This Is Social Media Week!

Let’s agree on two big assumptions right away:

1. Marketing is no doubt the world’s second-oldest profession.
2. But, as John Wanamaker noted last century, not all marketing works.

So does social media marketing work? Yes. Will it work for you? Maybe. Just like other marketing campaigns, your social media marketing success depends on quality, consistency and a little luck.

Less than twenty years ago you might have thrown away the Archie lunchbox Mom made you carry and scoured antique stores hoping to find the Hot Wheels lunchbox you really wanted back then. Now ebay makes it easy to connect with folks who have what you want or want what you have – people you would never have known about otherwise.

Social media marketing also lets you connect with people you may not otherwise have access to. Like ebay, the key to connecting socially is to have what people want. Nobody wants boring and obnoxious. They want personable, interesting, fun, informative – you get the picture. Getting folks to share your message and come back for more is just what you need to stay top-of-mind.

One way to understand what your prospective audience wants is to listen to them. Before you jump into posting at social media sites, see what people are talking about. Take a look at the trends in Twitter or follow a few appropriate terms with Google Alerts. See what your competition is up to as well.

Then get started. Pick just one outlet at first, but update regularly. Using one of the free tools available to schedule your posts like HootSuite or TweetDeck will help you be more efficient and consistent. You can measure the reach of your efforts through the reports at Twitter, Facebook and your website’s statistics program. Trace yourself through Google Alerts, too!

If you’ve always wondered what social media marketing would do for your business, you owe it to yourself to seriously explore the options. Social Media Week seems like the perfect time to do it! If you have more questions, contact us today. We’re happy to help.

Kate GingoldKate Gingold

I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.

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Full biography

I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.

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