The great thing about Internet marketing is that everything you do is completely trackable. You can test various sites and messaging, and directly see which provides biggest impact.
Here’s a look at 5 of the most commonly asked questions I get from business owners regarding setting up a Social Media Marketing strategy for their business:
1. Social Media is overwhelming! It takes too much time and I don’t know where to start! How do I choose which social networks to use for my business?
Relax. You don’t have to be everywhere. Test a few of the social media sites that make the most sense for your business. For example, wedding cakes or fashion designers would benefit from Pinterest. Professionals trying to establish themselves as experts in their field would benefit from a mix of blogging and LinkedIn. Consumer products do well on Facebook. The great thing about Internet marketing is that everything you do is completely trackable. You can test various sites and messaging, and directly see which provides biggest impact.
2. How do I know which social media site is helping me make sales?
Google Anaytlics is a free, and essential tool to helping you understand which online marketing activity is driving the most quality traffic to your web site. Take a look at your top web site referrals, as well as which referrals are sending the most engaged visitors. For example, while you may be getting lots of traffic from Facebook, those visitors may only stay on your web site for a matter of seconds, where-as your LinkedIn traffic, may be less, but converting to a lead more often. Be sure to identify which page of your web site reflects your “goal”. For example, most people track the “Thank you” page that displays after a lead fills out a contact form, or customer completes a purchase. You can then work backwards and see how that customer found your web site. The data is invaluable to your marketing plan and knowing where your time is best spent online.
3. I only have 500 Facebook fans/Twitter follower/ etc – is that Bad?
Its better to have a smaller number of extremely targeted followers/friends/fans who want to hear from your company, than thousands of people who will never respond, share your message or convert to a customer. And never buy followers or fans. It not only defeats the purpose of social media, but your account can get penalized for it.
4. How does social media help my search engine ranking?
Your “Social Influence” plays a huge role in your search engine ranking today. Google looks at incoming links from social networks, as well as how active and engaged you (and your followers are with you) online. Blogging is an excellent way to help your search ranking because it allows you to keep your information up-to-date with lots of keyword-rich text.
5. Do Facebook ads work?
Yes! Because they allow you to get extremely targeted. Where Google Adwords let you target potential customers by “keywords’ they may be searching, Facebook ads let you target by demographics. For example, you could target people by age, location, interests, and even by what other Facebook pages they like. I always recommend buying targeted Facebook ads – especially when you are just starting to grown your Facebook presence.
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Berkley’s newest book “The Social Media Advantage”
Holly Berkley is an author, educator, speaker and professional Internet Marketing Consultant focused on helping all size businesses increase online sales, strengthen their overall brand, and dramatically boost web site traffic through proven online marketing concepts. Learn about her latest books and marketing services at www.BerkWeb.com
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