I have to admit that I am not the most “tech-savvy” person around. I am not afraid of technology like some, but I have to patiently learn what I need to know from someone who does. So when it comes to social media, I am a true novice.
Today, using social media marketing (SMM) is de rigeur, or necessary. Mostly everybody has at least a Facebook, YouTube and a Twitter presence, and there are so many more social media sites out there. This is nothing short of a social revolution. However, what is really unique about this is the interactivity that allows consumers to create content for you, through social media!
What I am about to do is create a community bulletin board on my Facebook page that will allow me to post information for my members and have them respond interactively. I’ll post articles I have written, share links to other items and post recipes, diet tips, etc. It is a great way to reach out to the members and the community at-large and create buzz about nutrition.
So what is the point of all that? I have learned that the goals of SMM are to generate more prospects and to become more findable by searchers and seekers of information. I want both of those objectives to be achieved by my page.
If I am to provide the kind of content searchers are looking for, then I have to post information and education that is timely and relevant. But I do not have to necessarily be the writer of all this content. I can be the publisher, meaning I can site others or provide links to related content.
I will also need to present my information in a fun or inspiring way so that it is entertaining, which is what keeps people coming back for more. It definitely has to be more entertaining than the “other guy” who is just posting lots of paragraphs. Boring!
There is one other goal to SMM and that is to generate a huge list of prospects by capturing information about them. Primarily, we want their names and e-mail addresses. There are a few ways to do that including “friending” each other. Another way is to entice people to give you their information by offering them something in return. You might want to offer a free consultation or other prizes relevant to your business for “liking” or “friending” your page.
A great technique you can use is to create a form on your page for readers to submit their contact information to win free stuff. Then you will have a way to capture contacts and prospects to reach with your messages.
Judith Samuels, M.A. is a certified nutrition and wellness consultant and master personal trainer at Sport&Health Clubs in the Washington D.C. Metro Area. She can be reached via e-mail at judi@judisamuels.com.
