Social Networking for Business

A primer for the NIMS Group”

Social NetworkingSocial Networking

“Social networks will not be a flash-in-the-pan craze and will not simply

disappear or burn themselves out. Companies that choose to simply ignore this trend will relegate themselves to the

outdated, fuddy-duddy camp."--Ian Jacobs, technology analyst

InfoWorld

Social Networking is driven by…Establishing Tribes

“…connect to people in such a way that they will miss you if you’re

gone and…will feel missed if they are gone…you’ve created a tribe,

and tribes are always more powerful than the alternative,

yelling at the masses…”--- Seth Godin, marketing author

Social Networking is driven by…Sharing

“Eat like a bird, poop like an elephant”

--- Guy Kawasaki, Tech guru

Social Networking is……a new Communication Channel

Letter…Telephone

Fax…Voice Mail

Evolving Email

Social Networking

Social Networking Mission

Establish a SOCIAL NETWORKING MISSION

WHO do you want/need to reach and influence?

WHAT tools are out there?WHEN do I want to kick it offWHERE do I want my SN activities?WHY should I care? HOW will I maintain and execute?

Options abound…Which ones? And why should I care?

MySpace

Facebook

Facebook Fan Page

Facebook is the new “newsletter”

Establish a public Agency Facebook page“Friend” customers Update commodity informationIntroduce new ingredient connectionsHighlight “what’s hot” Product development updatesHot menu items…that show what’s comingLinks to principal websites General Public Relations

Facebook is the new “newsletter”

Establish an employees Facebook page for your Agency

Adds a human face to your organizationPost

Announcements Photos Promotions Contest updates

Subtle references to company objectives and initiatives

Twitter…

Twitter

TweetDeck

Foodservice Interactive Tweets

FSMA Tweets

Twitter Trending Topics

Twitter Search

Twitter Search

Twitter Business Applications

Create a PRIVATE Twitter account for Agency employees

New smartphone applicationsEasy to send short messages

…to the group …to specific individuals

Connects all employees as a group Good for inter-agency branch communications

May be reviewed “on demand” Grouped together by key word for context

Include links to websites Low key, on the fly communications

Twitter Business Applications

Create a PUBLIC Twitter accountCustomer focusedSend short messages to groups or individualsTech-savvy face Highlight product information Create buzz for new products/menu apps Drive people to your websiteInclude links to principal websitesNews links or blogs of interestEvent promotionMake it USEFUL, fun & lightAssign someone to monitor/manage/message

Twitter Business Applications

Twitter analysis tools are available Can monitor and search

Key words Brand mentions Event feedback

Track brand/promo buzz in the marketplaceTools to

Collect Monitor Analyze Aggregate

Local audience will drive use and application

Twitter Applications

Fllw ppl n evnts of intrest 2 UIndustry groups (NRA, NIMS, USDA, clients)CompaniesCommoditiesThought leaders (Godin, Gladwell)News (CNN, Newsweek, NYTimes)Technology (Brogan, Pogue, TechCrunch)Interests (F1 racing, golf)Sports (baseball scores, rankings)

LinkedIn

"LinkedIn is your business suit…

Facebook is business casual…

and Twitter is the 24/7 ongoing cocktail party."

LinkedIn

Approach LinkedIn with a specific objective:

CRM?General business networking?Agency business promotion?Principal Networking?

Your objective will drive your profile…the most important

aspect of LinkedIn

LinkedIn Profile

LinkedIn Home Page

LinkedIn Contacts

LinkedIn Connections

LinkedIn Connections

LinkedIn 2nd Degree Connections

LinkedIn Invitations

LinkedIn

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Business Applications

Establish a personal LinkedIn account Create your profile

Highlight your background Emphasize your capabilities Promote your agency

Connect with key executives at principals Invite them to join your network Or be introduced by a contact who does

Connect with key customer contacts Post important activities/initiatives on your site

often At least once per week, or twice per month

Encourage your key employees to join LinkedIn

LinkedIn Business Applications

Establish a personal LinkedIn account (continued)

Engage your audience contacts by posting important linksInitiate discussions on group sitesStart your own group

Can be locally focused Could be based e your capabilities Promote your agency

Seek out groups focused on hobbies or interests Sports Hobbies Interests Creates a connection on a different level with your

contacts

LinkedIn Business Applications

Establish an Agency LinkedIn account Profile focused specifically on business objectivesCreate a PRIVATE DISCUSSION GROUP

Use with specific groups of employees Discuss issues and get feedback Poll your internal employees about issues or

eventsBegin a PUBLIC discussion group

Open to customers Open to principals Have a specific objective

LinkedIn Updates

LinkedIn tools and applications Email updates

Default is daily Set to weekly

Smartphone apps available to check site remotely V-Card can export to Outlook

NO telephone number Recommend you put phone number in profile

Blogging tools and applications availableBasic account is free; premium upgrade available

Primarily used by job seekers Consultants/Service providers

LinkedIn Tools

LinkedIn tools and applications SlideShareHuddle Space

Collaboration areaDocument sharingOnline meetings and webinars

GroupsSpeaking engagementsDiscussion ForumsConnections with current and new clients

LinkedIn Resources

Additional Resources:I’m on LinkedIn…now what???

- Jason AlbaHubSpot WP: Doing Business with

LinkedIn

Reminder:

A collection of links and white papers on the primary Social Networking sites will be sent

out to everyone via email

Additional SN Ideas

Blogging Effective way to comment and/or provide insight on

relevant Industry topics Link from your website Place on LinkedIn

Highlight key posts via the “update” applicationPost/send to Group members as appropriate

Google and Bing ProfilesHelps “search optimize” your business site(s) Links to procedure for both is in Resource doc

Additional SN Ideas

YouTube Video posting siteUse to communicate with field sales and customers Post QUALITY videos of

product demosPrincipal-provided PR videosVideo blogsOffice tours

Can be embedded or linked on company websiteEmbed or link from other social networking channels

LinkedInFacebookTwitter

YouTube Resources

Link to recorded Webinar, White paper, and PPT deck

“Inbound Marketing using Video”

Social Networking Agency Focus

To Do ListSocial Networking

LinkedIn: 1. Set up your account/profile. 2. Set up a weekly feed of updates. 3. Update status regularly4. Invite new contacts. Develop your network. 5. Ask for recommendations from current principals.6. WORK IT.

Twitter: 7. Establish your objective8. Assign someone to manage9. Set up a smartfone app or TweetDeck to review DAILY.

To Do ListSocial Networking

YouTube: 1. Watch the webinar linked on the resources guide2. Set an objective for viral and internal video clips3. Search current clips to see if you want to link to your site.

Facebook: 4. Poll your employees and set up a page if desired5. Poll your customers and principals and participate with a

public page if appropriate. 6. Establish an objective and ASSIGN to marketing or HR to

manage and keep current.

You wont be missed, but you’ll miss being seen…

Communications Efficiency

Smartphones 1. Do you carry?2. Do you use?3. Do you use effectively?

• Email feedIM and SMS Messaging • Instant communications w/office• Instant connection with clients• SMS messages can contain photos • Quicker and cheaper data flow

Poll your customers and principals to find out how THEY would prefer to communicate, and then implement it.

Communication Tools continued

GOOGLE VOICE• ONE number to reach you anywhere• just Google it

SKYPE• Inexpensive internet voice and video phone service

TOKBOX• FREE video email messages

• Special communications• Announcements

You must remain top of mind to be effective

Social Networking for Dummies

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