Continued from the previous post...

As I said yesterday, I was recently asked if social media is going to replace traditional advertising. Here's the 2nd part of my answer:

Follow the Do’s and Don’ts
Because social media is all the rage and profiles are relatively easy to set-up, many people are jumping on the bandwagon and creating company or organizational profiles on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIN, or YourTube to name a few. Before you get too far ahead of yourself, consider these do’s and don’ts:

• Do Your Research - There are 100’s of social media networks , and signing up for all of them would be nearly impossible. The first step of establishing an effective social networking profile is learning the demographics of each and finding out where your customers are. If your customers are not on MySpace then it doesn’t make sense to invest your time there.
• Don’t Overextend Yourself - A word to the wise - social networking can become all consuming. Most of us don’t have 5 hours a day to commit to blogging, Facebooking, Tweeting or updating our lens on Squidoo. My advice – find the 2-3 social networking sites where your customers are and establish your profiles there. Quality posts in a few places is a far better plan than mediocre work spread out over a dozen social sites.
• Do Understand the Time Investment - I often hear people say that social networking is a must because it’s free. Yes, signing up to be on social networking sites is free. But branding your profiles and maintaining them is not! Creating, engaging, and growing an online community takes time, talent, technology, resources and people. Setting up profiles on social networking sites is easy, building and maintaining these relationships is not!
• Don’t Sell, Sell, Sell – Direct, hard core advertising won’t work on social media because it’s not what people are seeking. They want to know more about your company or organization get to know who you are, not what your selling.

Remember – It’s Social Networking
We are in an era where people expect a more honest and direct relationship with the companies and organizations they do business with. Social media is about engaging in conversations and building relationships – it’s not about push marketing. Think relationships first, business second, because when marketers move into to social networking, members move out.

Humanizing your business or organization by posting transparent, genuine and authentic updates will lead to stronger fans and followers and an increase in word of mouth marketing. Don’t always talk about the products you sell, the services you offer, the money your organization is trying to raise; rather, provide value to your fans and followers by posting industry related tips and tricks they can learn from, humor they can laugh at, or inspiration to motivate them. Your interaction should be informal and conversational. Not only will this help frame you as a thought leader in your industry, it will help produce engaging conversations.

And, oh, don’t obsess about the number of fans or followers you have –just like traditional networking or building a new friendship or business relationship –it takes time if you prefer a quality relationships. The same holds true when building your online network.

Learn By Participating
Not sure where to begin? Start by watching, learning and listening. Find other companies who are already using social media in their marketing strategies, and follow them or become a fan. Read their posts, watch how their fans interact with them, and study their profiles. Makes notes about what you like and what you don’t like, what appeals to you and what doesn’t.

Still have questions? There are lots of companies who can help you establish your profiles, strategize, and consult with you on best practices to take your marketing strategies online. Do your research here, too. Check out their own social media profiles and ask for links to the profiles they’ve established for other clients. Talk to these clients to make sure they were happy with their experience.

With the popularity of social media in society today, it will soon seem like every business is posting a profile somewhere. Certainly, those who aren’t taking advantage of social marketing techniques will be at a disadvantage, but just being on Facebook or Twitter won’t bring success. Businesses and organizations must have a strategy and they must focus on relationships! Thoughtfully developing the “social” side of your company comes with many benefits – not the least of which is increased customer loyalty and a strong network of “word-of-mouth” advertisers that can help bring new customers to your door!

Be sure to check out yesterday's post for more on taking advantage of social networking!

Is social media replacing traditional advertising methods?

In light of many advertisers who have recently announced they are reducing their traditional advertising budgets in favor of social networking strategies, I was recently asked if social media is going to replace traditional advertising. I wanted to share my response with you! It will be in two parts, so be sure to read tomorrow's post, too, for my full response!

Online Marketing Is Here to Stay
Social media is here to stay. In fact, I read a study by the Center for Media Research that found more than 50 percent of marketers will be using social media this year, and 75 percent plan to increase their social media use.

Business who choose not to adapt to this new culture into their current marketing strategies and advertising budgets will be at a disadvantage. You might not be online but your competitors probably are or will be soon!

I believe social media will become more mainstreamed for business and organizations this next year. You’ll find the companies that were once resistant to social media taking the leap and establishing their profiles. Customers and clients will rely on the information the see on these social networking sites to make purchasing decisions based on who they want to associate and do business with.

