Thursday, March 10, 2011

The Power of Social Media

Welcome to part 1 of our social media series. In this series we will be discussing the power of social media, social media trends and the best ways to use social media in your business.

Are you a part of and leveraging the biggest shift since the Industrial Revolution? Social Media isn’t a fad, it’s a fundamental shift in the way the world communicates. So what is all the hoopla about, what exactly IS social media? Social media is any form of online communication or presence that allows end users to engage in multi-directional conversations. Some of the most popular are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Active Rain.

Why is social media important to you and your business? It has emerged as a deceptively powerful business tool -- especially for professions like Real Estate where you live and die by your network, and word of mouth means everything. You'll find that social media can be a convenient, ambient, mobile way to get things done, extend your personal brand, help opportunity find you, and find answers to everyday, real-world business problems -- FAST.

The “why” of doing business is the same it has been for centuries - to create value, attract a market who wants the value and engage the market in transaction. However, the “how” of doing this has changed dramatically over the past few years from “push marketing” to “pull marketing”.

“Push marketing” or active marketing, refers to marketing in which businesses actively expound and assert their message through mediums such as TV, radio, direct mail, outdoor advertising, print advertising etc. Push marketing has a clear call to action, most often to sell the target something. “Pull marketing”, inbound marketing or passive marketing doesn’t directly tell the target what to do, but instead builds a relationship with the target.

An increasingly important component of effective marketing strategies, pull or passive marketing is quickly becoming the preferred method of communications for consumers.

Inbound marketing, marketing that does not need to be intrusive or interruptive, is one of the most organic and effective ways to accomplish the two primary goals of business today: to be found easily on the web and to establish the business as an authority in the market.

Social networking is THE prime example of effective inbound marketing. By plotting and managing a social networking strategy, you can define yourself as a true resource on the web – the place where a pool of prospective clients continues to grow each day.

Still unsure it’s not simply a fad? Ponder on these stats:

*Social Media is now the #1 activity on the Web.

*Facebook tops Google for weekly traffic in the U.S.

*As of January 2011, Facebook has over 550,000,000 users, with over half logged in on any given day.

*62% post updates related to their work life, activities or interests, with 12% doing so on a daily basis

*LinkedIn now has 90 million members.

*34% of bloggers post about products, brands, & services, including what they think about YOURS.

What are YOU doing to leverage the power of social media in your business? We’d love to hear your comments!

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