A Beginners Guide to Social Media Marketing

In the past few years, Social Media and Social Media Marketing have become buzz- words. This is due to the popularity of sites like MySpace, Digg, etc. The social media have two components - user generated contents and the ability to form networks of friends for sharing contents.

In sites like MySpace and Facebook users create their profile pages and use texts, pictures, and videos to embellish the pages. They can then share those contents with others in their friends' network, or the social network

In sites like Digg, YouTube, Flickr users submit a summary of news articles, pictures, videos and they vote on the contents submitted by others. Popular contents are featured on the homepage and it drives massive amount of traffic.

There are many variations of the two models described above, including a combination of the two.

Using the social media sites to promote your product or services (or a website) is called social media marketing. There are two types of traffic you get when your content becomes popular in a social media site.

The primary traffic or the direct traffic comes from the site where it becomes popular. For sites like Digg, it can be huge and your site should be ready to handle the surge in traffic without crashing.

When your site becomes popular in a social media site, people talk about your site and the post that becomes popular. They will put links to the content. The secondary traffic or the indirect traffic flows from those links long after the surge due to the primary traffic is over.

So, what are the benefits of primary and secondary traffic from the social media sites? The primary traffic exposes your site to people who have no other means of knowing about your existence. Some of those visitors will become regulars to your site if you are providing something that they want on a regular basis.

The greatest benefit is the natural links to your site given by others because they want to discuss your offering. Natural links from a large number of relevant sites improve your search engine rankings and organic search traffic.

Social media marketing lets you expose your site to a large group of people. If your search engine traffic has leveled off, shifting your focus to the social media marketing and becoming successful in that will take you to the next level in search engine traffic.

The only other alternative for increasing your search engine traffic is pay per click advertisement. If you are already running a PPC campaign, you can continue your PPC campaign through out the year to sustain increased traffic from search engines at a cost.

Social media marketing is free and making your site popular a couple of times in a year is enough to sustain increased traffic through out the year.

Business Networking For Stronger Sales

Every business depends on networking between employees and other stakeholders in the company to accomplish the goals of management. To be effective in a small business, you have to take a look at the way a corporation builds its network of clients and recruits their employees. Effective networking practices assure the highest profitability for a business. This is why human resources is such a high priority in the corporate world. A corporation draws its strength from its client base and the reputation it builds by recruiting the best and brightest employees.

If you are a small business owner, you have probably thought of expanding your business. The way to increase sales is done through either leveraging capital or human resources. To leverage capital, you would borrow money and invest it in your means of production. This might be better equipment, more employees or anything that would increase your productivity.

Most small businesses choose to leverage human resources. A good example of this is an affiliate program. The idea behind running an affiliate program is to offer other companies or individuals a monetary incentive for acting as agents to sell your products to the public.

Imagine having a small army of affiliates selling your products. The best part is that you only pay them a commission after they sell your product. You have no paid salespeople at all. Basically, you just receive the orders, process the payments and ship the goods to the customer.

This is a good example of effective networking because you have a built-in loyal workforce once you have hired your affiliates. The benefits to the merchant are increased sales, market share and product visibility.

Another popular form of networking is direct sponsorship in a Multi-Level Marketing organization. In this type of marketing plan, an individual sponsors many other people into an organization. Then he trains this group of people on how to sponsor more people into the organization themselves. This method results in a very large base of marketers working to sell products for the company. The original sponsor gets paid for his efforts by the volume of sales his team produces. The profit trickles down through the organization based on the number of people each group leader has sponsored and the sales volume achieved by each member of the group for the sales period.

Affiliate programs and MLM are not for every company. There are costs of maintenance, and a payroll to meet every month. The biggest advantage of using these programs is that a non-employee of the company makes every sale. This way the company does not have to pay the worker's benefits and Social Security taxes. Each affiliate or network marketer is an independent taxable entity. They are not employees of the company from a legal standpoint.

Business owners must decide for themselves the best way to expand their business when it comes time to do so. It all comes down to a cost per sale analysis. Finding the best way to capitalize your business always includes market research and weighing the benefits of your available options.

If you decide to use one of the methods outlined above, it is best to discuss this move with a qualified marketing specialist. Also hire a qualified accountant for taxes and payroll purposes. You may want to talk to other business people who have successfully made this change for more information.

Using Forums to Boost Your Online Business

There are many ways to boost your business online - writing articles, search engine optimization, acquiring incoming links - the list goes on; but one of the best ways which is often overlooked is to find forums relating to your line of business and join in with them.

Being a frequent participant on forums can increase links back to your website, increase your chances of being seen as an expert, increase your mailing list, sell more of your product, get new affiliates to sign up, make you new friends - in fact there's not a lot to be said against joining a few forums. However, there are some things to think about before you get started:

DO:

1. Research each forum before you join. Make sure it's relevant to your business and see if the participants are in your target market. Look at how much traffic the forum gets. How busy is it? - there's no point in joining a dead forum with very few posts.

