So many people (including those experts) are making such a big mistake in your social media marketing efforts and I hate to see this. It’s just because you don’t know what you don’t know.
The thing I see people doing all wrong which is probably why you’re not seeing great results and profits from your social media marketing efforts is due to this…
#1 Mistake: You aren’t treating your social networking like a REAL networking event!
Think about it, you wouldn’t walk into an in person networking event with a bunch of people and start throwing your business card or flyers in people’s faces would you? NO, you wouldn’t!
So why are you doing this online?
Every time you post something or comment on something and then go away it’s like you’re walking up to someone in a networking event, throwing your flyer or marketing materials at them and then walking away.
The problem is that you’re not initiating conversation with them online and engaging in an actual dialog. This dialog is what’s going to build the relationship to a point where they could possibly want to work with you or buy from you. Now, sometimes, by commenting on someone’s post of course that could be construed as a dialog; but it’s not personal or private. Therefore it probably won’t turn into a sale.
What you want to do in addition to the posting and commenting is take it a step farther. Yes, I said in addition to, you still need to be doing all that other stuff, sharing, posting, announcing, etc. But you want to go deeper and start conversations with people, friends and followers and that really can only be done by messaging them one-by-one online.
Now, if you’re already doing ample social networking you’re probably saying, “Wow, that will take forever and I’m already spending a ton of time on my social sites as it is!”
Yes but you’re not being efficient with what will work to bring you results is my reply.
If you’re already sending individual messages to people you see online then great but if it’s not turning into sales at some point then maybe you’re saying the wrong things or approaching it in a way that they aren’t responsive. How you do this is crucial too, what you say is vital to them responding and you actually having a conversation like you would at a regular in person networking event. You don’t want to be salesy in these messages.
There are ways you can automate or systematize some of what you’re already doing plus some of what I’m suggesting you add. This is the key to maximizing your time and efforts on social media so you can actually see some profit. It can be very simple and inexpensive to do this if you create a clear system and templates of what you want to say plus a calendar of when you want to say things. If you’re not willing to do this then I’m sorry, you may continue to waste your time.
So to review, here’s what you need to do with your social media marketing efforts:
- Find the right site or sites for you to fit your target market. You don’t need to be on them all at once if you’re just starting out, just pick the one best fit and get started.
- Plot out a specific length of time you’re going to be on this (or these) sites every week/day. This might be different for many people depending on where you are in your business and what other marketing you’re doing. Stick to your schedule.
- Determine what educational or informative type of content you want to include on a weekly basis and how that will happen. More than likely this is some of what you could delegate the posting of.
- Write templates for the messages you’ll send to reach 250 or more new people every week on social media, interacting and engaging with them through messaging them, not just blasting information at them.
- Put this all into a clear, written out, step-by-step system so most of it can be delegated to someone who can do this for you and someone who can seek out new relationships for you online.
- Stop playing around online, get smart and do what’s going to drive clients on social media.
Katrina Sawa is known as The JumpStart Your Biz Coach because she literally kicks her clients and their businesses into high gear. Katrina is the creator of the JumpStart Your Marketing Follow Up™ System and author of Love Yourself Successful of which she holds a live event on every year. She works with motivated entrepreneurs who want to start, grow and market your business the right way from the start. Katrina helps you move faster and more affordably towards your ultimate revenue and professional goals using online and offline marketing strategies, plus she kicks you in the butt to implement it all too! One thing that makes Katrina different is that she also focuses on your personal life when she works with you on your business. She found that most business owners lack enough self-confidence to truly enable them to get to their next level or take those leaps of faith they need to take to finally achieve their ultimate dreams. Katrina’s goal is to inspire, motivate and educate entrepreneurs how to love themselves fully, live a bigger life and leverage themselves to complete happiness. Katrina is an award-winning coach who has been featured on the Oprah and Friends XMRadioNetwork, ABC and CBS. Pick up a copy of her book today at www.LoveYourselfSuccessful.com or go get her Free Entrepreneur’s Success Kit and 2 additional Free Business-Building Gifts online at www.JumpStartYourMarketing.com/gifts!