Social Media Should NOT Replace Other Marketing, but Work With It
I don’t think social media should entirely replace traditional advertising methods; rather, it should work in conjunction with and complement one’s existing advertising. Your social media profiles should reflect your company brand with colors, logos, and links to your Website. People should easily recognize you on your social media sites, and there are many ways to incorporate your company brand, but they aren’t always obvious. This is where you might want to invest in some help from social media experts, who can design your profiles with graphics and special features.

In addition to appearance, the message you communicate about yourself should be consistent as well. You can certainly do special promotions targeted only at Facebook or Twitter users, but don’t confuse your customers by presenting different images of your company through different mediums. For example, don’t appear trendy to through your tweets but conservative through your blog posts. You’ll only confuse your audience, and they may lose trust and confidence in your message. Be yourself, be genuine, and proudly display who you are at all times no matter who your audience is.

You Must Have Strategy!
I can’t reiterate enough the importance that one’s online and offline marketing strategies sync. Social networking with a plan and strategy can produce amazing results. Social networking without a plan can be a formula for disaster.

Your messages have to be consistent across the board. You can’t post messages on Facebook that emphasize your dedication to customer service and then ignore customers on Twitter who are reaching out for help from you because they have a problem.

Be sure to read the next post to learn more about social networking and the strategies you can take to make it an effective marketing tool for your business!

FTC Changes Rules for Bloggers Who Endorse Products

If you place endorsements or testimonials on your Web site or blog, you need to know that the Federal Trade Commission has issued new rules on how to do legally do this. If affects endorsements by consumers, experts, organizations, and celebrities, as well as the disclosure of the relationships between advertisers and endorsers.

The FTC issued a statement in October to describe the changes, and those changes take affect today, December 1, 2009.

"Under the revised Guides, advertisements that feature a consumer and convey his or her experience with a product or service as typical when that is not the case will be required to clearly disclose the results that consumers can generally expect. In contrast to the 1980 version of the Guides – which allowed advertisers to describe unusual results in a testimonial as long as they included a disclaimer such as “results not typical” – the revised Guides no longer contain this safe harbor," the statement says.

In addition, when bloggers or "word-of-mouth" marketing strategies convey an endorsement, those issuing the endorsement must explain the relationship between themselves and the product or service being endorsed.

To comply, we suggest adding a disclaimer to your blog or Web site testimonial page. Here's an example:

Regarding Testimonials
NOTICE: Provided in accordance with FTC guidelines - 12/1/2009Testimonials posted to this website are the perspective of individuals who are successful and/or enthusiastic about their experience. Testimonials are not representative of everyone’s experience and only provide information about the individual’s experiences as to the point in time when they are provided. All testimonials are authentic and accurate. Testimonials may be edited for clarity or brevity. All claims have been documented and verified for accuracy. No one has been paid to share their stories here. Individual results will vary.

Regarding Product Reviews, Endorsements
NOTICE: Provided in accordance with FTC guidelines - 12/1/2009Products are reviewed on this site as a resource for our customers and website visitors. Paid advertising or placement is not permitted on this site. Any affiliate relationships will be disclosed within the individual articles, prior to providing the affiliate link.Review authors occasionally receive complimentary review copies of products from companies that believe their products will be of interest to our audience. Reviews posted here always provide honest opinions, findings, beliefs or experiences with the products. The views and opinions expressed here are that of the individual author. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation should be verified with the manufacturer, service provider or party in question.

Let us know what you think!

• Do you feel that testimonials need to be regulated by the FTC? Is there a need?
• Is the government stepping in where it doesn't belong?
• Will you feel more confident buying products recommended by bloggers or Web sites now that these rules are in place?
• Can you comply with these regulations?
• Are you worried about "getting caught" if you unintentially violate these news rules?

To read the entire FTC statement, go to http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2009/10/endortest.shtm. The FTC also has a video available to share more information about how these new rules affect bloggers specifically. Watch it here:

Best Practices For Building Valuable Businesses Relationships Through Facebook

Facebook is an amazingly popular social networking tool that can offer businesses exposure to a huge audience. Today, there are more than 300 million active users, and it is the 4th most visited site in the world according to Alexa.com.

Businesses can take advantage of Facebook’s popularity by creating a Facebook “Fan” page. A Fan page is different from a personal profile. Individuals create personal profiles to connect with friends and family. Fan pages are specifically designated to represent and promote companies and brands. However, like personal profiles, Fan pages encourage relationship-building, and people become fans of pages because they want to connect with the people behind the business name. Incredibly, more than 10 million Facebook users become fans of pages every day!

