Social Media as a Networking Tool
As an Internet marketer I field a lot of questions and opinions about the Internet and its use for small businesses. I want to address one of them: Just because you use the Internet to market your business doesn't mean you don't need other forms of marketing. So with that in mind, let's talk about networking. I mean people networking, not computer networking.
That phone, the one by your computer, should be ringing. You need it to be ringing more often with calls from people who want to hire you. So how do you get it to do that? Of course you need a good site, and you need the right people to see that site. One of the best ways to get the right people to see your website and call you is through good old fashioned networking. If you're like me you've met a lot of people at networking events, and you've stood through a lot of self-serving elevator pitches that were more like transatlantic flight pitches. As a good networker you listened, and you probably even thought about how you could help this person and create some good networking karma. And then you never spoke to or heard from them again.
Internet marketing isn't just about search engine optimization or emails. One of the greatest uses today is the social networks for supercharging your business networking efforts. Sites like LinkedIn, MerchantCircle, Plaxo, and Twitter offer an opportunity to more easily and more effectively nurture your network. It used to be that you had to choose carefully who to invest your time in. You still have to choose, but these social networking tools allow you to develop different types of relationships easily. People will get to know you a bit, and you'll get to know them. And we all know what that means: referrals!
Using simple but effective strategies will mean you'll find the right people to call, and people will call you. All marketing is about relationship building. Social media, used correctly, can help your small business build the right relationship and find the right prospects.
So go ahead, sign up for that networking event next week, and update your LinkedIn profile. As soon as you get back from the event invite everyone you met to connect with you on LinkedIn. To find out my firm's strategies for using LinkedIn to find clients, join me at a special half-day social media seminar in New York, this coming Tuesday, August 25th at the Coleman Center. You're going to love it. And Aptela blog readers get 50% off! Visit our site to register and learn more
Guest Author: Gabriel Blau
Gabriel Blau is the Internet Marketing Manager for Small Businesses at Visible Shops. Visit him online:
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/gabrielblau
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielblau
Posted in: Small Business on Aug 19, 2009 by Guest Author. |
Comments
Jackie | Aug 19, 2009 @ 5:30 PM
Gabriel,
Thanks for your contribution to our blog! Very insightful for our small business customers.
I hope your seminar on 8/25 is a smashing success. Let’s keep the dialogue going.
Jackie
Gabriel | Aug 20, 2009 @ 5:48 PM
Glad you like it Jackie. Let’s get more feedback. Want to make sure my posts are what ya’ll are looking for. If you’re reading this, let us know what you think!
Also, we just posted a survey related to this post. It’s really really short, but I’d appreciate everyone taking it!
got to http://bit.ly/41lUm1
Thanks,
Gabriel
article submission | Mar 26, 2010 @ 5:48 AM
Social Media Marketing is a powerful but low-cost means of getting attention, links and massive amounts of traffic. It is extremely effective for building corporate branding, product evangelism and reputation management.article submission
square peg web | Jul 27, 2010 @ 6:41 AM
Can you provide some specific examples of how you used the web to market your business. I am interested in creative, practical ideas. Thanks, in advance, f<a >square peg web</a>or sharing your ideas.