Social Media Tips for Small Businesses

More businesses are turning to social media like Facebook and Twitter for free, quick and easy promotion.  Rather than pay a lot of money for traditional advertising, small businesses can benefit from their own Facebook page and Twitter feed to get their message out there.  Using social media for advertising can be sticky, though, since social media creates a far different relationship than the standard "advertiser/viewer" exchange.  Here are some tips to navigate the choppy waters of social media advertising to get the most out of your business' social media presence.

Be a Friend

Social media like Facebook, Twitter and Google+ create a relationship with your audience.  Always remember that using social media means your customers interact with family and friends on the same platform they interact with you.  Like it or not, this blurs the lines between categories like "friend," "customer" and "company."  What this means to you is that you must be genuine and conduct yourself on social media according to its own mores and practices.  In other words, be a friend and don't communicate like a company, which leads us to our next point.

Don't Shill

This is the biggest social media marketing mistake I see, usually because marketers are stuck in the old ways of advertising.  They think the tried and true communication methods proven in print and electronic media advertising will also work in social media.  They're wrong about that.

It's tempting to approach social media like any other advertising and just plug away, shilling everything under the sun to drive business.  Trust me when I say that constant huckstering is the best way to get customers to unfriend you.  Think about it.  Would you want what amounts to commercials showing up constantly in your feed?  This is not to say you should never promote your products.  Come on, that's why you're on social media in the first place!  Just be mindful of your posts and temper the flow of selling with non-commercial messages like links to articles, helpful hints or just a simple greeting.  Customers will be more receptive to sales messages if you come across as a friend first and a company second.

Make it Worth their While

Along with your shills and friendly notes, give customers a reason to follow you and give existing friends a reason to stick around.  One way is to publish content relevant to their interest.  Another way that might be better to both parties is to announce deals and special offers.  Discounts and promotions are a great way to get new friends and inspire social media loyalty.  This gives something to your friends (a deal) and give you something as well (more business).

Network

Networking is just as important in social media as it is in the real world.  Use your account to follow the accounts of other local businesses.  Their fans might notice you and start following you, adding to your audience and spreading your promotional message.

I'll wrap up this article with my own shill if you don't mind.  If you live in or around Mt. Airy or Frederick, Maryland, or know someone who does, and need computer repair help, give me a call.  Here's my website, email, Facebook page and Twitter feed.   I offer a wide range of computer services at great prices for both home computer users and small businesses.  Thanks for reading and good luck with your social networking!

Website design: so you've bought the site. How do we get CONTENT up there?

In my last article, I wrote about how to get started with your own web site.  We covered what a domain name and hosting are and how to buy your own domain name and set up hosting for your web site.  Now that your site has a name and someplace to live, it’s time to generate content.

This is client engagement.  In this process, the site developer (hopefully me) meets with you to discuss your ideas for your site.  We’ll get any materials from you that we need, including the following:

• Pictures of products or projects
• Detailed descriptions of products
• Any definite verbiage you want on the site
• Contact information you want published
• Number of pages on the site

Essentially, we’ll collaborate and plan the site.  We can be as involved in the planning process or keep it to a few basic ideas.  I find that the more the client is involved with this step, the happier they’ll be with the final result.  As far as the number of pages goes, I used to charge a flat rate per page, but I am transitioning to a “package” model instead.  This offers more flexibility for clients and helps us both make good design choices. 

After the initial site planning has been done, I will create some site mockups, each witha  different design and feel.  Depending on how complex the site is and how many pages you want, I may do a full mockup of the entire site or I may simply create a few select pages.   

I then meet with the client to go over the mockups.  If I’ve done my job well, the client will usually pick one of the mockups as the final design.  I can then get started on the final product.  After another meeting or two just to get the fine details right, the site is completed and YOUR new web site is ready to go online. 

Remember in the last article when I said a web site is just a collection of files?  Well here’s where I upload the files to the host.  Once the files live on the host’s servers, they can be accessed immediately.  After final approval, your web site can be online in minutes. 

Once the site is online, it’s just a matter of tweaking content according to the client’s ongoing needs.  I typically do this on as as- needed basis with my typical hourly rate, providing an estimate before any work is done. 

So there you have it.  I hope, with these two articles, I’ve demystified the process of creating a web site for yourself or your business and getting it online.  It’s really a collaborative process between you and I that should lead to a great deal of satisfaction for both of us.  Thanks a lot of reading and if you have any questions or if you’d like to discuss getting YOUR site up, please email me. 

User Friendly Computer Services

Website design: how do I get my own website for my small business?

 

So you have a company, or maybe you're starting your own small business, and you need to have your own web site.  The problem is you don't even know where to start.  It can be daunting. 

The good news is this:  It's not as hard as it sounds and with the right help, you can be online advertising your business to the world - or your small part of it - right away. 

A web site consists of three key parts: 

• Domain name 

• Hosting 

• Content 

A domain name and hosting must be purchased by you from a provider.  I typically use GoDaddy.com.   

Domain Name: 

Simply put, it's the name of your web site.  Mine is www.userfriendlysupport.com.  On GoDaddy's home page is a search tool you can use to find out if your desired name is available.  If it is, great!  You can buy it.  

Ownership lasts a term of one or two years, typically, and then you can renew. If your name isn't available, GoDaddy will suggest alternatives or you can search for a different name.  As far a pricing goes, it varies.  .com is a more desirable "top level domain" than .net, .us etc, so .coms usually cost more.  Domain names that might be in demand or are general terms that might get more traffic are also more expensive. 

Hosting: 

A web site is simply a collection of files.  They have to be put somewhere accessible to the outside world.  That's what hosting is.  Your hosting company, GoDaddy in my example, provides server space and bandwidth.  They put your site someplace and give people a way to get to it. 

The best approach is to buy hosting at the same time you buy your domain name.  Sites like GoDaddy will usually give you a price break for buying both at the same time.  Also in the realm of price breaks, consider that buying two years' worth of hosting costs less per month than one year.  You do pay up front, though, so evaluate whether you really want to e in this for "the long haul" or if you're just "testing the waters." 

We can help you get started and walk you through the buying process if you need it.  It can definitely be confusing for some, with options like Windows vs. Linux server, private or public registration and so on that there's not room to go into here.  Just understand that it's not as hard as you might think and if necessary, you can do the whole process over the phone with the hosting company instead. 

The next topic to discuss is content.  You have a name and a place for your site to live.  A "home" for your homepage.  How do you get exactly what you want onto that little piece of the Internet that belongs to you?   That's the next topic, where we'll discuss how the client engagement goes and how you get exactly what you want online on your site.    

User Friendly Computer Services