Don't shut your virtual door, be social online

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There's something my boss said recently during an interview that has been on my brain lately. He said that a recurring theme for small business owners is that they are too busy working in their business, they miss out on the opportunity to work on their business.

I think we all know this to be true, but we rarely take a moment to think about it. And I believe this is a problem when it comes to being social online. I hear from many business owners that they are concerned about how much time they will spend online, but what many folks don't realize is that it is important to nurture your client relationships both in person and virtually.

People are spending more time online, and this is just increasing. Case in point: I am always on the hunt for fun, retro office supplies and even though there are great places in Austin I could shop, there is one website that pops up on my favorite blogs and on my Facebook feed quite often. They are always on my mind, so next time I plan to shop for office supplies, I will probably turn to their website before I check out any stores.

We all listen to our friends (word of mouth is king!), and this is a great opportunity for your customers, friends, and family members to be your ambassadors. Just a quick "wow this is great!" or a snapshot of a product or service can help drive traffic to your business - both in person and online.

Don't shut your virtual door. And when you make the decision to be online, make sure you engage your audience. It is not just about what you have to say, but what your audience has to say.

6 Steps to Building a Successful Media List

1. Keep up with local and industry specific news

In this new digital age, we are continuously bombarded with news, both from traditional outlets and from our friends’ updates. Sometimes I’ll see “breaking news” on Facebook faster than I do anywhere else. You want to stay up-to-date with your news outlets and industry specific publications. Subscribing to your favorite outlets using a reader allows you to reach up on your own time, with targeted interests. Google Reader is a free, easy to use option.

2. Stay updated with Google Alerts

Speaking of Google, you should also take advantage of Google Alerts. This free service will search for keywords you choose and deliver them right to your inbox or reader. Utilize search-friendly punctuation to really target your results. For example, if you use quotations for your keywords, Google will search for the phrase specifically. “Austin Hispanic Chamber” will yield results that use all three words together, so you don’t end up with articles about a guy named Austin, who dressed up like the X-Men character, Chamber, for Halloween. I suggest not only using alerts for your company name, but use them for keywords, initiatives, or even regional searches.

3. Keep an Excel spreadsheet, and maintain detailed notes on publications & journalists

Keeping a detailed Excel spreadsheet will keep you sane. I make notes about everything. If a reporter covers a story, there’s a note. If a publication writes about a competitor, there’s a note. If a blogger told me when her dog’s birthday is, I add it to my calendar. You never know when these tidbits of information will help you. If I’m pitching a reporter that I know loves a certain sports team, and they just won a game, I’ll mention it. You may want to avoid using this example for UT – almost everyone’s a fan and it won’t help you stand out! I also keep detailed notes on what reporters DON’T want to be pitched, or if they never respond to me. Some don’t like phone calls, where others are happy to get last minute news. Write it all down, it won’t hurt.

4. Add different types of media, make use of tabs and structures

Don’t just focus on print or TV. You want to capture a big audience, so spread your net. Using the tabs in your excel document, you can categorize by media type (print, radio, TV), or categorize by region or by industry. I have an Austin tab, as well as a Hispanic-focus tab, Williamson County tab, CEO tab, etc. Use your judgment. Categorizing can really help once your list starts to flourish.

5. Social media is where everyone’s hanging out now, and you should too

Stay up to date with media outlets and journalists on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc. I love using Twitter for staying updated because of their list feature. I have a list of just media folks that I track most often, so they stand out from all the other “noise.” This can be especially helpful if you are being much more targeted in your media list building.

6. Don’t just create it and walk away. Nurture it, update as you go

Once you have your list, I guarantee it will change. Journalists leave, industries change, and new media outlets are added. Make sure you continue keeping your eyes open, and always stay up to date of what’s going on in your city and industry.

photo: source

Wow - These Guys Get It! A Look at Social Media Success.

These companies & brands

fully understand social media,

and use it to their full advantage.

How are you leveraging your social media?

Take a look at these bright ideas…

«Extremely Diverse – The hotel focuses on art, cuisine, travel, local history, pop culture and other topics that may be of interest to their target audience. Both visitors and residents of  Dallas would find it most advantageous to follow The Adolphus.

