When you first enter the world of social networking online, you may be quite puzzled.
Why are some people posting very hard sell messages and others posting inspirational quotes? Am I supposed to share articles of interest to me or not? And why is everyone posting about what they're eating for lunch? It's like the whole online world is obsessed with food! Social networking is a new force in the world of online promotions.
As a marketing tool or tactic, it can be used to generate awareness, build a brand, acquire new customers, and generate leads and sales.
But like any tool, if you use it incorrectly you can make a mess.
Social Networking Messages Must Reflect Your Brand A brand is more than a logo and Pantone colors.
Your brand is who you are to the world, and it must be reflected in every product, statement, word and deed created by your company or yourself if you are an artist, author or entrepreneur.
Your brand image is essentially how the world perceives you.
If you don't know what your brand is, you need to spend time reflecting on key attributes of who you are and what you bring to your customers.
This forms the basis of how you'll communicate through social networking websites.
Let me give you the example of a woman who has got her brand image together.
Her name is Rachel, and she owns a salon.
Her salon is all about transformations.
She likes to help women image the new, glamorous and beautiful self that hides underneath the surface.
She offers many of the same services as other salons in her town - hair cuts, coloring, perms and so forth - but that is not the heart of her brand.
The heart of her brand is transformation.
Her "brand image" reflects this.
The name of her salon is "Metamorphosis" which brings to mind the image of a butterfly emerging from its cocoon.
A blue butterfly is, in fact, an emblem of her salon, and she uses the color blue throughout her salon and spa to enhance the tranquil feeling and transformative nature of her work.
On her social networking sites, she shares inspirational stories about transformations.
Sometimes she peppers these posts with special offers, such as Discount Day, and mentions of her services.
But she's not really selling her services; her 'brand' is selling a dream and a vision.
Think about your own company or product image.
What is your brand? How will you communicate that to the world? Three Ideas for Social Networking Posts Now that you have a better understanding of brand, try one or more of these ideas for social networking messages.
No one message strategy is right for everyone.
Choose what feels right and makes sense for your business.
1.
Share links to articles, blog posts, white papers and case studies that are about your work, your company, or yourself.
Links to relevant content are a great way to get the conversation going and share useful information with others.
Be sure, however, that links are on message.
Don't go off on tangents and start posting links to recipes if you run a software company, unless they're apple pie recipes and your company is Apple and you decide to play with it! Avoid political or religious discussions too, unless your company is about such concepts.
2.
Positive quotes, messages and thoughts about your business.
Note here that "positive" is essential.
While sometimes complaints generate responses, they can quickly get you branded as a negative person, and who wants to follow or friend a negative Nelly? Insights into business problems, situations or trends will be avidly followed if useful to your readers, followers and others.
3.
Lunch.
Food.
Yes, the lunch thing again.
One reason why posts about lunch, dinner or any meal in between are popular is that we all eat and food tends to be a neutral topic.
Posting some personal comments helps people form a picture of you.
People like to do business with other people, and keeping in mind that social networking is all about meeting people online instead of at an in person event, it's important that people feel connected.
Food tends to be the great equalizer.
Other ideas about neutral, safe topics to share include the weather, pets, and safe hobbies such as gardening, running, etc.
By safe of course we mean neutral.
Interesting and non controversial hobbies work well too as conversation starters.
Keep in mind this interesting tidbit about social networking messages; many search engines such as Google archive messages as unique URLS.
This can be embarrassing, since even deleting a post may not get it off the internet entirely.
That's why the emphasis is always on safe, neutral, positive and upbeat.
Leave behind a positive, professional impression of yourself online with social networking messages.
Why are some people posting very hard sell messages and others posting inspirational quotes? Am I supposed to share articles of interest to me or not? And why is everyone posting about what they're eating for lunch? It's like the whole online world is obsessed with food! Social networking is a new force in the world of online promotions.
As a marketing tool or tactic, it can be used to generate awareness, build a brand, acquire new customers, and generate leads and sales.
But like any tool, if you use it incorrectly you can make a mess.
Social Networking Messages Must Reflect Your Brand A brand is more than a logo and Pantone colors.
Your brand is who you are to the world, and it must be reflected in every product, statement, word and deed created by your company or yourself if you are an artist, author or entrepreneur.
Your brand image is essentially how the world perceives you.
If you don't know what your brand is, you need to spend time reflecting on key attributes of who you are and what you bring to your customers.
This forms the basis of how you'll communicate through social networking websites.
Let me give you the example of a woman who has got her brand image together.
Her name is Rachel, and she owns a salon.
Her salon is all about transformations.
She likes to help women image the new, glamorous and beautiful self that hides underneath the surface.
She offers many of the same services as other salons in her town - hair cuts, coloring, perms and so forth - but that is not the heart of her brand.
The heart of her brand is transformation.
Her "brand image" reflects this.
The name of her salon is "Metamorphosis" which brings to mind the image of a butterfly emerging from its cocoon.
A blue butterfly is, in fact, an emblem of her salon, and she uses the color blue throughout her salon and spa to enhance the tranquil feeling and transformative nature of her work.
On her social networking sites, she shares inspirational stories about transformations.
Sometimes she peppers these posts with special offers, such as Discount Day, and mentions of her services.
But she's not really selling her services; her 'brand' is selling a dream and a vision.
Think about your own company or product image.
What is your brand? How will you communicate that to the world? Three Ideas for Social Networking Posts Now that you have a better understanding of brand, try one or more of these ideas for social networking messages.
No one message strategy is right for everyone.
Choose what feels right and makes sense for your business.
1.
Share links to articles, blog posts, white papers and case studies that are about your work, your company, or yourself.
Links to relevant content are a great way to get the conversation going and share useful information with others.
Be sure, however, that links are on message.
Don't go off on tangents and start posting links to recipes if you run a software company, unless they're apple pie recipes and your company is Apple and you decide to play with it! Avoid political or religious discussions too, unless your company is about such concepts.
2.
Positive quotes, messages and thoughts about your business.
Note here that "positive" is essential.
While sometimes complaints generate responses, they can quickly get you branded as a negative person, and who wants to follow or friend a negative Nelly? Insights into business problems, situations or trends will be avidly followed if useful to your readers, followers and others.
3.
Lunch.
Food.
Yes, the lunch thing again.
One reason why posts about lunch, dinner or any meal in between are popular is that we all eat and food tends to be a neutral topic.
Posting some personal comments helps people form a picture of you.
People like to do business with other people, and keeping in mind that social networking is all about meeting people online instead of at an in person event, it's important that people feel connected.
Food tends to be the great equalizer.
Other ideas about neutral, safe topics to share include the weather, pets, and safe hobbies such as gardening, running, etc.
By safe of course we mean neutral.
Interesting and non controversial hobbies work well too as conversation starters.
Keep in mind this interesting tidbit about social networking messages; many search engines such as Google archive messages as unique URLS.
This can be embarrassing, since even deleting a post may not get it off the internet entirely.
That's why the emphasis is always on safe, neutral, positive and upbeat.
Leave behind a positive, professional impression of yourself online with social networking messages.
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