sneak peek

Here's a little teaser of the mini-makeover Simple is undergoing this week. It will be "launching" soon ... enjoy the weekend! 

do you talk back?

There's this blog I've been reading for several years now. It is a humorous blog and the author re-caps a Bravo TV show I like. The author always makes me laugh, really laugh, when I read it. I even read it when I lived overseas and couldn't watch the show just because I love his sense of humor. So, a night ago, after reading a particularly hilarious post, I left a comment thanking the author for his recaps.

Today he sent me an email back thanking me for being a reader.

I couldn't believe it. The writer of my favorite blog took the time to email me back just to say thanks.

Which brings me to this post's point: when you do social media it opens the door for two-way conversation. Which is really the whole point of getting it involved in social media in the first place. So when someone leaves you a comment or interacts with you - are you talking back?

When a person takes the time to interact with your social media, that is a pretty good indication that they are engaged with your messaging. Simply put: it means your marketing is working. And it opens the door for you to continue to build a relationship with that person. Meaning, although they may not be a purchaser at the moment - there is a strong opportunity that they will be soon.

So, how can you really listen to and communicate people who are talking with you on social media? Here are some ideas:

Thank Them. When people like your Facebook page, follow your blog, leave you a review on Yelp, follow your Twitter account, whatever the interaction may be, take the time to say thanks. Technically it's possible to set up auto-responding but, especially for small businesses, I recommend taking the small amount of time necessary to leave them a short personal note. For example, your note could say something like, "Hi Diane. Thanks for following me on Facebook. If there are any topics you'd like to know more about please let me know and I will do a posting soon." As you can see, this also gives you the opportunity to draw them into further conversation and participation.

Reward Them. In addition to a personal note consider giving people who interact with your social media unadvertised, exclusive rewards. Maybe you respond to them with a special offer or a drastically reduced price on something that you know they are interested in from their comments. Surprising people with a reward can go a long way in building customer loyalty and word of mouth.

Like Them Back. For example, when someone follows you on Twitter, take the time to check out their Twitter account and follow them. Same for those with Facebook pages or blogs. In this way, you're learning more about that person from their posting while also putting your link in front of their readers. Once you follow them, make a point of commenting on Tweets or writing postings that are related to your small business or things you are really interested in, furthering your communication with that person.

Make a Negative a Positive. What about the occasional negative commenter? At first glance, you might have the urge to delete the comment or ignore it, but a negative comment actually provides you with a great opportunity to turn things around. You probably wouldn't let an unhappy customer storm out of your shop or store without responding to them at all and the same is true on social media. Take the time to respond back and get more information on what their negative experience was. Then, determine how to fix the problem. Once it is fixed and the person is happy, you could even ask them to post again telling how the situation was resolved.

These are just a handful of ideas and you are sure to come up with more that suit your particular brand, business, and marketing strategy.

As a small business owner you are an expert in communicating with the people who come into your real-world business. By practicing the same communication style you have in the real world in your social media, you have a lot of new opportunities to grow customer loyalty, top-of-mind awareness and even generate sales.

why are you doing it?

"Why do companies like Toblerone and Pepperidge Farm bother having websites? As if people are going to say to themselves, "Gee, I wish I knew more about Milano cookies. I know! I'll go to their site!" Just a thought ... I succumbed ... Milano Cookies. Milano, our most popular Distinctive cookie, is a satisfying combination of rich, dark chocolate sandwiched between two exquisite cookies."

- Douglas Copeland, JPOD

I've mentioned before that the current craze for social media reminds me of the early days of the Internet. Remember? When everyone was throwing up websites left and right just to be online?

This week I experienced that familiar feeling again as I received a brief yet thoroughly excited announcement from a company I do business with telling me that they are Now On Facebook!!! The announcement didn't tell me why they were on Facebook, what I would get out of liking them on Facebook, or how their Facebook info would be different than their website, enewsletter or email blast content. And, since this is a business I pretty much must use on a quarterly basis, I'm satisfied with using, and have no interest in communicating with, I just deleted the announcement and went on with my day.

I suspect that this was the first of many, many invitations to join companies on social media that are coming our way. Simply put: the social media space is rapidly becoming a lot more crowded.

Which means as a small business owner, to take advantage of social media and see results from your effort, it won't be enough to be present on social media, you will need to use it strategically.

I say and write that word - strategically - a lot. So do other marketing and social media proponents. But what does it really mean? The simple answer: find your audience in the right place and give people an irresistible reason to spend time communicating with you in a way that benefits both them and you.

How? Here are some ideas:

What's in it for them? Are you giving discounts, deals, specials, freebies, exclusivity? From a chance at first looks at retail items to full-on giveaways, people love to get things. What can you give them that they want while promoting your brand?

