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Social Media= Connecting People & Building Community

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

AT & T hit the nail on the head with this ad.  This is what social networking is all about.  Connect people, bringing them together and helping one another.

What are you doing as a business to accomplish these things?  What are your goals?  Do you want to give back and help people?  Do you want to be involved in the community?  Then I suggest you get invovled in social networking.  It’s here and I don’t think it’s going anywhere.  If fact, I’m pretty sure it will develop and morph into something even bigger.

Questions about social media and it’s purpose in the business setting?  Contact us for a consultation.  We are here to help you build your online community.

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A Quick Social Media Tip

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

social_media_icons_1The sheer amount of social media sites can seem a little daunting, especially if you’re just starting out.  A good number to focus on would be three.  We now give you permission to stop trying to figure out every single one of these sites and how to work them.  Choose three that you think will have the most impact on what you’re trying to do and become active on those sites.

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Balancing Act

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

Yoga ~ Balance{image here}

As business owners, we understand that time is hard to come by.  Starting a business takes a lot of time, and once it’s up and going, that usually doesn’t change either.  So how do you balance it all?

  1. I make a list of priorities of the things I need to accomplish everyday.  I start at the top and work my way down.  I almost never get to the bottom of the list, but I try my hardest.  Usually unexpected items arise that shift my list throughout the day, but having a list keeps me on task.
  2. I also track my time.  {Even if that time isn’t billable}.  Tracking my time helps my productivity and keeps me on task.  {It also helps me know what I’m worth}.
  3. Have a set work schedule.  It’s easy as a business owner to work all-the-time.  I try to set specific hours so I’m also balancing my work with my family life.
  4. Hire things out.  Know your strengths and focus on them.  Know your weaknesses and hire them out.  It will make you more successful to focus on what you’re good at.
  5. Say no.  It’s okay to say no to business if you are swamped.  Really, it is.  You will be doing yourself and your client a disservice if you take them on when you’re unable to handle them.  If you really want to take on a new project, consider hiring some help.

What are things that you do to help you balance your business and life?  Or do you think that’s even possible?  :)

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The New and “Improved” Facebook

Monday, October 26th, 2009

If you’re on Facebook then no doubt you’ve noticed some of the changes they have made to the layout.  A couple of months ago they did a change that took people a while to get used to.  I remember the backlash back then as well.  While I’m not a big fan of the changes myself, I can’t help but think that we’ll get used to it eventually and when they make changes again in the future we’ll wish for this “old” version that we dislike at the moment.  Change is never easy.

What do you miss the most about the old layout?  I’ve found that I really enjoy getting updates from fan pages I follow, seeing pictures people post, and reading all status updates.  I can still get those.  It just takes a few more clicks.  I’m sure I’ll get used to it eventually, and may even come to like this better than before.  I arrange my “list” by prioritizing the links on the left.  If you click on “more” you can start dragging around the links.  I made my top 5.

1. Status Updates

2. News Feed

3. Pages

4. Photos

5. Links

When I log in to Facebook, I see status updates.  When I want to find the other information, I click on those links on the left sidebar list.  I can see how this might save me time in the future.  I can prioritize my time on Facebook and only check some of those things once a day instead of seeing them and getting distracted.

What do you think of the new and “improved” Facebook?

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Listening is Key

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

24:365- Ear
If I had a dollar for every time someone told me social media doesn’t work for their business because “we don’t want to post about our sick dog” or hear about anyone elses for that matter, I’d have a pretty good chunk of change.  So if you don’t care about someone’s sick dog, or what they had for lunch, should you be involved in social media?

Yes, you should.

Do you care about your customers?  When they walk in the door and you ask them how they’re doing, they go on about their grandchildren and how their cat had to have surgery, etc.  You at least act like you care, right?  And hopefully you genuinely do.  This is what social media is about.  Building connections and being helpful.  It’s just avoiding the starting question, “how are you.”  People just automatically get to the point to what they are thinking about.

Which, if you think about it, gives us great insight to who they are and what they care about.  What a powerful marketing tool, right?!! And such a powerful listening tool too!  Listening is such a key part of a good marketing campaign and we can listen now more than ever.

So are you listening?  The one key to being on these spaces, is actually being there.  Just yesterday I tweeted a local business and am still waiting to hear back from them.  How frustrating, right?

Remember, we are here to help.  We offer consultations and classes depending on your needs.  We promise we don’t bite so go ahead and send us an email or tweet.  We promise we’ll get back to you ASAP.  Because we are here and we are listening.