A Facebook Fan page provides significant value to businesses for several reasons. A Fan page is indexed by search engines, so when customers search for you, they are more likely to find you. By having a Fan page, you boost your search engine ranking because you are constantly updating your page with new, fresh information, and search engines love that! Anyone can view your Fan page, so even non-Facebook members can easily find you. While a personal profile is limited to 5,000 friends, businesses can have as many fans as they want! And don’t forget – it’s all free! You can create an effective, attention-grabbing Fan page without paying a membership fee or bidding on pay-per-click keywords.

If you’re skeptical about the authenticity of Facebook users, you should know that the site administrators do their best to ensure that the people and businesses represented are real and legitimate. The rigorous terms of use dictate that Fan pages must be created by a person at your company who has the authority to do so. Facebook won’t hesitate to ban users if they find abuse or misuse. Facebook also protects your personal privacy because fans don’t have access to your personal profile, and you have complete control over who sees the information on your page.

A well-defined Facebook strategy can lead to new networking opportunities and business clients. It’s quite easy to figure out how to post a message, but communicating through Facebook does require some thought and planning to attract fans and build useful relationships. To that end, I’m offering my favorite tips and best practices that will help you get the most from your Facebook Fan page!

Facebook Tips and Best Practices

1. Think relationships first, business second – this is social media! When direct marketing and overt advertising move in, fans move out! Chat, converse, and be sincere.
2. With every post, consider how others will interpret what you say. You could be followed by the media (or Oprah – you never know!).
3. Create a social marketing strategy and integrate it into your overall marketing plan. Decide your target market and identify your core message – one that will establish you and your business as a thoughtful leader. Plan your posts to make sure the information is relevant and beneficial to your audience.
4. Brand your Fan page! Fans should be able to instantly identify your company when they see your page. Include your logo and tag line. With the cool Facebook applications, you can even add HTML programming code, allowing you to identify your business with additional graphics, such as a Web banner.
5. Always be strategic, consistent, and focused with your messages. If you say you will do something, follow through! Make sure each post fits your marketing strategy.
6. Create interest by adding content-rich media, such as audio and video. Also add your newsletter opt in box so visitors can easily join your e-mailing list.
7. Give your business a personality! Let your passion for your business come through by being genuine, excited, optimistic, and energetic!
8. Consistently engage in activities that create viral visibility. Post status updates, photos, videos, messages to your fans’ walls, notes, and comments. Anyone who visits your fans’ walls will see your posts, too, increasing your exposure to potential customers.
9. Engage others in conversation. When fans write on your wall, respond. They are making an effort to reach out to you, so you should make an effort, too! Like the old saying goes, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care”.
10. Encourage frequent visits to your page. Hold contests, offer exclusive discounts and specials for your fans, and let your fans be the “first to know” about exciting offers and announcements.
11. Monitor your own page at least once a day. Even if you don’t post your own new content, you should review your fans’ posts. Answer their questions and express your appreciation for their input.
12. Share personal and professional information, but guard your private life. You don’t have to be an open book!
13. Learn from your fans. They are your best source for feedback about current products and services. Be ready to adapt to meet their needs.
14. Be aware of all online conversations about your company and industry. With tools like Google Alerts and keyword searches, you can easily find out what others are saying about you, your competition, and the latest trends in your industry.
15. Promote your Facebook page everywhere! Consider purchasing a personalized domain name (GoDaddy.com offers them for $9.95 a year) so your Fan page URL is easy to remember. Add a Facebook icon to your Web site and blog, and link it to your Fan page. Include your Fan page link in your email signature.

Happy Facebooking!

Michelle Tjelmeland owns a Web and print firm in Springfield and is a certified social media and marketing specialist by the International Association of Social Media Specialists (IASMS).

I'm a Founding Member of the International Social Media Association!

I'm soooooo excited to share some news I've been cooking up for quite some time:

The doors are now officially open for the brand new ISMA - International Social Media Association!

Mari Smith is the president of the association and co-founder along with her business partner, Mark Eldridge -
talented co-author of The Obvious Expert among other great achievements!

They are an amazing team! And, I'm delighted and honored to be a founding member of ISMA!

I'm inviting you to learn more on:

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, at 10:30am PST / 1:30pm EST
http://marismith.tv

We will be discussing details of the Association, our mission, background, intentions, plans for the future... and, most
importantly, we'll be sharing details of our next Social Media Certification program!

