Social media. If you haven’t used it before, it can be intimidating. For example, I’ve been an avid user of Facebook for years. Adding Twitter onto my repertoire of social mediums that I am familiar with was scary! I used to say that Twitter was a “glorified Facebook status” and now, after doing research, I understand that it’s not that way at all!
So, reader, are you bewildered by the wide world of social media? Don’t be! Today, I’m going to share some thoughts on marketing with the four major social media available.
Facebook. Facebook is definitely the social medium that I am most familiar with. I made a page for my freelancing business that I link my blogs to, and I’ve found it very handy for increasing my traffic. I also keep my followers updated on what new projects I am working on! The best part about making a fan page is that my friends and/or clients can communicate with me and give me suggestions. In turn, I can ask them what they’d like to see when I blog.
Twitter. As I mentioned before, I’m definitely not as familiar with Twitter as I am with Facebook, but I have my Twitter feed and my freelancing business’s page linked. I use Twitter in the same way that I use Facebook; I keep my followers updated about new projects and the blog posts that I write up! Twitter’s a nice, quick way to put out what you want to say to your followers. You can also communicate with people of like interests via retweeting and posting with hashtags (which, granted, I’m still getting used to too).
Google+. Honestly, I have not used Google+ at all; I don’t even have a profile with them yet. From what I understand, it’s very similar to Facebook, but it’s run by Google instead. When reading about the medium, though, I discovered one thing that Facebook doesn’t have: video conferencing via their “hangout” function. Now, you can get video conferences via Skype and other VOiP clients, but having it via social media without having to give everyone your Skype information? I think that’s a win-win situation. I plan on signing up for it soon and checking it out more.
Linked In. Linked In, like Google+, is a site that I don’t use often. Unlike Google+, I do have a profile on it. From what I understand, it’s meant for professional networking, which can be utilized in your marketing efforts. Having connections always helps when trying to get the word out. Also, some freelancing and personal contractor jobs are listed on Linked In, which is why I signed up for it in the first place. Because of this utility, you can use it for leads as well!
What are your thoughts on these four social media? How do you use them in your marketing and advertising? Do you like being able to keep in touch with your clients and/or “fans” via these technologies? Leave your thoughts in the comments, have a great weekend, and we’ll see you here next week!
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