Social Media for Small Business Alameda County SBDC Workshop Presented by David Mitroff, Ph.D.
Our Speaker David Mitroff, Ph.D. Founder, Chief Consultant Piedmont Avenue Consulting David@PiedmontAve.com fb.com/piedmontave twitter.com/davidmitroff linkedin.com/in/davidmitroff Upcoming Events www.walnutcreekevents.org www.eastbayentrepreneur.com
What we will cover Marketing has changed Goals of Marketing / Sales Process Website and Social Media Generates New Opportunities Web and Social Media Ecosystem 9 Key Areas Measuring Results Resources / Action Items
Websites / Social Media are... So Where to start? How much time? How much money? How measure results? Cure All Or Bunch of Noise Either way Ignoring the Web is getting harder and harder
MARKETING HAS CHANGED traditional traditional marketing marketing find convert engagement marketing FIND MORE find convert keep flip the funnel: retention is the new acquisition -- Joe Jaffe keep
Traditional Marketing One to Many Company Message Messages Audience
Online Marketing Or emarketing Many to Many Audience Website Audience Email Newsletters Company Message Social Media Audience Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Audience
Goals of Marketing Communicate with your customers to: Create Brand Awareness Strengthen Customer Loyalty Generate New Opportunities
Increasing Leads - Prospecting Efforts
Find Your Online Audience What Are they Looking For? Where are they on the Internet? How Do they Find You? What are Your Competitors doing? Develop a set of questions to survey your current or perspective clients Do your research!
emarketing Enables: Social / Viral New Channels Prospecting Strategies Customer Experience Feedback Loop ROI / Tracking
Tracking & Analysis The Key Benefit of Online Marketing is the ability to track and analyze results, then quickly iterate and adjust for optimal performance
9 Key Areas of Social Media 1. Website & Blog 2. Online Directories 3. Review Sites 4. Social Networks 5. Micro Blogging 6. Rich Media 7. Mobile Apps 8. Industry Specific 9. Event Promotion
1Website & Blog Google Ranking, Alexa Page Ranking, SEO/CRO, Blogger, TypePad, Wordpress Control the content. A chance to tell your story. Define a clear message. What do you offer? Create a medium for contact. Invite feedback, questions Provide links to other pages. Share your FB, Twitter Update your content. Consistency in theme and info.
Website The Hub Of Your Online Strategy Most important area Definition of you and your message Central hub with links to other sites You control it
SEO / CRO Search Engine Optimization / Conversation Rate Optimization Helps drive traffic to your site Off-page SEO (work that takes place separate from your website) On-page SEO (website changes to increase rank)
Domain Name Easy to access site Name/message should be in the domain Brand identifiable on home/landing page Is the domain/web address clearly branded and easily identifiable? - Is it independent from a website/blog support or production site?
Theme Does the theme of the website continue throughout each page? i.e. each tab/ page appears to belong to the recurring theme of the site. Overall Look, clean, concise, themed throughout each page Updated
Brand & Purpose of The Site When on the Homepage What do you want me to do? Purpose Message clearly written Provide background Products and Services clearly defined What are we about
Calls to Action What are your next steps, requests, actions Are services/products labeled and promoted properly?
Call to Action: Make An Offer discounts downloads B2B services hints + tips event invites support a cause
Newsletter Sign Up Is there a medium to interact with clients such as an email signup?
Social Media Links Does the homepage contain links to other sites, pages, accounts such as: Facebook Twitter Local Groups Clear icons, links, buttons for such sites
Contact Information CONTACT Is contact information available such as email/phone/ address? Medium for people to contact you email, phone #, address, etc. Feedback/comments Updates listed Calendar LINKS to other sites (FB, Twitter, etc.)
Rich Media Videos / Pictures How are the graphics of the page? Images, fonts, layout, etc. Media Photos, videos On website, event sites, Linkedin, YouTube, Flickr Quality of photos and videos
Stay Current = SEO How often is the website updated/monitored? Is it relevant?
Website Checklist q Is the domain/web address clearly branded and easily identifiable? q Is it independent from a website/blog support or production site? q Is the brand/purpose of the site readily seen on the home/landing page? q Does the site include information about the business such as purpose, story, background or 'what we're about? q Does the homepage contain links to other sites/pages/accounts such as Facebook, Twitter or other affiliate groups? q Are there clear icons/links? buttons for such sites? q Is contact information available such as email/phone/address? q (CALL TO ACTION) Are services/products labeled and promoted properly? q Is there a medium to interact with clients such as an email signup? q Does the theme of the website continue throughout each page? q How are the graphics of the page? Images, fonts, layout, etc. q How often is the website updated/monitored? Is it relevant?
RESOURCES DISCOUNTED LINKS
2Online Directories Google Local/Maps, Yahoo Local, Yellow Pages, CitySearch, Chambers Search yourself. The power of Google! Look for similar businesses. If you re not listed, someone else is! Display correct contact info. Location, phone #, hours, directions MUST be correct. Take a photo. If they know what to look for, they ll find it.
