A Five Step Guide to Using Social Media for Business Development

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2 Acknowledgements PROJECT TEAM Christine Dwyer, JA Waterloo Karen Chafe, JA London Javier Salazar, JA Northern Alberta Shawn Adams, JA Newfoundland & Labrador Debra Hidson, JA Southern Alberta Karen Vavrek, JA Southern Alberta Anne Tower, JA British Columbia Jennifer James, JA Central Ontario Brenda Pfaus, Consultant, Spectra Interactive Learning SPONSORSHIP Junior Achievement of Canada gratefully acknowledges the TD Bank Group for its commitment to the development and pilot implementation of the Junior Achievement of Canada Resource Portal and program extensions using digital resources. Copyright Junior Achievement of Canada

Consultant, Spectra Interactive Learning SPONSORSHIP Junior Achievement of Canada gratefully acknowledges the TD Bank Group for its commitment to the

3 Introduction We use social media to make buying decisions, to stay in touch with friends and family, and to develop new relationships- both personal and professional. This Five Step Guide will help you use social media to your best advantage for effective business development. What the Research Tells Us Digital Marketing Insights from a New Gartner Study show that consumers are using online purchasing more and more. This is leading to increased opportunities for businesses to use social media for marketing and communication. To learn more about the research findings about digital marketing consult for-growth/bid/175456/5-digital-marketing-insights-from-a-new- Gartner-Study The five step approach and resources suggested in this module will help your JA Company team learn that traditional marketing techniques don t work in social media, and why a social media presence is vital if you want to be successful. Step 1: Learn About Social Media and Business Development First learn about social media and your industry. Check out social media conversations - especially ones about your business or industry. This will help you determine where you should be focusing your efforts. Get a feel for how businesses similar to yours use Facebook, Twitter and other sites. The following is a good resource to start thinking about social media and business development. Join discussion groups on LinkedIn or Facebook such as Learn more about the research, new platforms and best practices download-our-10-most-helpful-social-media-ebooks/ 3

What the Research Tells Us Digital Marketing Insights from a New Gartner Study show that consumers are using online purchasing more and more.

4 Step 2: Create a Social Media Strategy A common mistake that many businesses make is a lack of planning. Here is a template of the key elements to include in your social media strategy. Work with your management team to plan and develop the strategy. The strategy content has been adapted from the BDC ebook, Social Media: A Guide for Entrepreneurs available at Goals Determine the main goals of your social media presence. Our Company Social Media Goals Attract more customers? Boost recognition of your brand? Improve customer service? Audience Determine your target audience and how it uses and responds to various social media platforms. Focus your initial efforts on the platforms your audience is most likely to use. For example, if they are most likely to use Facebook, focus on Facebook. Our Target Audience(s) Social Media Mix Determine which social media platforms you will focus on. Select one or two to start with. You may choose to add others later. Select social media that you can cross-link. Our Company Social Media Mix 4

http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2012/bdc/iu133-1-2012-eng.pdf Goals Determine the main goals of your social media presence. Our Company Social Media Goals Attract more customers?

5 Content Key Messages Think about what kind of content will appeal to your target audience. Frame your content around key messages aligned with your marketing strategy and overall business plan. Our Content Key Messages Draw from your market knowledge and research, organize a focus group, or seek advice. Engagement Present the human side of your business and provide followers with information, advice or entertainment. Engaging with Our Company Social Media Action Plan Assign tasks in your company to include monitoring social media traffic, creating content, and posting to your website and social media sites. Communicate your social strategy to all Company members to secure the buy-in of everyone. Work out a publishing schedule specifying how often each of the platforms will be updated and by whom. Our Company Social Media Action Plan Who will do what? When will we publish? How frequently? Who will publish? 5

Engagement Present the human side of your business and provide followers with information, advice or entertainment.

6 Follow Up Monitor your efforts to ensure you re hitting your targets. Follow Up: Monitor and Measure Our Success Based on your goals, decide how you ll monitor and measure your social media success (e.g. number of visits, number of followers and comments, how much your content is being shared, number of new sales leads, etc.) and set targets. Use tools to monitor activity like Twitter search or Facebook page evaluation tools. Update your social media strategy regularly. Evaluating Your Website Review the features and content of your website. Visitors should be able to easily understand what product or service you offer and how to navigate your site. Integrating Social Media with our Website Google search results take into account how often websites are shared or discussed in social media, which means it s also important to make sure your site is evaluated for its social media optimization. For example, your site should feature social media sharing buttons like Facebook, and Twitter buttons. Prominently display links to your social media pages on your website. Visitors should also be able to easily get to your website from Twitter or LinkedIn etc. Make your website mobile friendly. BDC offers a free website assessment tool at assessment/pages/default.aspx?ref=learnmore Note: Strategy content is adapted from the BDC ebook, Social Media: A Guide for Entrepreneurs available at 6

) and set targets. Use tools to monitor activity like Twitter search or Facebook page evaluation tools. Update your social media strategy regularly.

7 Step 3: Learn More About the Top 5 Platforms Once you have determined which platforms to use in your social media mix, learn more about how to get the most out of using the platform by visiting the sites listed below for useful tips. After investigating further, you may wish to revise your strategic plan. Facebook Entrepreneurs give Facebook a Like TWITTER YouTube Check out the best practices pages Questions to ask when creating your company s YouTube Channel 8 Effective Ways to Use YouTube for Business &goback=%2egna_125843%2egde_125843_member_ Ways to Maximize Your Marketing Results Using YouTube Using YouTube to Build Your Brand, Authority and Business Google+ LinkedIn How to use LinkedIn for Business A Guide to Using LinkedIn for Businesses 7

ca/en/advice_centre/articles/pages/entrepreneurs_facebook_like.aspx?ref=related-articles TWITTER YouTube https://business.twitter.com/ Check out the best practices pages. www.youtube.

8 Step 4: Develop, Build and Maintain Content Here are some best practice guidelines for creating effective social media content. Engage visitors with fun, educational and value-added content that they are likely to comment on and share via their own networks. Post regularly according to the publishing schedule you set out in your social media action plan. Social media pages quickly lose fan attention if they re not updated regularly. Create a Google News Alert with topic keywords at google.com/alerts. Liven up your website or blog with plug-ins from social media sites. Plug-ins are tools that allow your audience to make comments, or share or recommend your content. For example, Facebook offers information on its plug-ins: developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/. Be sure to respect the use conditions of the various social media platforms for reproducing their logos on your web properties. Ask customers for written or video testimonials, and post them. Invite product and service feedback. Respond promptly (generally within 24 hours) to those who interact with you. Establish your page as the hub of a thriving community and a go-to resource, which will ultimately help fuel more sales. Grow your audience by offering helpful, value-added information. Be polite, and respectful. Don t stop learning and listening to what s being said about your company, your industry and social media. Be patient. Like any relationship, social media success takes time to build. 8

Post regularly according to the publishing schedule you set out in your social media action plan. Social media pages quickly lose fan attention if they re not updated regularly.

9 Step 5: Measure, Optimize and Review It s important to manage your mix of social media in your strategy. Oracle: Managing the Media Mix Measure how you re doing using analytic tools available on most social media sites. Be sure to keep up- to-date on new features and changes in terms of use of the platforms you are using. Review your settings after you create a social media account. Review and update your Social Media Strategy regularly. 9

pdf Measure how you re doing using analytic tools available on most social media sites.

10 TM JA Company Program is a national program of Junior Achievement of Canada. Junior Achievement of Canada 2013

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