2. Check the forum rules before you post. Some forums will allow you to post adverts for your business while others will object. Check if you are allowed to add a signature at the end of your posts - adding a small biography with a web link to your business is a great way to increase incoming links to your site and to get more traffic.

3. Be polite and treat everyone the way you would like to be treated. Even though you don't meet people face to face you will build up some great relationships if you take the time to give good answers to questions, to be helpful and to respect other people's opinions. And every post you answer adds to your reputation. Use your posts to give genuine, useful advice, not just to plug your business and you'll soon be looked on as an expert.

4. Don't be afraid to ask for advice - no-one knows everything and sometimes you will need help.

5. To make the most of your time on the forums, allow yourself only a certain amount of time each day. Read only the posts that are relevant and that interest you and post answers quickly before moving on. It's very easy to spend the whole day on forums and not get anything else done.

DON'T:

1. Never, ever use a post to blatantly advertise your business, particularly if the forum rules don't allow it. Nothing will damage your reputation faster than spamming a forum.

2. Don't go through the list of forum members, collect email addresses and send them unsolicited mail. At best you'll be banned from the forum and at worst the owners might report you to your ISP.

3. Don't ever get involved in a flame war (this is when a heated conversation on a forum boils over and degenerates into nothing but an exchange of personal insults). It might be really satisfying to say what you think about someone, especially if they've been getting on your nerves, but just imagine what other people will think of you if you do.


In conclusion, treat people online like you treat people in real life. Think of it as a networking event that's taking place on your computer and don't forget that other posts on the forums are made by real people with real feelings.

You already know how to make friends and new contacts face to face. Apply what you already know to online networking and you could be enjoying great success with a global audience.

Ten Tips To Improve Your Networking Skills

Effective networking makes the world go round so it is a vital skill for expanding business and making life easier. That is all very well but it is also an investment of time and energy and for some people this is a nightmare as they have to conquer their social fears and the desire to melt into the crowd until it's time to leave.

Here are some simple tools and tips to make your networking more effective. They basically involve taking initiative and refining your conversation skills.


* Be Prepared. With a bit of light research before the event you can find out who will be there and what the occasion is. For a business event, you can brief yourself on the topic of the occasion and at least be able to hold a conversation.

* Be Positively Charged. Arrive at the function with a positive attitude and look like you are glad to be there. The host will appreciate someone who is not hanging around waiting to be entertained or introduced to someone. Help liven up the event with genuine warmth and enthusiasm and you will find yourself being invited to more events.

* Set Goals. If the thought of going to a social event where you might not know anyone leaves you in a cold sweat then setting a few goals can ease your anxiety. Decide on a minimum time that you can bare to stay for - like a hour. Then decide that you will not leave before making at least one new contact. You can amend the goals as you gather more confidence.

* Know Your Lines. Have a few opening lines prepared to help initiate conversations with strangers. Ask them how they know the host or if they've been to the venue before. This will usually lead the conversation to what you both do and why you were invited.

* Improve Your Listening Skills. Ask questions and show interest in those around you, especially if you are at a seated event that includes a formal meal. Learn to ask questions with sincerity and interest and then keep quiet and listen to the other person's reply.

* Take A Risk. Most people are quite relieved to have someone approach them first, so do not miss out on meeting someone interesting just because they look a bit cold and disinterested. They are probably nervous and if you approach them with warmth and interest, they could turn into quite good company.

* Leave Gracefully. Always thank the host or organizer of the event before leaving and say farewell to guests you have spoken to.

* Promises Kept. Your integrity and reliability are resting on this. If you told someone that you will fax them, e-mail them, phone them or contact them after the event, then do so as soon as you can.

* Stay In Touch. Once you've made contact with someone stay in touch with them. People like to know that they are thought of and important enough to be contacted even if you do not need them for anything.

* Think Beyond The Box. We tend to get a bit narrow-minded about where we should be networking but airplane trips, waiting in line, public events, weddings and any other place where people gather can present easy networking opportunities.

Networking skills take time to perfect and even the best professional networkers can still make blunders. Learning new tools and practicing your skills will certainly make networking easier with time and probably a lot more fun too.

Sometimes it's Not What You Know But Who You Know That Matters

The difference between 'getting by' at work and being successful is not solely dependent on technical skills or knowledge. We all know colleagues who have strong 'people skills' and not the strongest technical abilities but who nonetheless possess a distinct position of leverage or influence at work. These individuals are focusing on their strengths and use the power of interpersonal skills and networking to their advantage. You can too!

