are #1 in the region for new vehicle sales and customer satisfaction. The dealer I’m referring to is Landmark Lincoln Mercury.
Here is how we would answer the above questions for them:
-What does Landmark Lincoln Mercury do?
Landmark Lincoln Mercury sells new and used vehicles, services vehicles and performs auto body work. Landmark is certified to perform warranty work on Fords, Lincolns and Mercurys.
-What separates Landmark Lincoln Mercury from the competition?
Landmark Lincoln Mercury provides an honest, no hassle, pressure free bid for your business. Landmark doesn’t do “hot deals”. Landmark doesn’t advertise with a “call to action.” Landmark has a legacy in Denver that is 100 years strong. Landmark maintains a strong emphasis on loyalty to their employees. The current President Tom Daniels has been known to sell his own personal property to pay the bills before even thinking the words “job cuts.”
-What is Landmark’s persona?
Landmark Lincoln Mercury is a combination of Jim Carey and Abe Lincoln. Not afraid to poke fun at themselves and show off their zany side. Tom acts in and voices his own commercials and fancies his signature commercial ending where he is run down by one of his own vehicles. Yet, when it comes down to business the focus is on honesty, integrity and a promise to bend over backwards to be sure that you are satisfied with your purchase.
-Who does Landmark appeal to?
This question can be answered more simply for an auto dealership than it can be for other types of businesses. For Lincoln Mercury the demo can skew from 45-60+ years of age, with female buyers taking a slight edge. Lincoln Mercury buyers are often married with a high school diploma and an income of $75K+. Not sure how to figure this out your demographic? We can help!
-Why buy Landmark?
With all the choices consumers have on the block, down the street, in the next town over and even on the web, the answer to this question is the most vital. Why buy Landmark? Because your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, church congregation, and nearly everyone else you know who bought a Lincoln or Mercury vehicle, bought it from Landmark or else, they wish they did. And they’ll tell you that! There is no better marketing campaign than the word of mouth of your loyal customers. You’ll buy from Landmark because, while all auto dealers talk about how great they are, only Landmark consistently delivers on their promise of honesty, integrity and professionalism. And that claim can be verified by anyone you know who owns a Landmark car.
Knowing the answers to these questions will help you create your social network because you’re going to need things, a lot of things to talk about out. Knowing who you are will help you formulate appropriate, interesting topics to keep your network tantalized. Having this simple profile in line is a huge step in the direction toward SN stardom.
Bookmark the page or subscribe to our feed and read our next article tomorrow “The basics of Social Networking”
