The short answer is, “Yes, you need a plan for social networking.”
Now for the longer answer!
Four Steps to Your Social Networking Plan
1. Your marketing plan is part of your over all business plan. Remember that marketing is letting people know about your business and how your product/service can solve their problem. It is NOT your sales plan. During marketing you are establishing the beginning of the relationship, getting to know your target market and doing a heck of a lot of listening! What are you listening for?
- The words your target market uses when talking about their problems (these become your keywords)
- What they are saying about you, your company, your industry
- What your competitors are saying about their solution
- People who are ready to buy what you have to offer (targetted leads) — remember that this isn’t everyone.
2. Part of your marketing plan contains the specifics for your Internet Marketing effort, including your web site, blogs, social networking (or social marketing if you prefer that term). Social networking is only an aspect of your marketing, a big part these days, but still only one part of a plan. You’ll be listening online for the same types of information discussed above. And you’ll be engaging people in relationships that lead to people who are ready to buy. That’s when the sales process begins.
3. You’ll notice that it doesn’t seem like a lot of people are doing this. Partially because the people who are setting up individual relationships online and doing good marketing aren’t the same people you see online pushing their sales all the time. Successful social networkers are…well…networking!
4. Take a look at your marketing plan and leverage that information to build your social marketing plan. Think about your target market, your unique selling proposition or value proposition, the problem you are trying to solve and your solution. Where will you meet people who have this problem and are ready for your solution? Or where will you find those who will let others know about you? What search engine keywords or tags do you need to be found?
Was this article on social networking useful? What else do you need to know? I’m “listening” for your comments below!
