How Much Time Should I Spend on Social Media?

This is an issue I usually receive throughout cluster shows. and also the answer to the present question spans the world. Here are simply a number of of the takes that those within the social media field have on this subject.

In the past few weeks, I’ve seen blogs touting the 18-minute social media strategy and also the 20-minute social media skilled.

Hubspot offers an e-book referred to as, the way to Monitor Social Media in ten Minutes every day.

Marijean Jaggers recently indicated that a social presence might take twenty hours every week or more!

Jeffrey Gitomer says in his book, Social Boom, to allocate one hour every day, once you get your presence found out.

I think Gitomer’s approach is maybe the foremost realistic, however it depends on a spread of things.

Some pay hours every day on social media, however that doesn’t mean they’re effective. Others pay fifteen or twenty minutes every day and are reaping the rewards. So, what quantity time does one very need?

As the style of opinions mentioned on top of illustrates, I don’t suppose anybody person will totally answer that question for you, however I offers a number of tips that have helped me and would possibly assist you, too.

1. consider social media as a networking event. You’ll never get to speak to everybody, however you'll be able to confer with a number of individuals and very get to grasp them. At the tip of the day, it’s still concerning building a relationship with others.

2. Content remains king. It’s not simply a cliché. Content is what keeps individuals returning. however this can be additionally why the time estimates vary most. Content might take minutes to hours to develop reckoning on the individual and also the business. believe what you recognize, what you’re enthusiastic about, and what you would like to share. Lay it out in an article calendar, schedule blog posts, and use blog post nuggets as social media content.

3. Work smart. You don’t got to be everywhere, you simply got to be active on the channels that provide you with a come on it slow investment. instead of found out ten cumbersome accounts, found out one or 2 that contain your audience and attempt to having consistent dialogue along with your audience.

4. notice the fun in it. simply as vital as operating sensible is finding what you relish within the social media arena. If you relish it, you’re a lot of seemingly to stay to it and pay time on it.

5. build it a priority. With all the items competing for your attention, social media may well be at the lowest of your list. If you add it to your planner – like aiming to the gym – you’re a lot of seemingly to try to to it and build it a region of your life.

Remember, merely fitting accounts doesn’t count as time spent on social media. That’s simply the place to begin. And, if you merely have seven fans, you would possibly ought to believe the way to increase your following before you set the time clock. once you’ve acquired a following, social media starts to become fun and rewarding.

You’ll seemingly notice that a social media isn't simply a scheduled hour of your day… It’s one thing you weave into your day.

How are you spending time on social media? have you ever found some way to streamline it slow and acquire the foremost of your presence?

A Social Media Survival Plan for Marketers

Social Media

The transition has been challenging for marketing people, who woke up day to recognize that the business world had suddenly changed and traditional marketing methods were no longer effective in the new technique of things.

Since social media first started making waves, businesses have been hard at work trying to make sense of all the new information that flows in through social platforms such as facebook, twitter, linkedin and so plenty of others.

The study revealed that 71 percent of the cmos see themselves as unprepared to manage the immense volumes of information generated by their businesses.

In october 2011, ibm interviewed over one,700 chief marketing officers (cmos) to receive insights on how the marketing profession is responding to the forces changing business and markets today.

The most prominent challenges for these cmos include:

1. How to cope with information explosion;
2. How to make use of social media;
3. How to manage an increasing number of channel and tool options; and
4. How to exploit shifting consumer demographics.

Much has been said and written about using social media to promote companies and their products, and to facilitate sales. But, the power of social networks for businesses goes beyond merely making sales.

For businesses to truly harness social platforms and prosper within the new business landscape, they must seize and exploit every advantage social media has to offer.

Here are some ways your business can use social media.
 

Tell your story

sure you can post business tips on facebook and twitter, and these will be of immense value to your audience, but showing people the actual you, or showing what truly goes on behind the scenes in your company can be as compelling.

People love nice tales, and social media gives you the chance and the stage for you to do some storytelling. Share posts about your interests, and post lots of pics about what you (or your company) are passionate about.

Focus your efforts

Find that (or) social network with the largest concentration of your target audiences, then focus your efforts and resources on that network.

In lieu of stretching yourself and resources across lots of social media accounts, devote your attention to your target audience and the sites they frequent most. Create a content and engagement strategy that leverages the features and strengths of that particular social network.

Finding out where your audience is will take some research. Use google to find white papers or articles that might have research about social media and try to figure out the best fit for your social media promotion plan.

Ignite social media has posted their 2011 social network analysis document and I thought you might find it useful.

Create a lead generation machine

for example, you could offer a free white paper or ebook in exchange for a follow/re-tweet, like, connection etc. Another thing some companies offer is a great coupon offer. This seems to work well for e commerce sites. Reciprocity goes a long way and people don't mind helping you in exchange for a free gift. If it is not costing them anything.

Maintain your brand image

invest in a consistent brand design for your social media accounts. Most social media platforms have a default look which you can often personalize. Take advantage of these options and modify the look to over the same brand picture across multiple social media sites.

Sites like youtube and twitter let you modify backgrounds and logos to accomplish a glance that is more inline together with your corporate id. Linkedin however, is less flexible.

Use video

facebook offers some customization options like pages/tabs, you can upload your logo and although they don't let you modify your page's background, you can personalize it to match the theme you are incorporating in to the other social media sites.

Make positive you optimize your video's page and the meta knowledge within the video itself. Embed your keywords and search engines will find your videos simpler. Youtube, every day motion and and other video site you submit to will be able to scan this meta knowledge to decide what your video is about. With the right combination of optimization and quality content you can generate a viral video that drives thousands (if not millions) of new visitors to your website.

If a picture paints a thousand words, then video projects a million. People basically love to watch moving pics, and you can take advantage of this fact to promote your company and its products. It is simpler (and for plenty of more fun) to watch a video than it is to read an article. There is also the added advantage of possibly making it to the top of the search engine results pages with properly tagged video content.

Keep your eyes and ears open

Social media gives you special ringside seats to the lives of your customers and prospects, providing you with boundless opportunities to learn their desires and preferences. One time you know what your audience is looking for you can become a great resource for them.

Be valuable

with social media, you have the chance to share valuable knowledge together with your audiences. This helps you position yourself as a subject matter resource and compels audiences to keep coming back for more.

Try to write something helpful and offer it to the public at no cost. Become an authority within your space and people will answer your offers in a more favorable way.