Pretty much anyone will agree that networking is important, whether or not you’re in business for yourself. Most of us will put networking events on our calendars and make an effort to attend, at least occasionally. If we agree that networking is important, why then are we so hesitant to connect with these same people online? One of the best ways to have conversations online is to connect with people you’ve already met offline.
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Sep
13
2010
How-To: Setup Monitoring in HootSuite
A vitally important part of achieving success with social media is responding when someone does reach out to you. When you’re just starting with social media, this may seem like a pipe dream, but if you’re not watching for responses, you may miss them when they happen. As your social media presence grows, it’s equally crucial to monitor for mentions and responses so they do not become lost. I use HootSuite as my main Twitter application, which not only has monitoring, but also stats and scheduling. Here’s how to setup HootSuite to monitor Twitter for mentions, responses and keywords…
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Sep
02
2010
8 Ways to Increase Social Media Interaction
If you’re just getting started with social media, it can be very frustrating if you’re not getting a lot of interaction. You may feel like you’re putting a lot of effort into creating great content and no one is responding. Unfortunately there isn’t a magic wand that can make you instantly Internet popular, but here are some tips for improving your interaction and getting on the right path.
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Aug
26
2010
Is Social Media a Waste of Time?
Ahh, social media. The golden ticket to increased profits and a life time of wealth. All you have to do is setup a Twitter and Facebook profile and start sending updates and magically people will start following and responding to you.
If you believe this, you’ve been lead down the wrong path. While social media may cost less than other marketing methods, it still requires planning, time and patience. If you just jump in without knowing what you’re doing and what you’re trying to accomplish, you may not get the results you expected, leading you to believe it’s all a huge waste of time.
Aug
02
2010
The Wrong Way to Social Network
Social networking (using the social web) is about connecting with people — asking questions, having conversations — basically the same things you would do if you were talking in-person. Yet many companies still treat social media like traditional media — as a way to distribute marketing and advertising messages. While social media does provide a cost-effective way to reach a targeted audience for marketing, the real opportunity is in making personal and human connections with that audience. Here are some of the most commonly repeated mistakes I see when it comes to social networking and using the social web:
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Mar
30
2010
Using Social Media to have a Conversations over the Counter
Small businesses excel at forming connections with their customers and network. Well before the Internet and online social networks, small businesses had real life social networks where they probably knew just about everyone in their town or village. Being part of a community is still important for any small business, but the Internet and online social media allow the reach to be extended to customers and partners that would never have been reached otherwise.
I grew up in a small town. My dad owned a saloon. I’ve been thinking a lot about his social networks and how they relate to what I do online. Truth is what my dad did with his cash register I do with my computer … the biggest difference is the speed and reach of the Internet. And I believe that entrepreneurial view is what gives every small biz an advantage in establishing a web presence using social media tools – Why Small Town Small Biz Has an Advantage at Using Social Media Tools (Small Biz Survival)
Feb
19
2010
Review: Twitalyzer for Twitter statistics
Twitalyzer goes beyond most websites providing statistics on your Twitter usage, displaying 15 key metrics on an easy-to-use dashboard. Other sites which provide Twitter statistics usually focus on followers (and follower growth), updates and followees. While it may be nice to see the growth of your following in a graph, it’s much more useful to know how engaged your audience is and how influential you are. Twitalyzer gives you a snapshot based on the past 7 days of activity, with trending information available for the last 14, 30, 60, and 90 days (and all time). Best of all, it’s free (at least for now).
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Feb
04
2010
Review: TweetDeck vs. HootSuite
Awhile back we had a knock-out-drag-out between HootSuite and SocialOomph, with HootSuite winning handily. Now, we’re pairing up HootSuite with TweetDeck. Until recently I was an avid user of TweetDeck for keeping track of my Twitterverse. I switched to HootSuite because TweetDeck seemed to be dropping a lot of messages out of my groups and mentions (not cool). Plus, I’m using HootSuite as my Tweet scheduler now (having won over SocialOomph), so it was easier to be in one place all day. But, let’s see how these two stack up:
Dec
10
2009
Review: HootSuite vs. SocialOomph
Both HootSuite and SocialOomph provide features for managing Twitter and Facebook (and other accounts). The services are very similar, and I’ve been a fairly loyal user of SocialOomph for several months now. But, recently downtime at SocialOomph led me to re-explore HootSuite and I’ve been using it as my primary tool for the past week or so. There are still some things that I prefer about SocialOomph, but overall I’m fairly happy with HootSuite (at least for now). Let’s take a look at the details:
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