"Ads aren't cool.
" As you read this article on social media use in business, remember that quote.
We'll tell you why later.
From the very beginning stages of developing your business, you should be creating a powerful web and new media presence.
To achieve this, however, you will need to think beyond choosing a good domain name or ranking highly on search engines.
Companies today are also ramping up their social media use in business in order to gain that presence and reach their prospective consumers or clients.
Social media refers to new media platforms and websites that people are using to connect to each other and to companies.
The key websites and platforms are of course Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and YouTube, all of which have become global phenomena.
There are also other popular, niche-oriented social networking sites, the number of which is growing daily.
In order to use these platforms effectively, you will have to find the right places to create profiles, and then use them properly.
Why are social media platforms so popular? The main driving force behind social media is that these sites allow people to interact on a more personal level en mass than ever before.
It links people via their interests and friends and is an exceptional environment in which people and the people at companies can interact as well.
It is also a forum in which prospective buyers of products and services are looking for additional information.
Fortunately, those on these sites are typically more open to taking that information in as well.
To some extent this is because social media is still new and novel.
Whatever the explanation, social media's capacity to cut through commercial jumble and get a message across is really quite tremendous.
A planetary social media megastar Facebook, with its 800 million users, is as of now the second most-visited website on Earth.
This is why, it is an absolute necessity for every business to have a presence there.
One of the strategies to gain this presence is to make a Facebook business page, called a fan page, for your business.
This is a no-expense move with amazing potential for giving your business exposure.
It serves as a place to draw in clients and further your connection with current customers.
Specialized Facebook fan page maker software and templates are out there for many different business types if you want to further customize your presence.
You should tell all of your clients or customers and friends to "like" your page, and also post a link to your page on any printed business materials, your website, in online yellow pages and other business directories, and essentially anywhere your business is advertised.
The messages and information you post on your fan page will absolutely make an impact since people are paying a great deal more attention to them.
Commercials aren't cool A word about the advertising and content you put on your business Facebook page.
Just remember the famous line in the recent film The Social Network purportedly uttered by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg early on in his development of the site: "Ads aren't cool.
" Take that to heart in the design of your messaging on Facebook.
New media users are not responsive to a heavy-handed marketing approach.
Be more subtle and friendly in your communication.
Try engaging your page visitors with polls and video or other fresh approaches.
Another site you must not forget when you develop a social media strategy is Twitter.
This platform also allows you to create a profile for your business, and then follow other members of Twitter.
One of the strategies of marketing on this social networking platform is to follow the right people, and then get them to follow you back.
Then, be sure to tweet only interesting facts and things that will interest others.
Also, reply to others' tweets with helpful info.
As you get a credible reputation, you can begin placing links to your Facebook page or website in your tweets to drive traffic to your message.
For b2b marketing, it is important to make a business profile on LinkedIn, which acts as an excellent professional networking site.
Interfacing with individuals or different businesses in your industry is made natural on this site.
LinkedIn in also permits its site members to put advertising on the site.
You can list your Facebook and Twitter profiles, and also email directly the 135 million users on LinkedIn.
A new force has also entered the social media market Google entered the social networking sector in 2011 with Google+.
Google+ was developed to draw business professionals and is an excellent place to network your business.
Many amazing Google tools are available to make the most of your site interactions as well.
Once again, creating a profile is the starting point and from there, positing, blogging, making contacts, posting video and photos and much more are possible within this online community.
Speaking of video, the number of companies using YouTube as part of their marketing engine has exploded as well.
Posting creative advertising spots, releasing exclusive content only to YouTube and generally using the site as a private channel to consumers have become standard practices for social media use in business.
All of these tools are essential to build into your marketing strategy in today's message-saturated marketplace.
By carefully designing your strategy and being smart with your messaging, you will be able to extend the reach of your business marketing messaging exponentially with a smart social media strategy.
" As you read this article on social media use in business, remember that quote.
We'll tell you why later.
From the very beginning stages of developing your business, you should be creating a powerful web and new media presence.
To achieve this, however, you will need to think beyond choosing a good domain name or ranking highly on search engines.
Companies today are also ramping up their social media use in business in order to gain that presence and reach their prospective consumers or clients.
Social media refers to new media platforms and websites that people are using to connect to each other and to companies.
The key websites and platforms are of course Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and YouTube, all of which have become global phenomena.
There are also other popular, niche-oriented social networking sites, the number of which is growing daily.
In order to use these platforms effectively, you will have to find the right places to create profiles, and then use them properly.
Why are social media platforms so popular? The main driving force behind social media is that these sites allow people to interact on a more personal level en mass than ever before.
It links people via their interests and friends and is an exceptional environment in which people and the people at companies can interact as well.
It is also a forum in which prospective buyers of products and services are looking for additional information.
Fortunately, those on these sites are typically more open to taking that information in as well.
To some extent this is because social media is still new and novel.
Whatever the explanation, social media's capacity to cut through commercial jumble and get a message across is really quite tremendous.
A planetary social media megastar Facebook, with its 800 million users, is as of now the second most-visited website on Earth.
This is why, it is an absolute necessity for every business to have a presence there.
One of the strategies to gain this presence is to make a Facebook business page, called a fan page, for your business.
This is a no-expense move with amazing potential for giving your business exposure.
It serves as a place to draw in clients and further your connection with current customers.
Specialized Facebook fan page maker software and templates are out there for many different business types if you want to further customize your presence.
You should tell all of your clients or customers and friends to "like" your page, and also post a link to your page on any printed business materials, your website, in online yellow pages and other business directories, and essentially anywhere your business is advertised.
The messages and information you post on your fan page will absolutely make an impact since people are paying a great deal more attention to them.
Commercials aren't cool A word about the advertising and content you put on your business Facebook page.
Just remember the famous line in the recent film The Social Network purportedly uttered by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg early on in his development of the site: "Ads aren't cool.
" Take that to heart in the design of your messaging on Facebook.
New media users are not responsive to a heavy-handed marketing approach.
Be more subtle and friendly in your communication.
Try engaging your page visitors with polls and video or other fresh approaches.
Another site you must not forget when you develop a social media strategy is Twitter.
This platform also allows you to create a profile for your business, and then follow other members of Twitter.
One of the strategies of marketing on this social networking platform is to follow the right people, and then get them to follow you back.
Then, be sure to tweet only interesting facts and things that will interest others.
Also, reply to others' tweets with helpful info.
As you get a credible reputation, you can begin placing links to your Facebook page or website in your tweets to drive traffic to your message.
For b2b marketing, it is important to make a business profile on LinkedIn, which acts as an excellent professional networking site.
Interfacing with individuals or different businesses in your industry is made natural on this site.
LinkedIn in also permits its site members to put advertising on the site.
You can list your Facebook and Twitter profiles, and also email directly the 135 million users on LinkedIn.
A new force has also entered the social media market Google entered the social networking sector in 2011 with Google+.
Google+ was developed to draw business professionals and is an excellent place to network your business.
Many amazing Google tools are available to make the most of your site interactions as well.
Once again, creating a profile is the starting point and from there, positing, blogging, making contacts, posting video and photos and much more are possible within this online community.
Speaking of video, the number of companies using YouTube as part of their marketing engine has exploded as well.
Posting creative advertising spots, releasing exclusive content only to YouTube and generally using the site as a private channel to consumers have become standard practices for social media use in business.
All of these tools are essential to build into your marketing strategy in today's message-saturated marketplace.
By carefully designing your strategy and being smart with your messaging, you will be able to extend the reach of your business marketing messaging exponentially with a smart social media strategy.