How To: LinkedIn Connections

Three Ways to Personalize Your Request to Connect

What is LinkedIn?  LinkedIn is the social networking site for professionals looking to connect with other professionals.  LinkedIn defines itself this way, "LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 120 million members and growing rapidly. LinkedIn connects you to your trusted contacts and helps you exchange knowledge, ideas, and opportunities with a broader network of professionals."

LinkedIn prefers these professionals connect with people they know and trust.  Many of us find that keeping an open mind and connecting with professionals we haven't met, but would like to connect with is of benefit too.  Count me among those.  Because we share and exchange information, as well as contacts, I prefer not to limit myself to those I have met in person.  To me that seems very restrictive.

Curious What #FF Means In Twitter?

Social media is changing and evolving constantly.  One problem participants have is the new trends that are always popping up.  It can be difficult to keep track of what everything means. 

This one has been around for a while, but if you are new to twitter it may be confusing.  Are you wondering what the #FF is you see used on Twitter? 

FF or #FF (with the hashtag) means Follow Friday. Follow Friday is a tradition where Twitter users help their followers find new followers each Friday. By tweeting their @name out to your list, they get a little exposure with your followers as well as their own followers.  Usually they will do the same for you.

All you need to do is tweet #FF and the @names of the followers you want to feature. Help out a friend this Friday by giving them a shout out. If you send me your @name (through a direct message through twitter or an email) I will send out a #FF this Friday for you to all of my followers.

What are other terms or slang you see that are confusing or you can share their meaning with us?

Follow me: @twitter.com/MktgPathways or @MktgPathways

Cindy Neky
MarketingPathways.com
Email Cindy

Who is My Target Market? (And Why I Should Care)

One of the most common marketing mistakes I see small business owners make is not determining who their target market is.  Or perhaps, more often, they don’t use this information when determining a marketing plan or when it comes time to make essential marketing choices. 

Chances are you know who your target market is, but how often do you use that powerful information to make important marketing decisions?  And how often do you remember to structure your strategic marketing plan around this critical target market?  The answer should be-always.

Simply put, your target market is the most likely buyer of your product or service.  There may be many possible buyers of your product or service, but there is always one type of buyer that stands out.  This is true whether you sell to consumers or to other businesses.

Look at the demographics and characteristics of your buyers.  Do they all fall within a certain age group?  Are they primarily from a certain area of town or the country?  Do more men than women purchase your product?  Do most of them exercise regularly?  Are they avid sports enthusiasts?  List all the distinct qualities your best customers have.

Once you have drilled down to the most specific attributes of your best customers, you know who your target market is.  When you know that, marketing for a small business becomes much simpler.  Why?  Because then the decisions you make in regards to marketing strategy become clearer.  This is where you spend your money in marketing.

One marketing tip you should know is how to use target market knowledge to keep you focused.  If a sales person from a magazine or radio station approaches you about advertising, you will know whether they are a good fit by who their target market is.  If the radio station targets 20-35 year old males and your customers are 35-50 year old females, it isn’t a good fit, no matter what type of a deal they offer.  See how much easier your decision became?

Don’t forget who your target market is and you will be making the right marketing decisions for your small business.  Small business marketing isn’t so tough if you remember who you are trying to please-your target market.

What do you think?  Do you use target market data to make your marketing decisions?  Any other thoughts on this topic?

Cindy Neky

Email Cindy

Ten Social Media Mistakes That Will Sabotage Your Results

It seems there are people involved in social media that don't understand how to use it, at least effectively.  When I say social media, of course, I am referring to sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. How hard can it be to chat with other people online?  More difficult than you might imagine.  Below you will see a list of the ten social media mistakes I see most often. 

1. It's all about me. This is probably the mistake I see most often from social media newbies. They think you have to sell every time they make a comment or update. What they don't realize is how annoying that comes across. 

Give me information that shows me you are an expert in what you do.  Convince me (in an indirect way) that I would want to do business with you.  Then you can tell me how you should be the person I want to do business with.  Don't sell at me all the time or I will shut you out.

2. No personality.  Ok, I know it isn't easy to write with a personality if you aren't a writer.  And putting smiley faces after all your sentences doesn't make it any better. :)  If you can bring your personality through in your writing then the reader is going to feel more connected to you.  Do the best you can.

3. No consistency.  Be consistent in your message and tone so the reader and follower know it is you. You want them to look forward to your contribution on social sites.  The other part of consistency is doing it often.  While not always an easy task, try to be involved in social media every day.

4. Not interacting with others.  Always remember this is social media and therefore, it should be a more social way of reaching out to others.  Do your best to network and relate to others in the site.  Try to respond to comments made by those you are connected with or that post on your blog.

5. Not being open to connecting.  My philosophy on connecting with business professionals on social sites is that I will connect with anyone within reason.  I say within reason because I have had a few shady characters try to connect with me.  Overall though, whether I know you personally or not, I will connect. 

On more than one occasion I have met someone in person at a meeting who I was connected to on LinkedIn or Facebook, but had never met in person.  It is always a fun and exciting moment. 

