Too many social whats? I can’t do them all, its too much!

Do you tweet? Do you Blog? Do you Facebook? Do you Pinterest?….. I can hear you saying; STOP!! Its too much!  “too many things and what’s the point?” 

I agree there are too many.  Lucky for you I love to find the latest platforms and test them out for myself!  Below is a very short overview to give you some structure:

1. Start with 4 platforms (you want to set yourself up to win so start small): try Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ and LinkedIn
2. Learn them.  Keep 15mins per day to digest ‘one piece of new information’ on a platform (it soon adds up and it gets easier!)
3. Link up the tools so they feed off each other. Therefore when you Facebook; it updates your twitter account. (Google loves this!)
4. Write 5 tweets per week and post around 11am.  Or ask someone to do it for you!  Why?  You are keeping the flow flowing!!  11am or 3pm are good times (break times for people)
5. Use TweetDeck to keep a track and have SOME order.  You can categorise posts (into columns) to keep an eye on other things such as competition, the market and how many people re-tweet you.
6. Use Klout to monitor your ‘influence’ within the market.  By doing this you will see a result.  It will also show ‘if you stop interacting’, your ‘influence’ goes down!  Therefore your presence in the market goes down!
7. Link your posts back to your website; ie @companyname (drives traffic)
8. Use an analytical tool to monitor the hits (unique hits) and leads through your website to see if your social media is working (Google Analytics is great and free!)
9. Review over a 6 month period to give it time to gain traction
10. Review, tweak and grow!
11. 

I’ve just read an article in The Marketer (www.themarketer.co.uk) titled Crowd Control.  Muireann Bolger explains how today’s consumers are using social media to make decisions.  People are flocking in the crowds to obtain, check and make decisions on information that has been posted on the web.  Checking if product x will work?  We have seen this with http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk.  But this is all B2C?

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Well i’ve just landed in Yorkshire after a 6hrs journey from Aberdeen…. I took some advice last night from @jeffbullas the guru in Social Media.  He recommended some books to read so I downloaded The Element by Ken Robinson.  Since I had such a long journey I thought I would digest some new information.

Wow!  How interesting!  Ken talks about doing the things you love to do and are good at!  Having the passion for something; not just ‘I’d like to do it’.  If you have the passion you would!  Its finding your sweet spot, your ‘element’, the one thing that rocks your word.

Ken gives some amazing examples from Vidal Sassoon the hairdresser to Gillian Lynne the famous choreographer.  He talks about how their worlds changed when they figured out about themselves!  It go me thinking about me and the people I know.

What makes me get totally consumed is marketing and being creative!  Taking a product or service and seeing it grow though amazing marketing!  Horses also rock my boat; they are a huge passion of mine so you can see why i’ve incorporated the horse in my business.  My thinking time is with my horses!  My creative time!

So my question to you is “Do you have a sweet spot?”  Do you think all the time about doing something you really really love?  When I left my previous business it was a weight off my shoulders.  I liked being the MD of a manufacturing company, I learnt new skills but my passion and where my creativity grows is in marketing.  Its funny… that audio book inspired me so much I had to jump onto my mac and write a short blog!

Make yourself a Happy Warrior!

“Marketing is strength, determination & passion”

Elaine Ball

Marketing has evolved over the years and B2C organisations esp FMCG know how IMPORTANT marketing is and what marketing is.  (What i mean by FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) is groceries, games, toiletries etc.)

Unfortunately B2B/ Technical organisation don’t. Now i’m being very ‘general’ here as there are some great B2B companies out there with great marketing.  However the majority of businesses are not clear on the subject.

Philip Kotler (Big Guru of Marketing) defines marketing as “satisfying needs and wants through an exchange process” (I love this one!)

SO getting back to my main question “Marketing is advertising? Right?” Not quite.  Marketing as Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) describes is the “management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably”

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So where do i begin when it comes to sorting out WHO i sell to and HOW I go about doing it?

You are a small design house specialising in designing and manufacturing a sensor for detecting vehicles.  You are the owner and CEO with a passion and dream to get your product into the traffic market.  You have finished your design and now you need money!  Where do you start?

Below are some tips on where to begin and how to go about it.

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What really matters in B2B selling!

Great article by Steven Woods on What really matters in B2B selling.  Check out this link.

What motivates us?

This is fantastic!  I’m highly visual so this was right up my street.  Check out this link on What Motivates us!

Why Technology Marketing is different!.

Nice (but long) slide show shown on SlideShare on Why Technology Marketing is different.

This slideshow looks at why your marketing has to be specific in order for you to succeed.  Check it out and let me know what you think.

Networking sites? Confused? Don’t be!

This blog is very interesting and gave me lots to think about.