«Highly Interactive Content – The hotel does not simply self-promote, however gives its readers the ability to be “in the know” about the hotel’s happenings and current events in Dallas.

«Shared Discussion – Their audience connects through shared discussion of their common interests, which is ultimately a goal for any brand or company participating in social media.

«Trend Setters – With all the options for Brides, The Adolphus wants to keep an interest in that market. Each month, on Facebook, the hotel features a different wedding to really showcase their beauty and services as a wedding venue.

«Highly Interactive Content – Their audience is highly interactive, both with Embroidery Online (EO) and with each other.

«Builds Community – EO asks lots of questions and encourages people to interact with their page. They show a genuine interest in what their fans have to say, and many of their fans frequently interact on their wall. Fans even post questions for other users. EO has created this central hub for anyone that loves, or wants to learn, embroidery.

«Trend Setters – They always post the latest trends and are quick with industry news. Fans know, and truly utilize, EO’s fan page for the latest news or to find out more information.

«Quick Turnaround – EO is quick to respond to their audience on both Twitter & Facebook, and creates goodwill among their fans.

«Genius Creative Content – Skittles gets people talking.  It offers fun, creative content that will leave their audience with positive thoughts and a general yearning for their candy. 

«Bold & Innovative – They have created an energetic community. Their momentum drives people to want skittles, and to potentially post how much they love skittles. They push the envelope, and everyone is buzzing about them.

«Amazing Online Presence – Not only does Skittles have an amazing number of fans and followers, they have fantastic interaction. Social Media should not only be measured by how many people follow, but how they interact. That is the ultimate goal of any brand.

«Photo Sharing – Skittles has gone beyond the encouraging “Hey – post on our wall!” and has a weekly contest for their Facebook fans. Anyone who posts a photo on their wall is eligible to win the “Rainbro of the Week.” Fans love putting their photos on Skittle’s wall, and it creates great return when fans are featured.

 Social Media needs this connection between you, the brand, and your consumers. Remember these five simple rules:

Personalize, Engage, Promote and Entertain

«Personalize: Maintain a human voice. Establish & nurture relationships. Share relevant content.

«Engage Your Audience: Encourage your audience to contribute content. Provide instant customer service, keep up with your brand and what people are saying about you. Be quick to respond to both positive and negative feedback.

«Promote: Be a trend setter. Cultivate brand awareness. Manage your reputation.

«Entertain:  Add value to your content. Build a  community for your fans. Show  them why your “friendship” is important to them, and important to you.

Advertising is Selling the Milk, PR is Promoting the Cow

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To anyone not in this industry, there can be a lot of confusion between public relations, advertising and marketing. My professor in college gave us this catchy little tagline to quickly clarify the difference: "Advertising is selling the milk, PR is promoting the cow."

This saying quickly became a favorite and I included it on all the PRSSA materials when I held my presidency, and it helped a lot of students understand the very basic nature of PR.

Now with social media (wow - is this dating me?!) where does that fall in this tagline?

I would propose to say "Social media is talking about the milk, the cow and the farm" - and it's a whole lot of fun!

What do you think? How do you use social media for business?

Cross your T's, Twitter!

It's important to have both a Facebook and Twitter presence for your business. They are both very different outlets and you should be taking full advantage of them. A lot of folks like to incorporate both tweets & Facebook updates together, but in my opinion this is a bad thing to do. You want to have people follow you on both social platforms, but you don't want to feed them the same information twice. My suggestion is to rewrite your posts for each outlet - especially because twitter talk is so different from normal lingo.

The "F's" of Facebook:

• FULL MONTY: Facebook updates can provide your fan base with a lot of info - you can post photos, events, questions, links and video. And you want to do ALL of these, do not leave a stone unturned.
• FEED: You shouldn't overwhelm your followers on Facebook. Your fans want to hear from you, but not be bombarded with useless information - which is how they feel when they read your updates more often then from their BFF from college.
• FASCINATE: Engagement is key. You don't have to have a lot of followers to have excellent engagement - just interested fans. And you're in charge of keeping them interested! Facebook is a little more challenging when it comes to enchanting your audience, so it's especially rewarding when you succeed. 
• FORTIFY: Ask questions, and not just to poll kind. Your fans want to be part of a community and give you their knowledge and insight. Make sure you continuously give them the opportunity to do so.
• FLOURISH: Always respond to your fans when they write on your wall or updates. Even if it's just a click of a "like" button, make sure they know you are listening.
• FILL A VOID: Offer your fans something no one else does. For Hydrant, I update my fans about social media trends AND fun pet facts. My favorite segment is "Word at the Hydrant" where I give random pet facts. Make your page fun, think outside of the box.