By connecting with people I haven't yet met, I allow them to get to know me through my postings, comments and updates. 

6. Auto following.  Most of us know that there are sites you can sign up for that will allow you to find and follow people automatically.  There are sites especially designed to do this with Twitter.  You can have thousands of followers if you want, just by using an automated following.  This is particularly bothersome and selfish.  I can't think of one good reason that isn't selfish for having thousands of followers.  And I don't mean a few thousand, I'm talking 5 figures and up.

7. Posting too frequently.  It is possible to post things so often it not only irritates readers, but also numbs them to what you are saying.  There are several people in groups on LinkedIn with me that post so often I automatically delete the emails coming in with their discussions.  There is a balance between often enough and too often.  Find it for you and your business.

8. Improper spelling and grammar.  You probably think this is a no brainer, but it is important to spell words correctly and say it properly.  Do you have to be perfect?  No.  You do need to meet minimum standards of grammar though.  Check your typing before you post.  First impressions are lasting, even in social media.

9. Using textspeak.  Dnt write like u txt.  U mite find not evryone cn rd it.  Plus, it just doesn't look professional.  Admittedly, Twitter is based on short messages of 140 characters or less.  If you are using it for business stick to real words.  Be more creative in how you say it in a short span. 

10.  No social media strategy.  Have a strategy with your social media. Are you going to supply people with information which helps you develop a strong presence? Whatever your goal for social media, stick to that strategy in every writing and in every site.

Are there others that I missed?  What do you see on social sites that you believe are mistakes?  Please respond in the comment section below.  I want to hear from you.

Cindy Neky

Cindy is a Certified Social Media Strategist, Marketing and PR Consultant, Small Business Specialist and Speaker with Marketing Pathways.  Located in Pittsburgh, PA, Marketing Pathways helps small businesses achieve sales success through strategic thinking and creative ideas.  

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Three 2011 Marketing Trends for Small Businesses

What are businesses really doing to succeed in today’s economy?  What does every business owner really want?  More leads? Of course.  More sales? Without question.  More money?  Absolutely.  But what do they REALLY want to KNOW? 

They want to know what everyone else is doing.  You know I’m right.  Just like we all want to know how our neighbor was able to afford that new big boat, we also want to know how other small business owners are succeeding.  What is the key to their success?  

Lots of elements go into a successful business, but let’s focus on what your neighbor businesses are doing with their marketing.  Using these ideas you can determine if you are on the right track with your own business.

The information compiled here is primarily from surveys of small business owners.  This would consist of businesses with fewer than 100 employees.

Trend one- Print advertising is decreasing every year.  Newspapers in print are losing ground in readership and advertising dollars.  National print Magazines, however, are on the upswing.  For the first time, more people have indicated they get their news online than in newspapers.  Twenty-three percent of consumers are also saying they would pay for online news.  Good news for the publishing industry.

How does this affect advertising?  If you have an older demographic as your target market, then print is still viable.  If your target market consists of individuals less than 50 years old, print probably isn’t an option for you. 

The top three news Web sites?  New York Times, People Magazine and USA Today.

The question I am asked more than any other is- how much should I spend on marketing my business?  It’s always a good question too.  The best answer is always as much as you can afford.  But what is everyone really spending? 

The Second Trend in small business marketing is the stabilization of the percentage of gross revenue for marketing.  For both 2009 and 2010, the percentage of sales small businesses put toward marketing is steady and it is…drum roll, please…- stated in % of revenue…it is 11%.  Now YOU know the answer.  When broken down by industry it is:

• Service Industries spend 11%
• Business Technology spends 8%
• Industrial and Manufacturing spend 5%

Successful companies spend money on marketing.  Not necessarily the same marketing you do, because their business is different than yours…but they do spend money.  And in a questionable economy it should not be the first thing you cut.  This is a mistake many businesses are never able to bounce back from. 

Think about it this way, have you ever noticed a company that advertises constantly for a year or two and then one day you notice you haven’t heard or seen their commercials in a while?  What is your first thought?  They have gone out of business.  That is the first thing that occurs to most people.  For a business that really didn’t go bankrupt, it could be a real problem for sales.

What happens to your customers if they stop hearing about you?  They stop thinking about you.  They find other sources for the product or service you provide.  Any small business owner that thinks it wouldn’t happen to them will be surprised to know it happens more often than not.

Is it enough just to say, I can afford x$ for marketing?  No it isn’t.  You need to plan and budget.  If you track your sales based on what you are doing, you will have a much better idea how much to spend and where to spend it in the future.

Third Trend-  Where were your neighbor businesses spending their money?  It’s all about new media.  The top three places businesses are using to market their business are on Web sites 88%, email 84% and social media 66%. 

In today’s fast paced world, most businesses have a Web site.  Either because they think they should or out of necessity due to customer request.  It has become the one marketing tool used by businesses more than any other.

What are the other marketing tools small business owners are using in 2011?  These are the specifics.

