Every now and then I come to you with a laundry list of reasons why I think social media is one of the most powerful tools on the Internet and absolutely must be on your marketing tactics sheet.
Guess what - this is another one of those articles, and for good reason.
If you're somehow, inexplicably still ignoring social media as a viable marketing tool, you simply cannot afford to any more.
Want to know why? Here are some very compelling reasons: 1.
Social Media is more active than anything else on the Internet.
Yup, people surf Facebook more than they check email, watch videos, or read news.
Nothing is more popular.
2.
Over half the adult population of the United States is on Facebook alone.
Tack on the other sites and you have close to 65% of the population, and then there's the rest of the world.
3.
People spend a TON of time on these sites.
We're talking about 10% of all Internet time with the growth rate at 300% of any other online activity.
4.
People don't just use these sites, they interact with it.
Billions of new pieces of information, videos, and links are created every month by users around the globe.
5.
Mobile phones are becoming massive sources of Internet time and social media is built for mobile.
Easier than ever before, you can access people anywhere with a well built social media presence.
6.
No one wants to be "sold" something anymore.
They want to interact with the product, learn about it, talk to the owner, and furthermore, they expect it.
You have to offer that two way sales process in the social media web.
7.
Social media is free.
That's as big of a reason to use it as any I can think of.
With the exception of full blown advertising, you'll never need to pay a dime to tap into the largest single database of leads in the world.
8.
You'll create a culture alongside your business.
Culture persists even when businesses fail.
If you turn your business into a brand name that people can recognize, it will persist far beyond your competitors.
There are only so many things you can do to draw the attention of a few hundred million people, but social media has managed to find one of them.
At this point, it's not a bandwagon - it's the norm.
And while I don't want to be the one to say "all the cool kids are doing it", they really are.
Trust me, this stuff isn't going away.
Guess what - this is another one of those articles, and for good reason.
If you're somehow, inexplicably still ignoring social media as a viable marketing tool, you simply cannot afford to any more.
Want to know why? Here are some very compelling reasons: 1.
Social Media is more active than anything else on the Internet.
Yup, people surf Facebook more than they check email, watch videos, or read news.
Nothing is more popular.
2.
Over half the adult population of the United States is on Facebook alone.
Tack on the other sites and you have close to 65% of the population, and then there's the rest of the world.
3.
People spend a TON of time on these sites.
We're talking about 10% of all Internet time with the growth rate at 300% of any other online activity.
4.
People don't just use these sites, they interact with it.
Billions of new pieces of information, videos, and links are created every month by users around the globe.
5.
Mobile phones are becoming massive sources of Internet time and social media is built for mobile.
Easier than ever before, you can access people anywhere with a well built social media presence.
6.
No one wants to be "sold" something anymore.
They want to interact with the product, learn about it, talk to the owner, and furthermore, they expect it.
You have to offer that two way sales process in the social media web.
7.
Social media is free.
That's as big of a reason to use it as any I can think of.
With the exception of full blown advertising, you'll never need to pay a dime to tap into the largest single database of leads in the world.
8.
You'll create a culture alongside your business.
Culture persists even when businesses fail.
If you turn your business into a brand name that people can recognize, it will persist far beyond your competitors.
There are only so many things you can do to draw the attention of a few hundred million people, but social media has managed to find one of them.
At this point, it's not a bandwagon - it's the norm.
And while I don't want to be the one to say "all the cool kids are doing it", they really are.
Trust me, this stuff isn't going away.