And let's not forget the "T's" of Twitter:

• TEMPT: Tweets have to be done in 140 characters or less, make your followers want MORE! You can include a link with more information - short tweets usually see more engagement and clicks than long ones. And make it interesting, you want them to wonder and therefore click on your link: "Cross your T's, Twitter! LINK."
• TANTALIZE: You can send out more information than on Facebook, and get away with it! Twitter is happening so quicky, in bulk, you can get lost in the tweet clouds. Stay grounded with useful information and lots of interactions with your followers. Engagement is key, both TO others and FROM others.
• TRANSLATION: Twitter has special speak, get with the lingo! Know the basics: 
• RT is Retweet: Sharing a tweet someone else posted and giving them credit
• FF is Follow Friday: Showcase the people you enjoy hearing from most
• WW is Woof Wednesday: Showcase your favorite furry friends and organizations!
• # is a hashtag: use this to make a topic and it creates a link to the topic. "I love living in this beautiful city! #austin" so "austin" becomes a link, and when clicked anyone who hashtag's Austin will appear in a feed. 
• TWINKLE TOES: Twitter has the great capacity of being light. You don't have to put as much thought as Facebook, it's okay to update more frequently and even better to interact often.

How do you use Facebook and Twitter? 

What My Large Mexican Family Taught Me About Social Media

Photo by Visual Photos (not my family!)

I had a whole lot of family members visiting this weekend. In addition to my boyfriend, myself and my parents, we had my aunt & her family of four, another aunt and her family of four, my uncle's family of four and my grandparents. This is just half my family, by the way!

It was a mission getting all 17 of us got together (give or take a person or two!) for our various meals around Austin. So while I sat back and watched, I thought of how these restaurants or retail shops could capitalize on our invasion and get some free publicity.

If I was working at a restaurant and 17 people came in, you bet I'd take a quick photo and post it on Facebook & Twitter. Why aren't these businesses doing that? Talk about quick, free promotion. Not just with a big crowd, but anytime anything fun, unique, weird or funny happens. I bet a lot of people new to Texas have no idea what sizzling fajitas look like, or a slab of brisket cooking on the grill at a local BBQ spot. What about a really cool looking beverage? Or a guest that's wearing a funky outfit, or better yet - a tee shirt with your logo on it!

In addition to the exposure, it's really important to cater to ALL customers - big crowds and single people. Something I really hate is bad customer service, and with peer review sites like Yelp and City Search, you would think the managers of these establishments would keep an eye on us - that's a potential 17 bad reviews! And we had some pretty bad service, but I won't point any fingers.

So restaurants and business, keep in mind how taking a quick photo and putting it up on social media sites is a great way to catch people's attention, without blatantly self promoting. Encourage patrons to like your page on Facebook, tag these photos and leave comments.

What do y'all think? What opportunities have you capitalized on using social media?

Snazzy new transformation - You to Page in 3...2...1...

I wanted to share with everyone how Party Animals went from 100 to 121 in less than a month on Facebook - and for our small niche local business, that's a good number!

There are a lot of tutorials out there on the new Facebook Fan Pages. But I wanted to share my quick "Wow - this kicks-doggy-butt" synopsis of it all and why it's the best for small businesses marketing.

And, viola! Your page is now being navigated by your business. Now, you can't interact with fans or other "human" pages, which is both a good and a bad thing. I'd hate it if every page I fanned was always commenting on my photos - creepy! But, with this snazzy little tool, you can connect with businesses that can help grow YOUR business!

This is Teeny's Friends page, they are a local non profit organization that gives toys to needy dogs in the community. I love this organization, so I interact whenever possible. This builds our relationship, adds interactions to Teeny Friend's which helps their SEO & indexing, and now all of their fans can see Party Animals exists. win-win-win-#winning! 

So there you have it, my super quick, über cool new way to maximize your Facebook Fan Page!