GOOGLE GET YOUR BUSINESS ONLINE
3 Review Sites Yelp, Zagat, Chow, Lawyers.com Rely on word of mouth. People trust personal accounts more than ads. Offer additional information. Yelp is a mobile tour guide. Respond to reviews. Thank those who provide feedback. Learn from your reviews. Don t make the same mistake twice!
www.acsbdc.org Negative Review Negative Trends Lots of negative reviews tell you what to avoid. However, a few negative reviews or fake looking reviews tell you the business or reviewer was just having a bad day or life
Negative Review Negative Trends www.acsbdc.org
Review Sites Reputation Management http://www.colbertnation.com/thecolbert-report-videos/260771/ january-06-2010/alpha-dog-ofthe-week---domino-s-pizza
4 Social Networks Facebook, Linkedin, Biznik, VentureStreet Communicate with clients. Be involved with the conversation. Connect. Associate your business with related pages and people. Establish a following. Invite past clients/customers to view your page.
Social Media - The Power of Reach your page your fans current reach friends of your fans potential reach
5 Micro Blogging Twitter, Friendfeed Interact with daily events. How can you relate to what s happening? Remind everyone about events. Update information leading up to the event. Invite new customers. Friend of a friend of a friend...
6 Rich Media Youtube Videos, itunes Audio PodCast, Flickr Pictures Appeal to the senses. -The eyes are drawn to an image/video first! Attract new customers. -If the website quality is great, then people assume the business quality is great, as well. Entertain your audience. -Get creative with images and videos.
7 Mobile Apps FourSquare, Urbanspoon, Yelp, iphone, SMS Text Stay in contact. -People are ALWAYS on their smart phones. Solidify your relationship. -Make the client feel special for receiving extra attention. Go the extra mile. -This shows that you re following through. It's easy to join our mailing list! Just send your email address by text message: Text DAVID to 22828 to get started. Message and data rates may apply.
8 Industry Specific East Bay Express, San Francisco Chronicle, DiabloMag.com Network within your group. Get the scoop on what s the latest and greatest. Surround yourself with what you want to become. Hang out with like-minded businesses. Help those who help you. You never know when you ll need something.
9 Event Promotion Meetup, Zvents, Constant Contact Events, PlanCast, FullCalendar.com Promote what you ve got. An event can attract more business. Collaborate with others. Get other businesses involved. Feature your calendar. The internet is a great way to publicize!
9 Key Areas of Social Media 1. Website & Blog 2. Online Directories 3. Review Sites 4. Social Networks 5. Micro Blogging 6. Rich Media 7. Mobile Apps 8. Industry Specific 9. Event Promotion
WHERE ARE YOU TODAY? Facebook LinkedIn Twitter Pinterest Instagram Youtube
What Should I Do Now? Start listening to your passionate customers Learn more about using email marketing and social media together 1 2 3 Get simple! Today Sign up for SBDC services Create a website and/or update your website to include: - Clear call to action - Integrate social media - Blog or promote events - Email newsletter sign up Next 30 days Make adjustments to your website (test and see what works) Work on increasing your business awareness on Social Media Request a Social Media Report Next 60 days Develop a more comprehensive marketing plan based on your initial tracking and experiments in social media. Attend another SBDC workshop.
Winning Strategy includes: setting objectives collecting contact information determining message format creating a schedule building professional communications analyzing results
Need a Speaker for your next Event? David Mitroff, Ph.D. Founder, Chief Consultant Piedmont Avenue Consulting David@PiedmontAve.com fb.com/piedmontave twitter.com/davidmitroff linkedin.com/in/davidmitroff Upcoming Events www.walnutcreekevents.org www.eastbayentrepreneur.com
Building an Online Presence Alameda County SBDC Technology Series 8 week program highlighting the latest online techniques for growing your business. Subject Date/Time Location 1 Start with your Website & Blog Guest Speaker: Wix Wed. 8/28, 6-8pm HUB Oakland 2 Increase Brand Awareness Guest Speaker: Visit Oakland Thur. 9/12, 10-12pm Oakland City Hall, RM 4 3 Search Engine & Website Optimization Guest Speaker: Wix / Thur. 9/26, 6-8pm HUB Oakland 4 LinkedIn to Grow your Business Guest Speaker: SF Business Times / Linkedin Thur. 10/10, 10-12pm Oakland City Hall, RM 4 5 Facebook for Customer Engagement Thur. 10/24, 6-8pm HUB Oakland 6 Yelp to Manage your Reputation Guest Speaker: Yelp 7 YouTube Videos Change Everything Guest Speaker: Patrick Schwerdtfeger Thur. 11/7, 10-12pm Oakland City Hall, RM 4 Thur. 11/21, 10-12pm Oakland City Hall, RM 4 8 Designing Customer Loyalty Programs Guest Speaker: Constant Contact Thur. 12/5, 6-8pm HUB Oakland 48