If you have any desire to add in-depth social media expertise to your repertoire, the ISMA program will for sure be something you want to check out.

Be sure to use this promo code:MTMWMQS because anyone registering with one of the authorized promo codes will also receive Mari’s Quick Start Social Media Program on CDROM worth $497! This kit is amazing -- you wont believe all the information in it!

Join us Friday at 10:30am PST/12:30 CST:
http://marismith.tv (Mari's ustream channel!)

We hope to connect with you on Friday. If you can't make the live session, we will record and replay for you!

Meantime, you're welcome to take a peek at our association site and register for your membership:

http://ismaconnects.org

and do follow us on Twitter too:

http://twitter.com/ismaconnects

The mission of our association is connecting, engaging and educating members on social media around the world to advance the knowledge, skills, and integrity of the social media profession.

We have felt for some time that the social media industry really needs quality, professional training and education
and a solid association. I'm delighted to be a founding member.

**SAVE THE DATES**

If you do have any interest in joining our next social media certification training program, we begin very soon!!

Monday, October 26th and we run for 8 consecutive weeks meeting on both Mondays and Thursdays.

It's an *intense* schedule! But, by the end of the course (which also includes a two-day LIVE retreat!), you'll have
everything you need to be fully knowledgeable in the social media industry and run a successful business as a consultant, coach, speaker, trainer... or just to add on social media to what you're doing already.

This certification training is essentially the next iteration of a program I've gone through. Over 35 students like me
successfully attend this course and you'll get to meet many of them on the ISMA site!

Come get all your questions answered about the certification course:

FRIDAY, OCT 16 at 10:30am PST / 1:30pm EST
Just go to http://marismith.tv and you'll get to meet Mark & Mari and maybe a few surprise guests too!!

We look forward to connecting with you soon!
Cheers,
Michelle

Synch your Facebook Fan Page with Twitter

Facebook have been introducing an array of hot new features lately. One that I particularly enjoy is the ability to post content on my Fan Page that automatically posts over to Twitter with a link back to my Fan Page!

With Status Updates, you get a whopping 340 characters to write a post on your Fan Page - and that truncates at about 120 characters and inserts a bit.ly link back to your Fan Page. If you craft your update carefully to leave a kind of "cliffhanger" effect, your followers on Twitter can't help but click through and see what the rest of the message is.

Here's how: just go to http://facebook.com/twitter and connect your Twitter with your Fan Page.

Now, choose which posts to Facebook will automatically go out to Twitter by configuring the settings the way you wish. I have checked Updates, Photos, Videos and Links, but I have Notes unchecked because I'm already importing my blog posts to Twitter. I don't want my blog posts to show up on Twitter twice.

If you're also updating your Facebook personal profile and/or Fan Page with the Selective Twitter Updates app, you might want to disable the Fan Page updating so you don't end up with double tweets! (speaking from experience. lol!)

Or, if you prefer to update your Facebook Fan Page via Twitter, the best combo I've found is Hootsuite.com > Ping.fm > Facebook Profile and/or Facebook Fan Page + Twitter (+ LinkedIn and whatever other sites you want to update). Using Hootsuite allows you to also pre-schedule your updates!

Hope this makes sense,

Michelle - enjoy!! ;)

Alerts Made Easy Reaches Semi-Finals in Innovate Illinois Competition

Our sister company, Alerts Made Easy^TM, has just been notified that we are semi-finalists in the Innovate Illinois competition!! Here's the note we received:

Congratulations on behalf of the Millikin Regional Entrepreneurship Network (MREN) and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for participating in Innovate Illinois. Although the judges had a difficult time choosing semi-finalists, we are pleased that you and your company, www.alertsmadeeasy.com will be representing us at the semi-finals in Champaign, September 24.

Innovate Illinois is statewide entrepreneurial and innovation competition recognizing high-growth entrepreneurs. Businesses compete on the merits of their innovations to be named the most innovative company in the state by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). Out of the hundreds of companies that compete, four will win a total of $80,000 in cash prizes.

Needless to say, we are thrilled!

We saw AME in action when the tornadoes hit Williamsville and Loami last week, and we're so glad to know that it is helping people stay in touch and stay safe! If you're not sure how AME can work for you, you can send a free test message to yourself from our site. Or, give us a call, and we'll show you the benefits!