 |
 |
 |
 |
Business Networking
Business Networking
By Kylie Pekolj on July 28, 2010
Social networking websites are no longer just for bands, teens, tweens or for singles trying to find their soul mate. Today lots of people from many walks of life have at least one profile on a social networking website today, even grandparents are getting in on the social networking trend using sites like 'Facebook' to create online ‘brag books’ to brag and show off to their friends how proud they are about their grandchildren but more importantly, businesses are even jumping on board the social networking bandwagon.
When it came to online marketing a few years a go it was perfectly acceptable to have nothing more than a business listing in the online version of the yellow pages however today if you want your business to get noticed online you most definitely need your own website but if you want people to really pay attention to your business and for your business to stand out over your competitors, social networking is the next step to take.
Three Levels of Web Presence
When it comes to online web presence for your business there are three levels you of exposure you can undertake for your business..
Online Business Listing
Website
Social Networking
The power of word of mouth only gets stronger by engaging in social networking- Doesn’t allow your business to stand out from your competitor.
- People will only look at it once to get your address or phone number. Since the information doesn’t change on the listing there is no repeat visitors.
- If you have a website, an online business listing can help direct people to it.
Website
- Allows you to stand out from your competitors and communicate to customers what your business is about more effectively than a simple web listing.
- A business with a website will have a larger audience.
- Visitors will return to your website numerous times if you regularly update the information on your website.
Social Networking
- Allows clients and customers to become advocates for your business, word of mouth is an extremely powerful tool!
- Allows quick customer and client feedback.
- Allows you to gauge you audience and their needs more accurately.
- Allows for interaction with your customers or clients.
- Effective and easy way to update your clients about your business.
- A great way to direct people to your website!
- In most cases it is free!
Most businesses will start out with an online business listing. There are many websites that offer business listings some free and some you need to pay for. Google offer a free business listing which shows up with a Google map in a Google search which is a good start when seeking initial web presence for your business. However the online business listings that stand out over the rest are the ones which list a website for the business that potential clients and customers can click through to.
Websites are a great tool to have for your business to keep your clients and customers informed and to help attract new ones however it is an age old known fact that word of mouth is the strongest form of marketing which is where social networking comes into the online web presence game.
Whilst some social networking websites remain just for people to connect with one another, many social networking websites now cater for businesses and some social networking websites now are even purely designed for business networking. These websites allow customers and clients to spread the word about and recommend your business to their friends and colleagues. It is now commonplace to see links to Facebook, Twitter, LinkdIn and other various social networking websites on websites for businesses to encourage visitors to the website to recommend it to their network of friends and colleagues.
The good news is, most of these social networking websites are free, so how and where do you get started with social networking your business and taking advantage of word of mouth marketing?
Facebook
Quick Overview
Who uses it?
How to use it to your advantage
Quick Overview
Who uses it?
How to use it to your advantage
Quick Overview
Who uses it?
How to use it to your advantage
Others to considerQuick Overview
- User base of 400 million people
- Most users are from the US
- 36% of Australians use Facebook
- According to a recent Nielsen survey, more Australian over 50 are using Facebook than are not, with 2.1 million older Australians now registered members.
Who uses it?
- Everyone
- Businesses
- Artists, celebrities, bands
- Young and old
- Ever heard the saying “If you’re not on Facebook, you probably don’t exist”?
How to use it to your advantage
- To increase traffic to your website - Update your followers with snippets of information that will prompt them to visit your website to find out more. You don’t want them to only visit your Facebook page for all information regarding your business. Use it as a tool to direct them from Facebook to your website! And remember as with any form of advertising make sure you include a ‘call to action’ whether it is a link, phone number or address.
- To create better brand awareness - People on Facebook can become fans of businesses, bands, celebrities, products, you name it, someone has probably created a page for it on facebook. The more people who see your logo and the more often they see it, the better the brand awareness your business will receive.
- To increase word of mouth marketing - By encouraging clients and customers to become a fan of your business’s Facebook page by clicking on the ‘like’ button, they instantly become advocates for your business by showing their contacts on Facebook that they like your business.
Quick Overview
- A micro-blogging site that allows users to update or tweet to their followers a short status update about the latest happenings.
Who uses it?
- Businesses
- Artists, celebrities, bands
- People who like to use the internet on their phone
- People who want to keep up to date with the latest events, news and current affairs.
How to use it to your advantage
- To increase traffic to your website - In a similar fashion to facebook, update your followers with snippets of information that will prompt them to visit your website to find out more. Include links to where you want them to go.
- To create better brand awareness - Make sure you get your business name and image out there, tweet about any relevant hot topics that people are tweeting about and tweet to associated businesses to increase the amount of exposure you get on the website, the more exposure means the better your brand awareness will become.
- To increase word of mouth marketing - Twitter uses follow businesses, artists, celebrities, bands and friends to be informed about the latest news in regards to things they are interested in. The list of who someone is following is displayed on their Twitter account, allowing other friends and associates to see what brands a particular person associates with.
Quick Overview
- A social networking site dedicated to supporting professional relationships between businesses and individuals. However it does not have a strong customer or client focus like Facebook or Twitter. LinkedIn is free for individuals however there is a charge for businesses to use LinkdIn.
Who uses it?
- Businesses
- Business professionals
How to use it to your advantage
- To increase traffic to your website - Keep them updated with news that prompt them to go to your website to find out more.
- To create better brand awareness - Connections on LinkdIn are business related, use it to get yourself well known in your businesses industry.
- To increase word of mouth marketing - By encouraging customers and clients to be a fan of your business's Facebook page by clicking on the 'like' button, they instantly become advocates of your business by showing their contacts on Facebook that they like your business.
There are countless social networking websites and other types of websites which are free to use on which you can use to increase the exposure of your business on the Internet. Check for things like industry related websites your business can get more exposure on. Is there any online social trends within your target market that you can become a part of? Or how about writing a Wikipedia entry about your business?
There are many places on the web in which to increase the exposure of your business on the internet for free, to get you started here's a quick check list.
Does your business have...
- A Facebook page people can become a fan of and recommend your business to others through?
- A Twitter account to update followers of the latest news and events for your business?
- A Wikipedia page to inform people what your business is about?
- A LinkedIn page to network with other businesses and like minded professionals?