Social Media – Persistency is a Must!

My blog is rather out of date and that’s just not good for a social media person and online profile coach!  I have been so busy working on new ideas and learning new things in technology and social media that my blog has been on the back burner.  Shame on me!  I need to get much better at making sure my blog is done regularly.  I know it’s not the New Year when everyone works on their new year’s resolutions, but this one can’t wait until January!  I am starting today!

 So, having said all of that, how is YOUR blog writing going?  Are you spending the time on the content in your social media posts?  Are you consistent and diligent in your postings?  It takes more than a desire to keep up with all of this, it takes commitment!  If you have been slack in all or part of your social media efforts, you need to do what I’m doing and get back at it!  It’s not going to work for you unless you do it.

 My husband and I are working on some pretty ideas that we want to work together on and having social media postings will be vital to these new ventures.  We are beginning to understand just how important having someone to do your social media is to a business.  If you can’t afford to hire someone outside of your company to do it for you, at the very least you need someone inside your business assigned to do it on a daily basis.

 The three main things to have happen on a regular basis are:

1. Postings – you need to get your name out there and you accomplish that through postings
2. Content – you have probably read it as much as I have:  content is king!  People will read your posts if they are current, informative, and help others learn.
3. Interaction – whether you call it engagement or interaction, you need to connect to people.  You do that within discussion groups and by getting discussions started. 

 If you’re not doing these three things on a daily basis, you’re falling behind the curve on social media.  Social media is important to the new way to market your business.  Persistency is a MUST to keep up!  I know it’s hard.  I know things get in the way and you have a business to run.  I know it’s difficult to get your head around the fact that “playing on the internet” is helping your business.  But the internet is where your customers are, not matter what business you’re in.  Today’s consumers do their research online before they ever step foot in a store!  I do it!  Before I purchased my new appliances for my kitchen, my first step was to go online and compare prices, compare products, and pick out what I wanted.  My neighbor wouldn’t purchase her supplemental insurance plan from several agents because she couldn’t go online and run her own quote. 

 The internet is today’s market.  It’s where your customers are.  How strong is your online presence?  Persistency is a MUST!

 

Social Media Marketing and You

I ran across an article on Inbound Marketing Mistakes http://ow.ly/b30tb   We hear a lot about Inbound marketing these days.  What does it really mean?  Simply said, it means people who search you out and want to be on your mailing list or in contact with you.

No one really wants to market to people who don’t want their products or services.  We feel like we’re wasting as much of our time as we are their time if they don’t want our stuff.  So the whole idea of using social media in marketing is that you can get your name (brand) out there, and those who are interested in your brand/product/services will contact you!  Easy, Right?

Using social media for marketing is more than just setting up a facebook or twitter account.  Social media takes strategy, time, daily posts, and monitoring.  If it’s going to do you any good in turning contacts into clients/customers, you have to engage your followers, fans, and friends.  Social media is, well, SOCIAL.  To be social you have to engage in conversation.  You have to connect with people and collaborate with people and get to know their needs.

I know what you’re thinking.  You have a business to run.  How can you spend hours on the internet doing this?  Well, it’s called strategy.  You have to first understand what social media venues will actually work for your business.  Not all will.  You have to understand that there’s not just one social media venue that will be the answer to all of your marketing woes.  It takes more than one, and as I said earlier, it takes daily posts and good content.  It also takes TIME to truly make a difference in your sales.   Social media can be used in some form for any business.  The key is to figure out how it works best for your specific business.

Once you find out which of the different accounts you needs, then you can begin to get those set up and work on creating an online profile.

 Capable-

Your online profile needs to show first and foremost that you are capable.  You need to your prospective clients to know that if they come to your business they will find capable people to meet their needs.

Credible –

Your online profile needs to show you are credible.  You need to have the credentials to show you can do what you say you can do.

 Connectable –

You need to be connectable.  How frustrating is it to go to someone’s website, find what you’re looking for and would like to talk to someone, but can’t find their contact information?  How can anyone do business with you if you don’t give them a way to contact you.

I am so excited about our new venture with Harbor Insurance Marketing!  We are adding some new services to add value for our agents.  Our coaching and consultation services will be offered for everyone, but for the Life and Health agents of Harbor Insurance Marketing we will be adding social media management services as well.  We are planning to launch on Monday June 4^th so stay tuned!

Vonda

Social Media and You

Ok, so most of you have heard enough and learned enough so far to know that social media is the biggest news in marketing right now. Now, what’s the next step for you?

When my contract ended from my last job, my husband and I had several discussions on what my future looked like. The bottom line of those discussions is basically boiled down to “Should I actively search for a new job or should I start working with him in our insurance brokerage general agency” doing his social media and working on his online profile.

The more we talked, and researched, and learned about where marketing is going and the way it has and is being influenced by social media, we realized that your online profile is paramount in today’s marketing.  When you send out an email marketing campaign, people want to be able to look you up online and see who you are and what you’re about.  They want to make sure that you are legitimate and that you know what you’re talking about.  They want to know that you are a credible business with credible people working with and for you.  With all of that in mind, we decided that the best course of action was for me to start working with him and becoming his Virtual Profile Strategist.

I have learned so much in the past several months and continue to learn right along with everyone else because this stuff changes almost daily. But I am so excited! We are working very hard on some new services we will be adding to our business.

There is a lot of information out there, and most of it is good.  As I work to add some services for our Life and Health Insurance Agents, I see where the marketing strategies are basically the same for all industries, but you need to figure out what works for you and your business.  For instance, Pinterest is new and getting huge, but does it make sense for you to have a Pinterest account for your business?  Take a common sense approach to social media because each business is unique and has its own needs.

Time is a huge factor for everyone.  It takes time to do social media.  It takes time to figure it out, time to set up an account, and time to then manage the account once you have it set up.  We all know the phrase “count the cost”.  These accounts are free to get started, but as with LinkedIn, they offer a premium plan that does cost money.  How much are you willing to spend?  Then there is your time.  How much is your time worth and how much of it are you willing to spend?  Lots of questions, lots to think about, lots to figure out before you really get into social media.

I think we can all agree that social media is definitely in your future if you own a business.  If you have your own business or are getting ready to start one, I found a really good article to help you get started in social media.  http://ow.ly/aTh8d  It talks about the right questions you need to ask yourself as you set up your social media strategy.

If you are a Life and Health Insurance Agent, stay tuned.  We have some new services coming to Harbor Insurance Marketing that will help our agents market their own agency.

Have a great week everyone!