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5 Ways for Effective Social Media Marketing

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Social Media Marketing

Social Media is where the people are these days, more than millions are active everyday on Facebook, Twitter, Bebo, Myspace and more. It is one of the best places to establish your brand name and attract people’s attention. As your network spreads, the connection will definitely grow, giving you and your brand the chance to be exposed and be promoted to vast number of other users.

However, social media marketing is more than just creating a social networking account, posting contents, updating status or inviting friends. You have to make sure that you are also attracting potential markets and establishing a good brand name.

Below are some tips in doing effective social media marketing:

1. Establish your Network

Social Media, as the term describes, involves socializing with people. People are connecting through social media to meet friends, getting answers, and to share their thoughts with others, not all of them are using social media to promote something.

You take time to build relationship with them. Be a friend, answer their questions, help them out with their needs and appreciate their thoughts. In this way, you’re not just another member in the network, but you are active person who is able to create a connection that can be responsive, this can give attention to your blog posts and even promote your brand.

2. Be Consistent with Your Brand Principles

Social Media is fun. However, you have to be careful with your posts, and not just tweet every single page you come across online, and update your status with every step you take. Instead post relevant contents, whether links, videos, blogs or status.  Do not lose track of your principles. With this, you are creating a reliable and trustworthy brand name.

You can also observe your network comments if you are gaining the target popularity that you want. Discussions can go further; never confuse your connections with irrelevant posts. For example, if you are an outsourcing company, you can post blogs about outsourcing and its benefits, which is related to your niche.

3. Consistent Updates

Social Media is being updated by massive users, even just a one-day-old post can easily be neglected. Be consistent on your networking sites, if its difficult to mange more then one networking site, chose the one that you are comfortable with and be consistent on them. Now days you also get platforms from where you can update all of your networking sites and manage your social profiles such as HootSuite.

You can also repeat some of your promotions in order for people to remember. But make sure you do not spam, do it in creative ways like paraphrasing the status, placing videos or banners.

Also, post updates in a natural way. Do not panic like putting 10 links in one go, then another 10 the next day. Spread the time and do it in interval, otherwise, even if you’re posting different links, people might still tag you as a spammer, and also the important messages that you are looking to portray can be easily missed out.

4 Establish Your Own Blog

Create your networks with something more to read about, like a wiki for your website. You can create your own blog where you can list your archives, post more links, videos and more contents for your followers and fans.

5. Be the First To Comment

Commenting on a post is creating a conversation. Be the first one to initiate the talk, there are others who will not say anything if others will not start it. Comments can add more contents, can keep your post updated and can help you gain more impressions.

Effective social media marketing can bring your popularity up and make you stand out from others, just enough commitment and creativity is required.

About

Wasim’s a project manager at Alrayes Web Solutions along with an online SEO consultant & blogger for business at wasimismail.com, specialising in online business.