One should never underestimate the power of influence gained through networking. The expansiveness and quality of one's social and professional networks can significantly enhance career potential. How can one go about building a supportive network? This article will explore two practical and simple ways that, when used strategically will yield the results you want to achieve.

The first things to do are collect and organize the business cards from the people you meet so that you have their contact information. Obviously collecting cards is just the first step. Find reasons to send contacts an email, call for advice or to give some information related to their interests. Don't do so incessantly, but regularly - once a week or biweekly is appropriate. It generally depends on the significance of your reason to contact them and their past receptiveness. Take the time to research their company website so you can make relevant connections and based on 'inside track' information of what's important to them.

Keep in mind that just as it is sometimes awkward to reconnect with old friends or acquaintances after a period of not seeing one another, the same is true in regards to building a network. The longer you are out of touch with business associates the more difficult it is to reconnect and get 'back in the loop'. To help you make this a consistent priority, be strategic about your contacts - jot down regular reminders in a planner or electronic organizer so that you don't leave your connections to chance.

Another way to expand and strengthen your network is to invite contacts to an informal gathering or information session that you organize about topics of general or mutual interest. You may facilitate the discussion yourself or bring in a speaker. You could arrange such meetings at a local coffee shop or restaurant - many will set aside a meeting room upon request. On the invitation - whether it be by email, fax or regular mail - outline the proposed agenda and indicate that 'coffee or tea is provided - other menu items are at the cost of participants" - unless of course you are able and willing to cover the entire bill! This can be a relatively low-cost way of meeting with contacts and sharing ideas.

This intentional way of meeting your contacts on a regular basis strengthens not only the relationship you have with each of them, but also allows for your contacts to meet one another - an opportunity for which they will be grateful. Such efforts are similar to making an investment that you hope will grow at the opportune time.

These two ways of building your network - regularly connecting with contacts and organizing meetings or discussion forums are simple yet effective career-enhancers. Give them a try and get noticed at work!

Business Networking puts More Money in Your Pocket

Business networking puts more money in your pocket by helping you overcome the number one biggest problem facing new business owners. Prospecting for new customers. Business networking events can go a long way towards making the whole prospecting problem go away. There are two main kinds of networking opportunities available to the average entrepreneur. Passive networking and strong networking. Both have unique benefits and drawbacks.

The most well known example of passive networking is your local chamber of commerce. You can find a chamber of commerce chapter in almost every major city worldwide. Your local chamber of commerce gives you the opportunity to meet with many of the movers and shakers in your local business community. Through the many events they plan on a monthly and yearly basis, they offer you a chance to connect with a number of potential prospects for your products and services.

Weekly networking groups or clubs are an example of strong networking opportunities. These kinds of business networking events can be found in many major cities worldwide. A strong networking group will meet on a weekly basis for the sole purpose of exchanging business leads with one another and learning better ways of networking to grow their business. The most successful networking groups require your weekly attendance and insist that their members provide fellow members with referrals throughout the year. They also allow only one person from each profession or industry to belong to the group. This keeps the quality of the referrals high. One such group is Business Network International (BNI).

So what are the advantages and disadvantages of each kind of networking? They both have their place but strong networking groups represent a bigger commitment than passive networking groups. By belonging to a strong networking group, you are committed to be on the lookout for referrals for group members. Strong networking groups also usually meet on a weekly basis whereas passive networking groups usually meet monthly.

Passive networks can have multiple people from one profession or industry as members. They also have no requirements for passing on referrals to other members. Referrals do occur in a passive networking event but it is not facilitated by the meeting and is totally up to the business owner to initiate. You can belong to multiple passive networking groups. Any business you get from passive networking will most likely be a result of the amount of effort you put in.

Strong networks on the other hand restrict membership to only one person per industry or profession. This greatly increases the likelihood that you will receive referrals from participating members. Meetings are structured in a way to encourage referrals and there is a formal referral exchange that happens every week. It is strongly recommended that you only belong to one strong networking group in order to keep the quality of your referrals high.

In either case, it is important for members of these groups to see you as professional and competent. Referrals will go to people the referrer knows, likes and trusts.

Want more business? Start attending business networking events in your area.

Speed Networking for Business Success

You may have heard the term 'speed networking' bandied about a lot recently. It's become a very popular and fast growing form of networking and growing your business. So how does speed networking work?

Well, you may have heard of speed dating - It’s exactly the same principle just adapted for business. Attendees are seated in pairs and each one has between 2 and 5 minutes (this varies depending on the event) to introduce themselves and what they do. At the end of the 2 minutes a whistle blows and one of the parties moves to the next person on the right until everyone has had a chance to meet. It’s an excellent way for people who find networking difficult, to meet others. It also breaks the ice for any general networking which might follow afterwards and gets around the age old problem of only talking to people you already know.

