Clint's Web Marketing Blog

 

Friday, May 29, 2009

Overwhelmed by Social Networking?

There are literally hundreds of social networking sites on the Internet. With so many options, it becomes difficult to distinguish which you should be using and for what purposes. I think that often times the dilemma of deciding which sites to join, leads us to extremes: We either sign up for them all or shy away completely (neither of which are good options). But these tools can be very valuable to your web marketing and branding strategy, so you might as well jump on board.

First and foremost, if you don’t already have a profile on LinkedIn, get one immediately. It is probably the most important social networking site for professionals such as doctors and lawyers. It may feel like a lot of work, but if you spend a little bit of time everyday on you profile, it will slowly but surely come along. The great thing about LinkedIn is that once your profile is complete, it rather low maintenance. Plus—the discussion groups and networks that you can join and participate in will help establish your credibility. Heck you might even learn something.

Other important social networking sites for professionals include Facebook, Google Profiles, and Twitter. Facebook and Twitter require significantly less work upfront than LinkedIn, but will need involvement on your part (10-20 minutes weekly). All of these, including Google Profiles, will help your search engine positioning and visibility.

Social media marketing is a process. Don’t over-do it, but don’t ignore it.

posted by SaraS at 11:13 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

The Recession and Social Media Marketing

Recent studies are showing a clear correlation between the downturn in the economy and the growth of social media. Both companies and consumers are beginning to utilize social networking sites, such as DoctorsNLawyers and Facebook, as tools to help survive the recession.

Consumers are putting a higher value on online recommendations and reviews than ever before. They are turning to social networking sites to see what other people are saying about particular products and services. From a consumer standpoint, companies that participate in social networking are easier to relate to and trust. If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to lose.

A savvy businessman would take advantage of the opportunity and not let the conversation occur without him. Networking sites are a tool for branding and promotion—they are the next generation of marketing. Networking on the internet is usually free and rarely difficult.

Page 1 Solutions is a perfect example. We maintain over ten blogs, have profiles on many of the networking sites and encourage our employees to do the same. In fact, we think it’s so important that we hired somebody full-time to maintain our online presence.  It’s too valuable not to.

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posted by SaraS at 10:22 AM 0 comments