Are you in the right place? Facebook and Twitter have become nearly synonymous with "social media," but they certainly are not the only opportunities out there. Reviewing sites like Yelp, group couponing at Groupon, and audio/visual media, like YouTube are also options. See what else is out there and take advantage of these free or low-cost options.

Have you looked at "apps"? Everyday new apps for use on the iPhone and iPad and other non-Apple hardware are going live. Foursquare is one such gaining popularity, as well as, Layar. Each of these help users find you online and entice them to visit you in real life. What else is out there that your particular business could use?

Social media is a fast-paced, ever-changing, and sometimes overwhelming form of marketing. But it is still just that - a form of marketing. Starting with a strategy, talking with your people, and finding the right social media for you marketing goals will help you get the most out of this exciting form of communication.

what are you really saying?

When you use social media (or any marketing communications) to talk with your customers, are you sure they are hearing what you are really saying? Or, more simply put, do you know your customers well enough to talk with them?

I ask because this week was Cinco de Mayo and with it came a collection of great articles - and some not so great examples - of communicating with or about a specific ethnicity, in this case, Hispanics.

One article is from AdAge's "How To Market to Hispanics Like Me" by Deena Montoya-Crowley, who makes some very good points about the need to dig deeper past cultural stereotypes to effectively communicate with - and effectly market to - specific audiences.

Another helpful article was USAToday's "Don't Hijack Cinco de Mayo" by Bill Gallegos and and Bernardo Rosa, in which the point was made that recently the food and beverage companies have co-opted "a day of ethnic pride [and it is] being used as a marketing prop to encourage drinking among Latino and Chicano youth."

And then there were the bad examples. Like the TV spot for a chain of local tanning salons that went so over the top with out-dated stereotypes my mouth actually fell open while I was watching it. I'm providing the link with some hesitation, as it is not my intention to offend (or endorse the company putting it out, for that matter), but do want to illustrate the point of how wrong communication can go with it. Super 5 Cent Cinco de Mayo Sale.

I am willing to bet that it was not the intention of the people who created this ad to offend, but rather that it is their lack of a deeper understanding of a culture that they were trying to celebrate that is responsible.

So, let's bring it back to you, the small business owner. Do you build marketing upon a specific holiday or heritage or cultural celebration? And if you do, are the things you're saying really saying that when they reach your customers and potential customers?

For example, let's take your online communication back to the real word. If you were at a business networking luncheon and met a Hispanic colleague, how would you converse with them? Chances are you would ask them questions about themselves and their business vs. pulling a Michael Scott and breaking out in a Mexican hat dance.

In the end, it really is simple: taking the time to really research a specific audience or cultural event can make or break your efforts, because it shows you are being real and taking the time to get to know your customers. As a result, you can either offend people or win customers over.

stay in your comfort zone

Recently, I talked with two companies that had decided not to do social media marketing at all because one specific aspect of social media was making them uncomfortable. So, as a social media marketing firm, do you think that I tried to talk them out of their concerns and get them to get into social media?

The simple answer? No. I listened to what is making them uncomfortable and helped them look at strategy, technology and policy that would avoid their concerns in the first place.

The first company is in a very competitive field in which a client list is kept confidential. Knowing that social media would allow their clients to follow them - while allowing competitors to see and communicate with their clients - they opted not to participate. Through our discussions, we developed strategies that would still allow them to take advantage of social media by better supporting their clients who use social media, rather than using it for themselves directly.

The second organization is a non-profit that does a lot of work with children. Their main concern was that they did not feel comfortable uploading pictures of the kids or allowing followers to upload pictures of the kids. As as result, we discussed how internal policy, privacy setting, and alternate imagery that showcased their attributes but didn't include the children's images could enable them to participate in social media.

What is most important to me in each case was that the clients did NOT leave their comfort zones just to use social media in their marketing plans.

For example, several articles I researched in the case of the confidential client list advised that competitors seeing your clients is just a side effect of doing social media. In our current eceonomy, where even one client lost can have a huge impact, that is not an acceptable answer. Same for the client who didn't want to put their kids' pictures online. It simply wasn't a way that they wanted to conduct business.

If it doesn't feel right to you, don't do it.

That doesn't mean that you have to eliminate social media from your marketing toolbox, it simply means you have to make it work for you within your comfort zone.

Here are some things to keep in mind:

Technology. Knowing what is and is not possible can be the first step in knowing how you will use social media rather than if you will use social media.

Policy. Before setting up even one social media project, determine in writing what your company's policy on social media is. Cover items like what types of media you will post, how you will document photo releases, if you will cover any sensitive topics such as religion or politics, how you will handle inappropriate comments, what permissions you will allow posters, etc.

