For years, many have speculated about the demise of email communication, citing information overload and the rising popularity of more accessible technology like text messages, IMs, and social networking. They were right -- sort of. In a February 2011 report, comScore found that overall email usage declined by 8% in 2010 with the sharpest decline (-54%) occurring among 12-17 year olds. In … [Read more...]
Last week I had a dog-chasing-its-tail experience with social media (and sadly, it wasn't the first time). Curious about one of my new Twitter followers, I clicked the URL in her bio. It directed me to the Wall of her Facebook business page, which wasn't active except for an auto-feed of her Twitter updates. I poked around, still interested in learning more about her and possibly connecting. … [Read more...]
"Oh, Twitter? Yeah… I have like something over 6,000 followers. And I have well over 500 connections on LinkedIn. What about you?" It took every ounce of energy (and a short, silent prayer) not to roll my eyes and walk away. When people lead a conversation about social media with the number of followers they have, it's clear they don't get it. Unless, of course, their goal is to create an … [Read more...]
Congratulations! You've finally made the leap and created a Twitter profile. Now what? Being a newbie on Twitter is a lot like walking into a room full of thousands of people you don't really know. Who do you talk to? What do you talk about? Is it rude to break into a conversation? How do you get people to notice you? Here are three quick tips to quickly and effectively make your mark on … [Read more...]
When my friend and fellow-entrepreneur, Lorin Beller Blake, invited me to write a guest post for her blog at Big Fish Nation I enthusiastically accepted. Then she dropped the bomb on me, "I'd like you to do a video to go along with it." Writing I can do, but the idea of getting in front of the camera made my stomach flop. I've been an active participant of social media since 2005 and video is … [Read more...]
Do you really need to be using social media to market your practice? The short answer is "Yes." Let's just crunch the numbers for a moment: Twitter: The more than 175 million registered users send over 140 million tweets per day. Facebook: People spend over 700 billion minutes per month here. LinkedIn: As of March 2011, over 100 million professionals are members. All that adds up to a … [Read more...]
"It takes too much time." That's a common complaint about social media marketing. Maintaining an online presence and building your social brand via the Web definitely takes time. And it's time that you may feel is better used elsewhere, especially if you're not getting the results you want. So you're caught in a battle, trying to decide how much effort to put into social media. Too often, … [Read more...]
Everyone uses LinkedIn in different ways. Some strive to add as many people to their network as possible, regardless of affiliation. While others (myself included) only add people with whom they have a personal connection. Regardless of your network building approach, you're using LinkedIn to connect. But a virtual connection doesn't automatically create engagement, and engagement is what … [Read more...]
Before social media, I marketed my practice in a fairly traditional way: in-person networking, speaking, hand-written notes and follow-up calls. I was all about personal touch and this approach helped me maintain a steady book of business. Then I started blogging, tweeting and hanging out at every social media hotspot I could find. It was fun! Plus, it served my generally introverted … [Read more...]
Last week I got a bunch of email newsletters I never asked to receive. Once again, someone took the liberty of adding me to their email list -- without my permission. Chances are, this has happened to you too. Worse, you may be doing it to others. Email marketing is a great way to get your message in front of a targeted audience, especially when combined with a strong social media … [Read more...]