So you've booked your place in a networking meeting, but what can you do to get the most out of the session? As with all marketing for your business, preparation is vital.

Bear in mind that you've only got a few precious minutes to get across what you do and more importantly the benefits of your product or service, so you really should practice what you are going to say before you go. What do you want to get out of the event? What is it about your company that you really need people to know?

Below are some useful questions which might help you figure out what you want to say:

1. Who is your ideal client?
2. Which companies are you trying to get into?
3. What services do you offer?
4. What is your Unique Selling Point (USP)?
5. Why should someone choose your company?

You could also practise your 60 second or "elevator" pitch - a very quick way to get across exactly what you do in sixty seconds or less. If you get that right you'll actually have time to spare on being specific about who you would like to meet and which companies you want to work with.

Further Tips:

- If you are seated opposite to someone you already know, tell them something they don't know about your business - have you set up something new recently, a new service or product? What do you currently need?

- If you're opposite someone new, help them out. If they're struggling to think what to say, ask them questions. What kind of questions? The ones above are a good start.

- Speak clearly - you can say more in 2 minutes than you think.

- When the other person is speaking, don't keep talking about you - it's your turn to listen.

- Be genuinely interested in what the other person has to say - as with general networking it's all about building long term relationships. Take time to see if you can help with any connections or advice your partner might need.

- If the organizers have allowed time after the speed networking for general networking then think about who you want to talk to again and how you can further the new relationship.

Speed networking, just like any networking isn't rocket science - it's thinking about what you want to say, being clear and to the point, listening carefully to the other person and seeing what you can both get out of it.

And it really is great fun, so don't be afraid to get out there and give it a go.

3 Reasons Social Marketing Must Be A Part Of Your Business

If you are trying to sell things on the Internet and you do not have a blog you are putting yourself at a disadvantage. Would you go to play golf without a putter?

Your competition is blogging and they are beating your pants off every day with ease. A part of blogging is submitting your articles to social directories.

Here are 3 reasons social marketing must be a part of your Internet business.

1. Social marketing is a popular way to get information. Directories like Digg and Netscape are quickly becoming the choice of people all over the world as a way to keep up to date on what is going on.

If you are not blogging and submitting to relevant social directories you are missing out on this easy form of traffic.

2. Social marketing is easy to do. Here's what you need. You should get a WordPress blog and set it up so that you can quickly bookmark the top directories. Then you should post in your blog everyday. If you can talk and type you can blog.

3. Social marketing is an interactive way to develop relationships with your readers. This has become know as Web 2.0 and it is important to the future of your business.

People still like to deal with people. This is an age-old sales trick that sometimes gets lost on the Internet. By making yourself and your blog interactive you become a real person. This will help increase your chances for sales and repeat sales.

4. Search engines love social marketing. You are making their life easy when you blog around keyword rich topics that a person researching can find. When you master the techniques of social marketing you will find you can get on page one of Google and other search engines very quickly.

The reason for this is search engines are spidering Digg, Reddit, Newsvine, and many more non-stop looking for fresh relevant content to put online. This may as well be you as opposed to your competition.

If all of this seems confusing it really shouldn't be. Read "The Authority Black Book" by Jack Humphrey. It is a free ebook you can get online. In it you will learn everything you ever wanted to know on social marketing and how to use it to increase your business.

Do not wait until tomorrow to get started. Do it today and your Internet business will thank you.

Networking - Why, How and Where

It's hard to be in business today, certainly in the professional services sector, without having heard the term 'networking'. Regarded by many as the Marmite of business, it is said that you either are a networker or you aren't. And if you think you aren't, you shouldn't even try to do it.

Rubbish!

First of all, networking is essential to any business - whether offline or online. The business you get from personal recommendation will be some of the best business you ever do - they have pretty much made up their minds to use you before they even call you, and they are a lot less concerned with price. And it's not just for solicitors and accountants - when your pipes burst, how did you decide on a plumber to come out and fix it? Was it someone you had heard good things about before? Maybe you didn't know anyone, so you called a friend and asked if they knew a good plumber? Joe Bloggs Plumbers just won the business of fixing your pipes through networking.

A good way to look at it is not as 'networking' but as 'word-of-mouth marketing'. Because it is part of your marketing mix - how's your advertising? Local papers? Spot on radio? Good, good. PR? Interview on local news this week? Fantastic. How about promotions? Give aways? Offers? All sorted? Great stuff. Got a website? Optimised for the search engines? Lots of enquiries from it too? Brilliant.

And how about your word of mouth?

Not enough people concentrate on generating referrals and getting people to mention their business to others. Millions of pounds of business is done every year through referral and recommendation. If you're not getting any of it, you need to think long and hard about why not.