Privacy. Determine the level of interaction you will allow participants and the extent to which you will share your organization. Document it, communicate it, share it, and stick to it internally. The whole point of social media is to allow communication between you and your customers, but you can achieve that within your comfort zone.

If you personally are uncomfortable with certain aspects of social media marketing - listen to that instinct and explore exactly what is making you pause. Write it down by bullet pointing areas of concern. By defining those issues you can then develop strategic social media marketing that keeps you within your comfort zone, while online and in the game.

you are relationship marketing

Have you heard of a recently new trend in marketing called "relationship marketing"? If you haven't, the simple definition is this: creating lasting, sustainable, and meaningful relationships with customers.

That sounds pretty familiar, doesn't it? As a small business owner, it's probably the main source of marketing that you have always done.

Here is another great example of where you have an advantage over large corporations, in that big companies are only recently realizing the value in creating relationships with customers and are figuring out how to do it.

Since big companies don't have the opportunity to meet their customers in person as you do, they are now realizing they can use social media to help create those relationships for them.

But let's take it back to you. As a small business owner, you or your sales staff already have the benefit of knowing customers by face or name, the types of services and products they prefer, and about how often they come in to your place of business. A lot of you have also taken it to the next level, getting to know your customers' better through small talk and to learn about their interests, why they use your business over others, tidbits about their families, and so on.

The benefit to the customer is that they feel comfortable coming to your business - you know their preferences and they feel welcomed there. The benefit to you is that these customers will come back regularly and recommend you to family and friends.

So how can you make those relationships even stronger? By incorporating them into your own social media marketing strategy. Explore ways to communicate online with your customers, meet their needs more quickly and efficiently, and most importantly, provide them with the mechanism to communicate directly back with you.

I'll close the post with a great client example of honest, real life relationship marketing. A customer who had purchased her wedding cake at my client's bakery remained a customer ever since and recently celebrated her daughter's quinceanera with a cake from the bakery. That's over 15 years of customer loyalty. Is that something large companies can achieve with their relationship marketing? Is it something that you can?

nestle wasn't the very best

In one of my earlier posts I mentioned that you, as a small business owner, have an advantage over big companies when it comes to social media marketing.

Why? Simply put, it is mainly because with huge companies, there is little or no actual interaction between the person doing the social marketing and the customers. Now, add to this fact those two horrible words, "corporate culture," and what should be a multi-way conversation with people often becomes just another platform from which the company talks about itself.

As a result, the way the company talks to people in its social media can come across as insincere, fake, and even rude. Consumer packaged goods giant Nestle provided an excellent example of this just a few weeks ago.

It all started when environmental activists on the Nestle Facebook page altered a Nestle product logo in an unflattering way and the Nestle Facebook writer posted a stern, threatening response. From there, it was a heated exchange between the Nestle writer, Nestle fans, and detractors. When the dust settled, the only sure thing was that the writer had lost their temper, been nasty to fans and detractors alike, and Nestle was branded as the first worst case scenario in corporate social media.

Now, think about your own business. We've all had hard to please, unpleasant customers. It's just human nature. But think about the ways that you communicate with them about their complaints when they are right in front of you. Chances are you treat them with respect and try to diffuse the situation, even when they are wrong.

How you handle a disgruntled customer or potential customer in the real world is exactly how you should handle them online. Respect and kindness, even when the unhappy customer is wrong, is often the most effective way to diffuse a situation because it has positive end results: the customer can leave satisfied and tell others about a negative that turned out well, or even say nothing at all, rather than telling others that your company stinks.

Maybe this is even more important online, because just as social media can get your marketing messages disseminated exponentially, it can also do the same for negative feedback.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when considering the "dark side" of social media:

Be prepared. There are always going to be negative people with negative things to say. Decide beforehand how you will handle negative comments, reviews and criticisms. Create a strategy and remain consistent. Don't respond when you are mad, take time to cool down and review your strategy.

Be upfront. Is there a controversial side to your business? It might benefit you to turn that negative into a positive by posting about how you're dealing with a negative issue. By bringing it up before others do helps communicate that you are honest and aware. Asking people for their ideas and feedback can create the conversation social media strives for.

Be respectful. As the Nestle writer found, it was hard to remain nice when posters were really slamming the company. As the writer probably also found, it's even harder to now have the distinction of being the worst case scenario example of social marketing. Being disrespectful of negative posters will only feed the fire and make you look bad. It's an old rule of the Internet: no one wins a flame war.

Now, nobody wants to be a doormat, and at some point in some cases, you have to tell the customer "no." But the way in which you do that, especially online, makes all the difference.