As a business owner you know there are new tools available to help you market your business.  I’m talking about what is called social media, mainly Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and blogging.

You want to participate but sometimes your technical questions get in the way. Or, you’re not sure how you can use these tools in the most optimal way.

Here are ten tips that you can use now to improve your social media marketing effectiveness:

1. If you have a cool resource or idea to share with someone, post it on their Facebook profile (or Fan) page instead of sending an e-mail.  Because if it’s something cool, other people would probably like to know about it as well.  And, this gives you exposure as well as positioning you as a resourceful person.

2. When you create a Facebook Fan Page (now called an official page) you get a really long url that you can change to one that’s easy to remember and share.  This short video will show you how. (If you don’t have a Facebook Fan Page, you need to create one, more on that here).

3. Comment on other people’s blogs.  And when you do, write something specific that is insightful (don’t comment, ‘great post’).  And be sure that your posts include a photo of you (not a blank box) so that when you do post people can see who you are.  This video will show you how.

4. If you write articles or blogs, add a ‘ReTweet’ button to every article or post.  This way when someone finds it valuable they can easily share it with their followers.  Here’s how to add the button (if html sounds like Chinese to you, then ask your web person to make it happen).

5. When you’re sharing links on social media use Bit.ly to turn a long url into a short url.  What’s so cool about bit.ly is that in addition to creating a short url, it also tracks how many clicks your link gets so you know how much exposure it generates.

6. Change your LinkedIn profile url from something long and unmemorable to something branded (your name or company name).  This makes it easier for people to find you and it will improve your Google ranking.  Here’s how to do it.

7. When you connect with someone on LinkedIn, be sure to check to see if he/she is on Twitter and Facebook and connect there as well. Same idea, if you’re connected with someone on Facebook, check for him/her on Twitter and LinkedIn.  You get the idea.

8. Put your social media links to Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn on your business card and/or e-mail signature.

9. When someone signs up for your ezine they are usually directed to a ‘Thank You’ page and/or receive a ‘Thank You’ e-mail from you.  These are two great places to add your social media links.

10. Ask questions and request comments on your Facebook posts.  You want to create a platform for interaction, not just a one way stream of communication.

These may seem like minor details but often small tweaks can make a huge difference in the amount of people you reach.  They’re like levers that can move heavy objects with minimal effort. So get started now and improve the effect your social media marketing is having on your business.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR NEWSLETTER OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this information with it: Stephanie Ward is the Marketing Coach for Entrepreneurs who want to set their profits on fire!  Grab your FREE copy of the special report ‘7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time’ plus business building tips, at: http://www.fireflycoaching.com/.

Are You Already Using These 10 Social Media Tips? is a post from: Firefly Coaching

Are You Already Using These 10 Social Media Tips? is a post from: Firefly Coaching

Whether or not you are currently using advertising as one of your marketing strategies, I want to share a fabulous way to make the most of the money you do invest in advertising.

You probably know Google as a popular search engine that is used to find all kinds of information.  They have more than 80 million unique visitors per month, could some of them be interested in what your business has to offer?

In addition to information that appears on the left of the page when you do a search in Google, there are also ads on the right side.  Go to your internet browser right now and type in some key words related to your business to see what I mean.

In the right column you’ll see ads listed under ‘Sponsored Links’ – these are Google AdWords.  Imagine having an ad for your business here.

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Here is an example of just one of my ads on Google AdWords:

Coach for Business Owners

Grab Your Free Monthly Profit Tips

+ Bonus Report & Grow Your Business

www.fireflycoaching.com

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What do you currently spend to attract one new client?  Look at each of your marketing strategies and divide the amount of money you have invested by the number of new clients you have attracted to find out.  What would you be willing to spend to attract one new client?  What would it be worth to you to be able to know the most cost effective way to attract clients?

Reasons to use Google AdWords:

1. You only pay when someone finds your business and they click on the link in your ad.

2. It is a breakthrough way to test similar ads to see which one attracts the most interest.  Maybe people want ‘fast’ over ‘easy’ or perhaps they prefer the ‘best’ over the ‘cheapest.’

3. It is a way for prospective new clients from all over the world to find your business.  You can choose, per country, where you want your ads to appear.  You can also choose languages.

4. It is a smaller investment (you determine how much you spend) than traditional advertising and in many cases much more effective.

5. The ad performance measurement system and all of the reports that are available are amazing and don’t require you to do any calculations (great for those of you who despise math and statistics).

Are you convinced?  If so, check out the guide.  Getting started will take some time and it will pay off.  Once you get the hang of it you’ll be able to create new ads in minutes.

What do you have to lose?  You control how much you invest so there are no surprises.  You will find out which ads work the best and in the meantime may attract new clients from around the globe.

So schedule a block of time in the coming days to sit down and find out how you can use Google AdWords to grow your business.

© Stephanie Ward

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR NEWSLETTER, BLOG, OR WEBSITE? You can, as long as you include this information with it: Stephanie Ward is the Marketing Coach for Entrepreneurs who want to set their profits on fire!  Grab your FREE copy of the special report ’7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time’ plus business building tips, at: http://www.fireflycoaching.com.

Share your thoughts on this topic below in the comments section.

How Google AdWords Can Grow Your Business is a post from: Firefly Coaching

How Google AdWords Can Grow Your Business is a post from: Firefly Coaching