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{ 39 Responses }

  1. Mark says:
    I really like you first point about establishing your network. In social media, this is so important because of the fact that IT IS social media. So many (myself included) fall into the trap of automating everything and then stand back and wonder why it doesn't work. Nice write-up, Wasim. Mark
  2. Maria Pavel says:
    Hello Wasim, Excellent article, a really great job you've did! The Social Media marketing is the future of marketing, it already started to become. Through Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, the marketers start to sell their products and promote their businesses really effective. Now, thanks to your great tips, we will know to do that too. Congratulations on your excellent post and thank you very much for sharing it with us! Best regards, Maria
  3. Nasrul Hanis says:
    This is something that we must consider if we are going to use social marketing effectively. I once asked myself on the results from social media marketing which not achieve my satisfaction. And the answers has been mentioned above. Social media marketing is not just about posting "something" and then people will praise you and become your friend. Social media marketing is not you promote "something" and then people will buy it instantly. You have to connect, interact and build your reputation. Thanks Wasim for such a great sharing!
  4. Adam says:
    I like the section about Commenting first because you hit it right on the button there. Great read, thanks for the info once again!
  5. Raj says:
    Great tips Wasim! Staying relevant is very important in social media for sure. That way others know where to look for if they need information on that specific topic.
  6. Jeevan Jacob John says:
    Hi Wasim, Thank you for this post ! Your tips are great and useful. I agree with each and everyone of your 5 tips. I think I have to work more on consistency. Thank you for sharing your views ! Jeevan Jacob John
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Hey Jeevan Thanks, Your welcome. :)
  7. Kevin says:
    Consistency is major when it comes to anything in life. If you start something make sure you see it through no matter. If you succeed then more power to you. If you fail then don't take that as a sign of quitting but take it as a learning curve. Social Media Marketing is very important for any business. The potential is so great that if you aren't using Facebook, Twitter, etc. then you're missing out big time.
  8. Val says:
    Some nice points, especially about being consistent with your brand. I would add two things: 1) There are so many social media channels, it's easy to lose focus and get lost. I would suggest mastering one channel at a time. For example, get comfortable updating your blog on a regular schedule before worrying too much about Twitter. Establish your presence and posting habits on Twitter before moving on to Facebook. If you try to do all at once, you'll be good at nothing. 2) Know what you want to achieve with each social tool. Do not spend time on Twitter just to "be there". Think how that can help your business, and how your presence there can help the community.
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      thanks for the additional two points, Yes some may prefer to master one step at at time, and get the hang of things, as Facebook, twitter, Linked in...etc all have different types of audiences, and some things work very well on one but not on the other.
  9. Tinh says:
    All are correct but "Be the first to come" is really difficult but we can keep updating our blog on fixed schedule with a huge fans from social networks will make a difference then :-)
  10. Deidre Brathwaite says:
    Hiya Wasim, Thanks for this post. Far too often we've seen persons assuming that simply setting up a presence in a social network is Golden, not realizing that this is merely one of the first steps to building an online brand and the need to have solid building blocks such as consistency and a phenomenal network to grow that brand. I totally agree with your points here, except maybe the need to comment first. Don't believe it is essential when you comment once you add something valuable to the conversation. I may be wrong :)
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Deidre Thanks for the feedback, What i meant with the commenting point is if you see an article that's just been posted, be the first one to start a conversation, and comment on the article, of course your comment and discussions need to be of value and related to the article to get everyone else interacting. If you consistently the first couple of people that comment, others will notice you and you will start to build your own little presence in the commenting section:)
  11. Rick LaPoint says:
    Hi Wasim, One would think simple socializing would be so simple :-) But we all know that doing it right is a lot more difficult than most really imagine. Thanks for the well-thought tips. Rick
  12. Alex says:
    Useful article, Wasim The web is getting more and more social, people want to interact with each other and this is why social networks are getting bigger and bigger with more and more visitors. So, using this new resource that it's still getting more attention is definitely a good way to market your products but because it's a social venture, you need to take in account that for every user (well almost) there is a person behind it that you have to interact with and gain their trust before even starting to throw affiliate products. Also, while interacting is best to find out and catalog the user you interact with and write the habits, interests, hobbies your observe and then use this information to find related products that they might find useful. This is not only a great method to make an income but you are also helping your friend get the products he or she needs.
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Thanks, and true said , its always better to interact first before bombarding the users with affiliate links. Thanks for adding value. :)