So you've got yourself to a networking event, you tell the people there about what you have to offer, and then ask if they want to buy it, right? Wrong! If you do this you have become the person at a networking event that everyone wants to avoid - the one handing out business cards like they're dealing a poker game; the one who asks you nothing and tells you more than you could ever want to know about what they do.

So how do you do it? The best way to network is to build trust, build relationships, to think about what you can do for the other people in the room before you think about what you might get. Be a 'people person', be genuinely interested in the people you meet at events. Great networkers want to help as well as get help - because they like helping others, not just because it might get them some business in the future.

Networking is about building a relationship that eventually leads to business being done, either between you and your new contact, between you and someone they recommend, or between them and someone you recommend. Don't discount that last one - they have to get something out of your relationship as well, otherwise it isn't a relationship. If you help them get more business, they will do the same for you - in fact they'll feel obliged to.

Where can I network?

The short answer is absolutely anywhere! Remember Joe Bloggs Plumbers, the guys who fixed your pipes? You don't find many plumbers at networking events, but they still get referrals. Networking happens when you talk to your colleagues at work, when you go to the pub with your friends, it happens when you overhear a conversation in the bus queue. Networking is about the impression you leave people with, and you make impressions all day, every day.

Of course you will make more effective contacts for referrals at specialised networking events, but remember there are several different kinds of events you can go to. Some of the most established are breakfast meetings, which usually start around 7.00am and finish around 9.00am. Meetings are usually weekly and the format is very focused and regimented. For those who like this format, there is a lot of business to be done, but it is an acquired taste. Try it out, but bear in mind whether or not you can keep up with the regular early mornings and very formal structure. Also, most breakfast meetings are restricted to one person from each business sector, so you are not as likely to meet people you can form alliances and joint ventures with, which is a very important, and often overlooked part of networking.

There are also several different kinds of event organised by groups such as local government organisations, such as race days, golf days and others. These can be a lot of fun, but are very often filled with people who are there for the golf rather than to do business, and you may have to kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince. Networking events are really a matter of preference and perspective, and you should go to as many events as you can at first, and then stick with the ones that work for you.

In summary, there is a simple and effective way to network that anyone can do:

1. Get to know people as people, not prospects.
2. Everything happens after a meeting, not during. Always, always follow up.
3. Give referrals as well as expect to receive them.
4. Keep in touch on a regular basis.

Best of luck with your networking!

Networking Your Way to Online Success

Forums, groups, boards, and loops; they’re all synonymous for online locations facilitating online networking. Some are entirely public, where everyone and anyone can click to the URL, read the messages and if they have no interest in contributing, they can just lurk. Some require active participation and others require registration before members can participate. These online forums, groups, boards or loops are different from paid membership sites in that there is no cost to network at these websites.

Some are active, some are sleepy. Some are strictly for business related topics; some allow more OT (Off Topics) and social interaction. There are forums for every imaginable topic: Entrepreneurs, International business, Health related fields, Technology, Copywriters, Web Designers, Work at Home Moms, Programmers, Finance, Ebay, Job Seekers, Internet Marketing, Writers, Inventors and Virtual Assistants, just to barely scratch the surface of what’s out there on the World Wide Web.

Time management skills need to be paramount when participating in online forums. You can very easily get swallowed up and spend hours and hours online networking with others who have online businesses, yet you miss real opportunities to get some productive work done!

From a business standpoint, there are two areas you should consider before participating in a loop. It’s always good to have a network of like-minded business people. If you’re a web designer, hang out with other designers. You can help and support each other. If you’re just starting out, you can learn from the pros.

Don’t get stuck though, just hanging out with your own kind. You’re not going to be very successful trying to promote your design services to other designers. This is where balance comes in. Pop into the boards, check new posts of interest, ask or answer questions, then get out. Then move onto groups who need your services or products. Who is your target market and where do they hang out? Go there. Word of caution: Do not go to these forums with the sole purpose of SPAMMING the group. You’ll be tossed out on your ear quicker than you can blink if that is your sole purpose. People like to do business with people they know and trust – or at the very minimum have at least heard of.

If you’re trying to sell your curriculum to a group of home school parents and you just pop in, spew your sales rap all over the boards then expect any sort of return, you’re missing the point of online networking. It’s networking – not advertising. You need to build a rapport with your other “loopies”. Then if a need arises and they know one of their own fellow networkers has that special skill or product, guess who they’ll call first? You hope it’s YOU.

For starters check MSN, Google, Yahoo, AOL, and Ryze. Inside there are literally hundreds and thousands of groups just waiting for you. Start networking your way to success today!

Boost Your Web Site with Interactive Features

Several surveys have confirmed that the main growth in the use of the Internet is in the area of "networking". Whether that's using the Internet to route telephone calls, or the use of web sites to discuss things with like-minded people, there is little doubt that "connecting people" is a significant part of the Internet.