{image here}

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Rest Your Head on This

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

Sometimes my worlds of crafting and social media collide.  I want to make a set of these geeky icon pillows and put them around my house.

photo copyright craftsquatch

photo copyright craftsquatch

If you aren’t the crafty type to make your own, they are available for purchase at this Etsy shop.  I’m sure some social media fanatics will have these on their Christmas lists this year.

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We are all Teachers

Tuesday, October 20th, 2009

Per Diem

Have you ever taken a class that drove you nuts?  Where the instructor was all over the board and didn’t seem to have a clear direction?  It really has an impact on your learning and retaining of the knowledge, huh?

In marketing and advertisers for your company, or brand, it is similar to being a teacher.  What do you want your customers to remember?  What message do you want to convey?

To be a successful teacher, you need to have a lesson plan and a focus.  It’s the same in marketing and advertising.  Do everything with a purpose and for a reason and your plan will be more successful.

Think about different classes you’ve taken, and what style you like.  What works and what doesn’t?

image here

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How to Get Started in Social Media

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

Are you feeling overwhelmed and aren’t quite sure where to get started?  Here are a couple recommendations we have to get you started:

  1. Start- sign up for an application that you’d like to get started with.  Depending on your business, and your branding goals, some applications may be better than others.  But for now, just get started with one and get comfortable.  Some great ones to get started with are Facebook or Twitter.
  2. Create a social media branding strategy.  As we’ve mentioned before, this isn’t going to vary from what you’re goals are offline, but it will help you remain focused in the space that you’ve decided to participate in.
  3. Participate.  Now that you’re all signed up, remain active in the space.  If it helps, set mini goals to stay active at first and before you know it, these practices will become habits.  For instance, if you’ve decided to sign up on Twitter, set your goals to be: Tweet once about yourself (link to blog post or something on your site), RT atleast 2 others throughout the day, start a conversation, or reply to atleast 2 people, etc.
  4. Be authentic.  Be yourself and be personable.  That’s what we love about this space.  Tell us about what you love.  If it helps, make a list of 5 things that you talk about in these spaces.  It let’s people know what else you’re passionate about.  Sure we love what your doing in business, but if you love crafts and I do too, and this is something you talk a lot about, I will be more apt to listen to you when you give your sales pitch.

These are a couple tips that can get you up and going.  If you would like to learn more about getting started in Social Media and how it can help get you leads, check out our Lunch and Learn this Thursday.  We promise you won’t regret it.

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Branding Yourself

Thursday, October 8th, 2009

Finish 3

When you’re branding yourself online, keep your message consistent with your message offline.  The only thing that will change is the way you communicate your brand.  So let me show you what this would look like:

Example Branding Concept: You run a retail shop that focuses on runners.  Running shoes, running outfits, awesome socks, etc…  Your main branding strategy is to make sure everyone knows where they can purchase your goods (online & store front) and that you have a great running club that is up and running in 1/2 of the states across USA.

Communicating your Brand:

Facebook- Build a community of runners on your fan page.  Give tips about running (i.e. increasing your personal best time, running routines, cross training, etc).  Promote your clubs around the US and also let your community know they can start their own running club.  Offer discounts/special sales to your facebook fans (this is a great way to promote your store front & online shop).

Twitter- Much like facebook, you will post tips about running, and talk about different events/running times your clubs have going on around the US.  I would also try to connect with other exercise fanatics – they will most likely be interested in running too.

Blog- Start a blog about running and different workouts that runners can do to better their running ability.  Talk about the different gear and why it makes a difference.  Make sure your passion shines through.

See how it’s all the same branding strategy, but tweeked for the different avenues?  If you’re interested in building a branding strategy, check out our classes to get you started {Our class on Monday is Social Media 201 and it’s filling up fast!  If you’re interested, I would sign up ASAP!}

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Share Your Passion

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

share your passion

Are you tired of us talking about BarCamp yet?  I took this photo of Deb after she made this button at the button station.  Share your passion.  That is really what social media (and Toolulu) is all about.  You love something, you share it.

From BarCamp we met so many people passionate about so many different things.

Lora from Habitwise is passionate about making healthy a habit.

Trisha is using Halloween in Omaha to bring a community together and support non profits.

Gabe is passionate about finding a job.

The guys behind Silicon Prairie News are passionate about reporting on the tech and entrepreneurial spirit in our area.

What are you passionate about and what are you doing to share that with others?

Posted in social media | 1 Comment »

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