  13. Bilal Ahmad says:
    One of the most effective way in affiliate marketing is keep engaging, always interacting and participating in discussions.
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Yes doing all of these things with consistency
  14. TJ McDowell says:
    People still use MySpace? None of my friends do. I thought that whole thing had gone under.
  15. Mani Viswanathan says:
    5th point certainly helps. I have seen loads of success just by quickly reading an article an providing a 'Valuable' comment.
  16. Vijayraj Reddy says:
    regular updates and huge network will make social media marketing success..
  17. Kari DePhillips says:
    I couldn't agree with you more about the importance of blogs -- they're a huge part of what make social media marketing so effective. The more you blog, the more fresh content you have to promote on Twitter and FB, which provides a steady stream of traffic to your site. Playing the numbers game, that translates to more sales.
  18. Tantan says:
    Each social media platform has different approach, people are able to take advantages of Twitter and able to build brand and generate a lot of followers, but could not be successful with Facebook using the same way. That’s why social media marketing needs time to learn.
  19. Andreas says:
    If you are posting affiliate links to your friends, fans and followers make sure that they are clearly marked as affiliate links so that you do not get into trouble with your people or with the social networking service.
  20. Jay says:
    Grate post, Thanks for sharing. Social Network site like twitter and facebook is grate way to promote businesses and also connect with people round the world and I think every one knows that. Only thing I hate about Network site like twitter is that some people are always trying to sell something instead of sharing and connecting. Most of the time I see people just twitting about lone and trying to sell. I think people need to connect, before they start promoting. So this is my thought and message to all the people out there who is trying sell but not connecting or interacting with followers. Connect with people, get to know your followers, interact with them, and then promote you business.
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Jay, very true point about connecting, before they start promoting, if you connect well, the promoting will be done much easier and you will get a better success rate.
  21. Isabel Rodrigues - Pro Blogger Journey says:
    Social Media is a strong platform towards the success of a website or blog. Yeah you should be smart enough to use it effectively.
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Socail media is where users are these days, and by not having a social media presence your missing out on potential visitors, customers. Its defiantly a smart choice to be in the right place at the right time, and this time is social media.
  22. Sujith says:
    Maintaining a social network through active participation is the most important part. It is not an easy task also. If you can maintain a healthy network with active nodes, it will grow automatically. Thanks
  23. Ryan Biddulph says:
    Hi Wasim, Great post here. I like your mention of staying consistent with your brand. Share stuff related to your brand and it builds the strength of your brand. The random tweet or FB account not related to your niche is OK but keep your social sharing relevant. Establishing your network takes time, for it takes time to build connections. Gradually you gain the trust of your network by building relationships over the long haul. As you note ask questions, answer questions, and don't forget to add valued content on a consistent basis. This is where persistent - but not spamming - updates come into play. A steady flow of content seems to work digest. Measure your content so your readers can digest it. As for commenting I might not always be the first but I usually make it to the comments section. I've generated a substantial amount of traffic by simply engaging. All it takes is being a good listener and not being afraid to share your opinion with the community. Thanks for sharing your insight Wasim. Rb
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Hi Ryan, totally agree to your points, and thanks for adding additional value to the post.
  24. John Fitzgerald says:
    Grrreat post! It's no coincidence that two of the top five contain the word "Consistent." If you're gonna be successful in social media, be consistent - make sure your fans/followers/customers know what to expect from you and WHEN they can expect to see new content.
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Yes being Consistent is the key, whatever you do online it needs to be consistent so that you start getting good results. It will take time, but if you stick to it, you will see light on the other side.
      • John Fitzgerald says:
        Right on. I would go so far as to say that many small biz owners get discouraged because they try to start off with too many outlets. It takes time and effort to update FB, Twitter AND a blog and your initial response will be small. It's a recipe for inconsistency. Better to start small and grow as your audience grows. My recommendation: pick one and keep a time limit on how long you are updating - start with 20 minutes per day, for example.
  25. Tim & Sole says:
    We were just setting up our account with OnlyWire, somebody twitted this post... Thanks so much for your suggestions! It's hard to keep the balances some times on how much to say about general stuff and how much about what you want to promote. PS: Do you think Hootsuite is a better alternative than Onlywire? Thanks
    • Wasim Ismail says:
      Your welcome, Haven't used Onlywire, I personally use Hootsuite, as it allows me to manage all my accounts in once place, along with also seeing statistics of my posts.
  26. Hung Hong says:
    You're right "There are others who will not say anything if others will not start it."