So how do you take advantage of the power of the Internet to make your mark? The facts are unavoidable. I’ve compile a bunch of stats that drive it all home. If you are involved in a home-based, direct-selling or network marketing business, you simply can’t ignore the fact that online is where it’s happening!
The beauty of it all is that it’s available to you at little or no cost. Take a look:
Email
While not the newest channel, email can still be a provocative, effective way to reach out to prospects, customers and colleagues. It’s an excellent way to engage your audience, nurture leads and promote interaction. Email allows you to target more efficiently.
According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 92% of adult U.S. Internet users send or read email. Two-thirds of them do so as a part of their typical day.
Email continues to be just another “arrow in your quiver” when it comes to a powerful online strategy.
And a Pew Research Center study on the Internet & American Life Project reports that 65% of adults on the Internet use a social networking site. Anybody who markets themselves should take heed. Social media connects people like nothing before in the history of commerce. The big daddy in this arena is Facebook. Add to that Twitter and Google+ and you have a robust community that awaits you!
According to the Nielsen Social Media Report Q32011, nearly four out of five active Internet users are visiting social network sites and blogs. Americans are spending more time on Facebook than they do any other U.S. website.
And according to the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, 28% of all American adults use mobile or social location-based services of some kind. This continued growth and popularity of social media in 2011 has a direct impact on how businesses and individuals communicate and expand their influence.
An interesting note: The Performics 2011 Social Shopping Study reports that men more frequently check out product info, reviews, discover product availability and get store information using social networks and shopping sites. Women, on the other hand, are on top when it comes to deals, coupons and specials.
Online Video
Video has arrived and growing! According to the comScore Video Matrix, more than 184 million U.S. Internet users have viewed online video content in October of 2011. They logged in an average of 21.1 hours per viewer. That’s amazing!
No surprise, according to the report, in October of 2011, YouTube ranked as the top online video content source with nearly 21 billion (with a capital B) videos viewed. Included in that stat is 161 million unique viewers. Facebook came in second with nearly 60 million viewer. All told, that’s more than 42 billion videos viewed, with an average viewer watching more that 21 hours of video! Also amazing.
The other trend in online video is personalization. It’s not just creating a single video and broadcasting it to thousands. Using a single template, create videos targeting individuals… include a unique, personal message that will resonate deeply.
So where to from here?
The facts are clear. Explore, dig in and incorporate the many online tools and services available to you to help build and expand your business! I welcome your comments and suggestions.
Just read a terrific post by Marcus Sheridan, an online marketing blogger and proprietor of The Sales Lion, an online marketing consulting company.
We’re so deeply concerned about how many Facebook “Likes” and Twitter “Followers” we may or may not have accumulated through our social marketing efforts. But Marcus makes a powerful point that we might just be missing the real issue: What does that really mean in terms of actual readership? And more importantly, how does it translate to bottom-line sales?
“…all the content and blog posts in the world don’t mean squat unless they are leading to more trust, leads, and ultimately paying customers.”
He further states that first impressions in social media don’t mean much. He compares the “Likes” and “Follows” with one of his clients to actual readership and sales performance. The difference between the Facebook/Twitter/Google+ activity and actual tracked sales was remarkable. There were only 22 total social media “hits” related to his 8 posted articles. One would think that his online marketing effort was a bust.
Bankable results
But check out the actual “rubber-meets-the-road” results:
210,762 page views
2,471 inbound links
$2 million in sales directly attributed to those 8 articles
That’s just insane!
Makes you step back and reassess just how you go about your online marketing, doesn’t it?
Social media as a marketing tool can be über powerful when used the right way. There are billions of users on the Big Three – Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. In fact, Facebook claims 800 million all by themselves! But as with any tool, you have to know how to use it properly. It wouldn’t be cool to give a 4-year-old a nail gun. Not only would the project never get done, it would have disastrous consequences.
Here are ten things to avoid when launching your social media strategy:
#1 Confuse your audience
Consistency is king when it comes to establishing and maintaining a brand. Toe the line. Avoid tangential messaging. Make sure you’re sticking to the core of what you and your products/services are all about. If you constantly switch your value proposition from message to message, you confuse everyone. Including yourself. So when you post to Facebook or tweet on Twitter, make sure your message always honors and supports what makes you unique.
#2 Sell! sell! sell!
I know it’s irresistible, but don’t use social media to pitch your products or services. You run the risk of turning your audience off in a major way. The social universe is totally unique from traditional advertising and marketing. People are looking for help, not a sales pitch. And if you can be helpful in that process, you come off looking pretty darn good. Give them useful information that covertly supports your brand. Trigger conversations around your expertise and knowledge.
#3 Share frivolous information
Nobody cares what you had for dinner last night, what you think about the latest movie or your busy travel itinerary. Remember, stay on track! Promote what you and your brand is all about. That way you will enjoy a following of folks who share like interests and will come back for more.
#4 Don’t listen
We’ve all been at a party and met someone who only talked about themselves. You tune out in seconds. Don’t be that person online. Listen to others. Strike up conversations. Engage. Ask questions. Comment. Respond. You get the point.
#5 Ignore your audience
This relates to #4. If you think you’re in this all by yourself, you surely will be! You need followers that share your interests. So dig in, find out what’s out there and respond to it. If you don’t, your audience will be ignoring you – big time.
#6 Avoid negative comments
Not all comments will be endearing. But the last thing you want to do is avoid or delete them. Address issues straight up. Social media is all about transparency and authenticity. If their concerns are legit, absorb them and perhaps even change something to make things better. Don’t hide. Your audience will forgive you if you take their comments seriously, apologize and act upon them.
#7 Keep your passion in check
If you exhibit excitement and passion about your brand, your audience will too. It sort of rubs off through osmosis. Think of it this way: If the CEO of a company shows no passion for the company, neither will his employees. No forward motion.
#8 Expect instant results
Unless you’re offering a free Ferrari to everybody who “Likes” your Facebook page, social media is a slow, steady build. You need to know that going in. Stay the course. Steady as she goes. And you will slowly start to realize a robust following.
#9 Ignore your competition
To be a player, you must keep an ear to the ground. See what others are doing and learn from it. That doesn’t mean you slam your competition. Just know what they’re up to so you can make critical course corrections.
#10 Pretend to be who you aren’t
Speak to subjects you know and actually have something useful (and genuine) to offer. I’ve been in many situations where someone is spouting off the top of their head. It’s very easy to spot and I quickly label them as phony.
So there you have it. These are rules to live by in the social media universe. Avoid them at all costs and you’ll be rewarded with mucho success.