Until recently, the only way of being connected was via email. That is mostly one-to-one, has inherent delays and is also limited in what you can achieve. Nowadays, you can share text, audio and video using social networking sites. These are not one-to-one, but many-to-many and are also immediate. That has significant appeal for many Internet users.

In a sense, what we are now witnessing online is what has happened offline for centuries. Groups of like-minded people are getting together, chatting, swapping information, passing on useful ideas and products and having a good old gossip. With the interconnectivity offered by many web sites nowadays you can achieve all this online without having to go out in the cold weather!

But for those people trying to earn money online, it's good to understand the fact that there is this essential human need for people to interconnect when online. If your business web site doesn't have any means of interconnection, you are less likely to attract the modern Internet user, who sees interaction as fundamental. No longer can your business rely on an email address or a "contact us" form.

These days you need to allow your web site visitors to interact with you AND with each other. That means you need a forum, for instance, or at the very least a blog where people can comment on what you've written. You could also do with the ability for people to add content to your web site, such as articles or video clip. Such features in a business web site will help create a sense of belonging, of identity.

In the future a good business web site will be one where a community of people meet together to discuss what the business offers. No longer can you afford to have a static, brochure style web site. Internet users in the modern broadband connected world want interactivity. If your web site doesn't offer some kind of interactive feature, you will lose out to competing web sites that do.

Tags & Folksonomy: Latest Internet Trend

There is a new branch of the Web growing like a well organized storm cloud. This recent trend on the Web can be used to strengthen your presence with major search engines and reach an active audience that is highly interested in your content. Welcome to the world of "folksonomy" and "tagging."

What is Folksonomy and Tagging?

Folksonomy is a combination of the words folks and taxonomy meaning "people classification management." This allows users some level of control over how the web is organized. One of the most popular tools of the folksonomy concept is tags. Tagging, in the context of this article, is the process of labeling a piece data with metadata.

Using Tagging & Folksonomy to Advertise

Three of the most effective sites currently using tags and/or folksonomy are: Del.icio.us, digg.com, and technorati. Each of these sites is a major player in the folksonomy world.

Del.icio.us is a social bookmarking web application that is growing very fast in popularity. With a free account, del.icio.us users can submit and access all of their bookmarks from any computer with Internet access. By submitting and tagging your own web pages, you instantly give access to thousands of other users with interests in the same tags. Encouraging site visitors to submit your selected webpages to their own del.icio.us bookmark page is a very good way to get more exposure to del.icio.us users. Submitting to del.icio.us is instant and it creates meaningful relevant links important to the major search engines.

Digg.com is mostly a technical news site. If you are familiar with the Web phenomenon Slashdot, then digg will remind you of that geek culture. The difference is that ALL of digg's content is created, submitted, and judged by its audience. If your page, blog or online article is good enough to be "dug" by digg users, you could receive literally hundreds of unique visitors immediately. Virtually any participation (comments, submissions, links in your profile) can get your site traffic from digg. The beauty of digg is that it is so popular that many submissions to digg can instantly dominate some keywords on search engines such as google.com.

Technorati.com is a power house in the world of tagging. If you have a blog, Technorati should become one of your favorite search engines on the World Live Web. Many Technorati Tags are beginning to dominate the Web by having constantly updated, fresh blog content on highly focused subjects. The beauty of Technorati is that blog application such as blogware and others are completely integrated with it allowing blog categories to be instantly tagged and syndicated into the blog search engine. Any blog can be manually added as well to technorati's very open tagging system. Like digg, even if you only happen to get a trickle of traffic from technorati itself many times the link value alone will sky rocket the speed in which your site rank in the search engines.

There are many other folksonomy sites that can help you with "tag syndication." With its encouragement to get users to submit their own RSS feeds as content, My Yahoo! is a great way to increase traffic and links. Web applications like TagCloud integrates RSS and tagging while wikipedia.org is method of allowing social webpage and content development. All these methods and many more have two great things in common 1) they are free (as of this writing) and 2) they give the power to reshape and categorize the Web to the people. If content is King then content management is the the kingdom.

Social Networking on Myspace and Friendster

If by now you have not heard of Mspace or Friendster then maybe the world is moving too slowly for you. Young adults (teens and college age adults) are using the world of the internet to communicate in ways we had no inkling of a few years ago.

Social networking is booming as young adults find one another online to chat, post comments, post photos, and share info about the latest happenings in their world to their Myspace pages and Friendster networking sites. It is not always a good thing for sure, but more on that later on.

