Checking the past to predict the future
As the last crystals fall from the hour-glass of time in 2012 I want to look back over the past 12 months to share with you my insights on what I believe to be working, what has not worked & why so many of my students feel frustrated with social media – While others are passionately posting & engaging everyday… In the end I would love your thoughts as to how we can make this journey more enjoyable and rewarding for you and your business.
Review 2012
2008 -2011 most businesses sat back and watched the new kid on the block venture into a quicksand of marketing, this “YOUNGER” way of attracting costumers was extremely foreign to the traditional marketing methods we were still using and seemed to suck time away from face to face interaction with our customers… I’m sure you were one of the many that hoped it would go away… but it never.
2012 hit the internet with leaps and bounds of reasons why your business needs a social footprint and while still confusing for some you’ve accepted the fact that to be in business today you need to be where the eyeballs are and social media is definitely the stage… no matter the age of your audience.
Average user age per site from Pingdom Report 2012
- LinkedIn has the oldest users with an average age of 44.2 years old.
- Facebook has an average age of 40.5 years old.
- Twitter users dropped to 37.3 years old.
- In the past 2 years Facebook users got older…(no pun intended) while peeps on Twitter decrease by 2 years in age.
2012 brought an evolution of new sensible means for participating in social media and supplied a number of opportunities to be connected… today the choice is yours and it needs to make sense for you… you take charge of your social media and decide if it adds value to your businesses marketing efforts, embrace it and nurture it with conviction ….tell your story by adding value to your followers day.
Social Media has evolved from a celebrity platform to a must have business marketing tool where 25% of Facebook users check their account up to five times a day and 80% follow the brands they love… how can you make your company one of them?
The numbers are staggering & all networks are working frantically to participate at being in the top four… Your smart phone is getting smarter and easier to use every day. Photography is center stage for sharing & is what grabs our attention on social sites..
Pinterest is the newest addition in 2012 and women seem to love it, you have a choice of being as creative as your hearts desire by creating your own story telling through boards & sharing your dreams… while viewing the most amazing photography.
Twitter took on a new role for larger corporations as an arena for customer complaints, Twitters true power lies in its frame-work of instant messaging. Anything significant that happens around the world is first viewed through the eyes of Twitter it is the trusted source for news…Live and upfront… think of the presidential Election in 2012.
In 2012 the social giant Facebook tightened their privacy settings in hopes of luring in even more active users, hit the stock market valued at $140 Billion, and purchased Instagram for $1 Billion dollars… Totally dominating the social media networking sites & causing a must have vehicle to compete with local businesses today while creating a socially acceptable platform for advertising services and products. One big item we are learning is……..everything you post needs to be organic… real-time by yourself or your team… not manufactured or outsourced… automation is frowned upon!
Something we haven’t talked much about is YouTube and it is exactly what I believe you are going to need as 2013 unfolds… The Life of Video told in a story-book setting…grab a video camera and get started….
Top Ten Activities for 2013
- Pick one social networking site and work passionately on it
- Take a hands on course to understand the things that are not prevalent when first setting up
- COMMIT to 15 minutes every other day – that means schedule it – consistency
- Learn to tell your story – we learn through our imagination – pictures – emotion
- Post on all your networks in an engaging way & make sure you’re adding value
- Follow people who are doing it right
- Learn to talk the language
- Try to create your own content – brand it – put your website everywhere (Sharing what others post is also very wise)
- Start a mentoring group on social media and meet once a month
- Have FUN & think Referrals by helping others
Selling directly to customers on social sites only works for certain businesses. For the rest of us we need to Entertain our followers, create an Emotion when they read our postings and some how add a little ha ha to their day. It really doesn’t take much time but it does take consistency. Listen – Answer Questions – Help others succeed.
My New Years Resolution is to help you with your social media by “Keeping It Simple” when ever you have a social media question please go directly to my Facebook Page “Keep It Simple Social Media” and ask me your question on my wall – I will produce a small video answering your question – It’s that easy.
Cheers & may 2013 be an incredible year for you & your business in social media!
My name is Heather Clifford and I live in beautiful Nanaimo where I reach hands on social media, I am a passionate trainer who loves to help people bridge the distance between technology and marketing their business on-line. I am a speaker & consultant who travels throughout BC with my hands on social media workshops. 250-668-3310 Lets talk.