Top 3 B2B (Business to Business) Marketing Tactics for 2011

• ·          Email (still the best ROI)
• ·          Social Media
• ·          Events and Tradeshows

Top 3 B2C (Business to Consumer) Marketing Tactics for 2011

• ·          Social Media (Considered the highest priority to businesses)
• ·          Email
• ·          Lead Generation Programs

As you can see, Social Media is hot, hot, hot and trending up in 2011.

Let’s look at email marketing since it is the #1 trend for all size businesses’ marketing.  Some of the trends you are seeing in email marketing are ways to beef up your email.  Taking advantage of what is out there. 

·          Video is the new thing.  75% of people in the world are visuals.  This is one of the reasons video is so powerful.  If you haven’t tried video, give it a shot.

·          Social Media- integrating social media sites, information about joining, and links, included in the email.  And adding share buttons in the email is important now too.

·          New subscribers via Facebook, LinkedIn, twitter, and other sites with the signup integrated into the page. There is an app for that!

The trends for social media are constantly changing because social media is changing so rapidly.  These are the current trends for social media:

·        I have been saying for quite a while now that in social media, content is king.  Creating content that interests people and brings them to your sites and causes them to buy from you is important.  Now Content Curation is the trend.  What is that?  It is supplying relevant content to your followers-that are on topic, but you haven’t necessarily written.  Links to good articles, blogs, and other helpful sources.  Be an informational source for your followers.

Marketing Pathways'
QR code

·          QR codes.  Know what those are?  They are the little black boxes with the squiggly lines in them.  If you capture the box on your phone (that has the right application-app) it will automatically take you to a website or other landing page with info about the product, 
company or service.

·          The last of these is Social Commerce.  This would include both Groupon and companies like Groupon and Facebook Commerce.  Yes, there are sites within Facebook that are selling their wares.  The NBA is one of the first.  Check out the NBA Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/NBA.  During basketball season the store has many different shirts and other paraphernalia to choose from that can be purchased in the Facebook store.  You don't navigate outside Facebook to make your purchase.  Facebook users love that.

Now you know the secret of your business competitor and your business neighbor’s success.  Clearly social media and email, plus the web, are the hot places to spend your time.  As always, make sure any marketing strategy or tactic is a fit for your target market. 


What do you think?  Any trends you see for 2011?  Comment below, please.

Cindy Neky
Email Cindy

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Are you a Small Business Owner in the Pittsburgh area? Join our LinkedIn group.

Focus Research Study, Hubspot’s Marketing Data Box, Marketing Sherpa Special Report and 2010 GetResponse Email Marketing Trends Report used as basis for statistical numbers. 

How Do I Delete a Comment I Don't Like From My Facebook Page?

Have you had comments on your Facebook Page (or profile) you didn't want? Were you unsure what to do with them?

The easiest way to handle a comment made on your Facebook Page wall that you would like to have removed is to go to the specific comment itself.   If you go to the far right of the comment and hover your cursor, you will see a little star burst appear.  Click on the star burst and it will give you choices on what you can do with the comment and the person commenting.  Facebook allows you to either remove the post, remove the post and ban user (which you would probably want to do if the person is trying to sell something or is annoying), hide post or report as abuse. 

You can also delete the offender from your list of “likes”, by going in to the list of people that like your page and clicking on the “x” by his/her name to delete them.  Do this by clicking into the profile for your page at the top right corner.  Then on the left you will see a number with "people like this" beside it.  Click on the "people like this" and you will see the people that like your page.  Find the offender in this list and click the "x" beside their name to delete them.  They will no longer be able to comment on your page.

It is also possible to change your settings; by clicking on the edit page box in the top right corner and then into manage permissions.  If you uncheck the box for "users can write or post comments on your wall" no one will be able to make comments or otherwise post information, good or bad.  Think a significant change like this through before implementing.  Do you want people that "like" your page to be able to ask you questions and provide input?  If so, do not change the "posting ability" setting.  A change like this takes away from the Facebook experience.  In many cases, at least for small businesses, it is better to delete comments you don’t like and allow the interaction that comes from your followers comments.  It's always great to see a happy customer comment on how terrific you are.  Plus, it is great PR for your other followers to see a good comment as well!

Facebook is giving you several ways to handle umwanted comments.  It's your decision as to what to do with them.  Always consider your total strategy for using Facebook before making significant changes to your Page.

Have you had problems with people posting unwanted sales offers on your Page?  What do you prefer to do with unwanted or derogatory comments?  Please post comments below.

Cindy
Marketing Pathways Web site
Cindy on LinkedIn

Marketing Tidbit #2

Ever wonder what would happen if your list of connections in LinkedIn were lost?

Other LinkedIn members have lost their connections to glitches in the system. What if you have hundreds of connections? How would you reconstruct all of the connections you've worked hard to accumulate? 

Every so often you should download your connections to an Excel spreadsheet. Go to the Contacts tab in your account. At the bottom of that page in very small print are the words Export Connections. Click on those words, choose Microsoft Outlook .CSV, fill in the security letters and it will allow you to download the list (including emails) to a spreadsheet. 


If something happens to your list of contacts in LinkedIn-you're prepared! 


Have you had a problem with LinkedIn you couldn't solve?  Let's discuss here.


Cindy Neky
http://www.MarketingPathways.com