So how does it work? Well some genius thought up the concept of Myspace, which is basically a free bulletin board for anyone (not just teens) to create a web site that is all about networking and communicating with friends and creating new friends too. Users create a free account; enter information about themselves, in as much or little detail as they want. They then share their site with their friends. Their friends can then post comments on the myspace. It becomes a great big bulletin board of social interaction. The kids are glued to these things and seem to know how to find one another and chase down the latest hot info in a heartbeat.

So what does this mean to communication in the Internet age for teens and young adults? It puts a fancier face on the outpouring of information exchange between teens.

It used to be that only the geeky teens had web pages about themselves. They were the only ones who knew how to build them. Now with these easy to use tools at their disposal every teen or young adult can have a site. That means connections and networking spreads very fast.

The sharing aspect of these sites is not only their good side but also their bad side as well. In the last year many schools and parents have become alarmed at the content of some of these Myspace sites that students have built. In typical teen fashion some kids say on their site what probably should not be said in public. They post as though it were a diary and then it gets spread around. That means that hate and meanness spread within the community quickly. Some schools have cracked down and told students they would be expelled if they do not clean up their sites. Parents, just finding out about the technology and checking it out for the first time become alarmed at the things that are said on these postings.

Of course that aspect comes back to the old thing of parents needing to be in tune with their kids and what is going on in their world. You cannot give a kid a computer and internet access and then walk away and not pay any attention.

The other thing that has raised alarm in this world of social networking is kids will post news of a party in their area, to their site. Instead of getting to "just" their friends it ends up spreading to the whole area. Homes have been overrun by crowds of kids trying to attend parties. One such event even ended with a fatal stabbing when the crowd got to big and unruly.

These are the types of things that can happen with or without such social networking sites in teen’s lives. These sites are not going to fade away. Myspace has over 60 million subscribers and was recently bought by a major corporation. They intend to make a lot of money off these sites for years to come. After all it is a very juicy target market for advertising revenue.

The Importance of Networking

On a hot July day several years ago people gathered in droves to drink, talk, and do business. This wasn't a convention, reception or staff outing. The event was called Young Professionals, a local business networking group for, as the name suggests, young working professionals. This event acted as a magnifying glass on the importance of networking in business.

The first thing you'll notice at an event like this will be the amount of people that attend. Discovering an opportunity like in the business world can be a refreshing feeling, especially to those that are constantly scrutinized at work. If nothing else, networking provides members of the business community an outlet to reassure one another that their current job doesn't have to be the only job they ever do. The first step in networking is putting oneself out there to be met by others, and engaging in conversation about business, and life with other likeminded individuals.

The next thing you'll notice at the event are the prevalence of business cards. The importance of business cards in networking is essential. If you have business cards be sure to bring them everywhere, if you don't yet have a card, make one. Many of your employees might be people you'll meet networking for business. If they don't have a business card you won't be able to hire them. Having a business card and distributing it freely will help you become successful at networking. If you need reassurance, look at those that profit off networking the most, real estate agents, stock brokers, and other broker types. Do you ever see a drought in business cards among these individuals? Some people have stacks of cards high enough to hit an 11 foot ceiling.

Another thing you'll notice happening at the event are the unabashed marketing of products, and services. Market your product when networking. What if you don't have a product for sale? You may have a service, or an idea, whatever it may be, market it while networking. You will be surprised at how many people can help you achieve your dream.

A few things you'll want to bring to a meeting are a pen, pad, and something to hold things in, like a portfolio. While networking be sure to take notes if necessary, ask questions of others, and capture the moment. Many rely on fate to bring them to success in business, and life. But for those seasoned veterans of business, and life will tell you, diligence and hard work are as important as anything else.

When you are networking try your best to get the most out of the situation. Next time you are at a networking event, instead of enjoying the free pigs in a blanket, make the most of it by actively networking.

The "Networking" Part of Network Marketing

Networking is obviously an essential part of network marketing. Every successful network marketer knows this to be true. Although networking is such an intricate part of network marketing, the two terms are not synonymous. However there are many similarities. Both rely heavily on people skills. Both require people to confront their fear of talking to other people. Both carry with them the risk of rejection. Both also carry with them enormous opportunity. And to some people, both are considered dirty words.

Of course people that consider networking as something that is 'not done' don't understand what networking is really about. The same can be said of people that think network marketing is something that is beneath them. Many people think of networking as a way to get connected solely for their own advancement in life. In that respect a person might feel that it is unethical or not noble to network. This line of thinking stems from the idea that advancement will always come at the expense of someone else, that success in life is a zero-sum game. These people often look at network marketing from the same perspective. They think of profiting from other people's efforts as something that is negative and not fair to them. In reality, successful networkers will tell you that it doesn't work that way at all. Networking doesn't have to be at anybody's expense and the business of network marketing doesn't reward anyone for taking advantage of others. It actually rewards people for helping other people to succeed. In that respect it may very well be the most ethical business model in the world today.

