Social Media is a tool and you’ll be a tool if you don’t use it correctly

Come one come all social media marketing is here to save the day! 100% free, takes only a few short minutes a day and cures whatever marketing ills ail ya’ …

Heard this one before?

Truth of the matter is Social Media Marketing is FREE, But it won’t cure all your marketing ills. Like most “too good to be true” promises, social media marketing has fallen into some disrepute and rightly so because social media is just a tool and not a juice machine which slices and dices while doing your laundry.

Are you being a tool?

Ever tried to apply butter to bread with a pick axe? How about pulling your lawn mower with your car to make it a tractor?

Sound ridiculous, stupid and dangerous? It is!

If social media is the tool you need to market your business, but you have to use it correctly. If social media is a tool, you have to make sure it’s the right one for the intended purpose to achieve the desired goal. Let me say that again – “intended purpose” + “desired goal”.

An Aside: Kicking a Digital Goal

Do you have goals for your business? If not go and make some – not silly ones either like “making a million dollars”. I’m talking about goals that have time frames and purpose which you can then apply executable steps to:

“I want to increase enquiries via my website for kitchen installs in the next 6 months so I can be booked out for the slow season”.

Or,

“I’d like to sell more 32″ inch TVs in May because I have newer models coming in June”

See those goals? They had a purpose, they have a time frame, and they imply a strategy that can be broken down into steps. It doesn’t mean that they will be achieved exactly as stated BUT it gives us a mark to aim for. Mark .. market … marketing

… back to Social Media Marketing

So I get an email from a really nice business who wants our help with Social Media Marketing. I shoot back an email asking what their goals for their business are if they use social media as a marketing tool. I get a excited response about how they want to explore all the possibilities of social media marketing with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc..

Huh. No goals?

So I call, we end up having a really great conversation where I find out that this person doesn’t have a Facebook account and really doesn’t understand what it is . They’ve never used Twitter – we didn’t even get to LinkedIn – and really have no idea about any of the things they thought they wanted let alone a goal for using it. Remember it’s a tool – someone has to use it to make it work.

I finished up the call by suggesting that before they spend a big wad of cash on a Social Media Marketing strategy  they sign up for a Facebook and Twitter account, get some friends on Facebook and start following some people on Twitter to get a feel for the “tools” where it’s not “dangerous”. Truth of the matter – I hope they work out how to use Facebook and Twitter and start to understand they can create their own social media marketing strategy as they understand the tool more and more. It’s a sure fire chance that then they will actually use their Facebook and Twitter and use it correctly – but that’s for another blog post.

The Rub

I’m guessing by now you’re getting the picture about social media being a tool and social media marketing not being a magic fix.

That’s pretty much it.

So… you’re going to need to get skilled up if you’re going to use these tools right? What-do-ya-know…

We’re putting on a Social Media Marketing Course (see how I did that?). We’re going to give you actionable ideas and strategy for using Facebook and Twitter to help market your business, you’re going to have to supply your own goals though…

Facebook & Twitter For Business – Educational Workshop

• When: 17th April, 2012 – 5:30pm – 7:30pm
• Cost: $75 per person – for discount group bookings (2 or more), please call us on 07 5531 3810.
• Where: University Club Room – Bond University
• University Drive, Robina, Gold Coast, Queensland

What’s on the menu:

Facebook & Twitter For Business

Jesse Palmer (our Nashville transplant) will be sharing real world tips on using Facebook & Twitter to promote and market your business. Jesse recently wrote an excellent series of articles on online reputation management which you should definitely take a look at. Jesse enjoys craft-beers, the beach and small guitars with 4 strings (ukulele).

Facebook Advertising

Luke Garfield (me) will be sharing insights into using Facebook Ads to increase your Facebook profile’s reach as well as market your products and services “socially” via Facebook ads. Luke is the Internet Marketing Manager at e-CBD and uses a whip and a chair to tame the other rowdy internet marketing specialists.

Effective Google Places & Directory Listings

Kristina Kostic will share some exceptional insights and tips for creating an “all-killer-no-filler” listing on Google Places and other free directories. Kristina has to be one of the most qualified people to share these insights as she moderates and approves listings for 10 established online directories and has seen it all, she’s also super nice and friendly.