A lot of the negativity around networking can be explained by the different types of networkers. Some can be considered 'hunters', moving in for a quick kill, after which they move out again. They often operate without regard of the other persons interest and because of this they will enjoy the fruits of success for only a limited period of time. Often it will not take long before people find out what's really driving the hunter. Once they see that he or she is only looking after his or her own interests, their willingness to interact with this person will quickly evaporate. By contrast, truly successful networkers are often 'farmers' who spend a lot of time sowing and nourishing their relationships, instead of just focusing on reaping. They invest in their network, they energize their network. They use their network, but they never ever abuse their network! And their network knows this. A true networker will always keep the interests of others in mind. That's why working with a true networker is so enjoyable. Networkers are often very likeable and as such people like to interact with them.

Networking is a skill that is essential to all businesses not just network marketing. Although network marketing differs in many ways from the more traditional forms of doing business, the importance of networking is just as prevalent. If not more so. A network marketer that doesn't know how to network will be out of business in no time. Network marketing is first and foremost a people's business and this implies that the ability to effectively work with people is absolutely critical. This is why successful network marketers are extremely adept at networking. Many have found out over time that developing this skill can pay off in many areas outside their network marketing business as well. Business owners who have started a home based business on the side often apply their enhanced networking and people's skills in their traditional business with great success. For some network marketers this spin-off has earned them more money than the income from their network marketing business itself.

So whether you are in network marketing or in a more traditional type of business, don't underestimate the importance of becoming an effective networker. And if you really want to master this skill you may find there is a lot to learn from good network marketers. So if you happen to know anybody that fits that description, try and benefit from their knowledge on the topic. It will surely help you network your way to success!

Gear Up Your Site for Social Media Marketing

The year 2006 saw the emergence of social media. If you are
engaged in operating a website, you must realign your site to
exploit the popular social media sites for increased traffic.

You should also introduce social media components to your site
because web users are experiencing these new form of interactions
in more and more sites and they may have an expectation of the
same from your site also.

If you want to attract repeat visitors and want them to stay
longer, your focus this year should be on the social aspects of
your site.

Social media use technologies like RSS, blogging, podcasting,
tagging, etc. and offer social networking (MySpace, Facebook),
social video and picture sharing (YouTube, Flickr), and
community-based content ranking (Digg, MiniClip) features.

The central theme of these sites is user generated contents used
for sharing among the end-users. The social aspects of these
sites are to allow users to setup social communities, invite
friends and share common interests.

You don't have to change your site completely within a month or
so to take advantages of these new technologies. Introduce small
changes incrementally through out the year and you will be on
your way to meet these new challenges.

The first step is to declare who you are to the online community.
People should be able to relate to you. Unless they know more
about you, you will be just an unknown identity and most people
don't like to deal with unknowns. Create an About Us page and
list your achievements and skills.

Create a MySpace page and link your bio in the About Us page to
the MySpace page. Also provide a link back from the MySpace page
to your website. Spend an hour every week to develop your online
social network in MySpace. Invite a few of these new friends to
write blog articles at your site about your products or
services.

Install a free blog software and start publishing at least one
article in your blog. Provide an easy bookmarking feature to
social bookmarking sites like delicious. This is done by
providing an action button for each article in your site. The
action button takes users to the submission page of the
bookmarking site.

Also, provide an action button for direct posting of blog
articles to digg. Digg is a popular news ranking site. A well
dugg article will bring thousands of visitors to your site.

Provide a forum at your site for users to discuss your products
and services. Don't delete negative comments because they provide
insights into the improvements needed to serve your visitors
better. However, censor hate speeches and meaningless bantering.
Register your forum at BoardTracker. BoardTracker is a forum
search engine.

If you are offering products, allow users to review and rate your
products. This will help you in inventory management because you
may want to discontinue low rated products.

Provide RSS feeds for your new products, blogs, forum postings,
etc. An RSS feed provides teasers of your contents. Users will
use RSS readers to scan your teasers and visit your site for more
information if the teasers draw their attentions.

Publish all your feeds at feedburner. Feedburner provides media
distribution and audience engagement services for RSS feeds. They
also provide an advertising network for your feeds. If you have
quality contents, you will be able to monetize your contents
using their services.

Create short how-to or new product videos and post these videos
in social video sharing sites like YouTube, Google video. Provide
a few start and end frames in these videos to introduce your site
with your site url. Post these videos using catchy titles,
teasing descriptions, and appropriate tags to make them
discoverable.

Provide embedded links to your posted videos in your site. This
will save your bandwidth and storage space because the videos
reside in the video sharing sites.

Besides videos, use social photo sharing sites like Flickr to
share pictures related to contents in your site. Use the same
title, description and tag techniques discussed earlier for
social video sites.

Provide a Send to Friend feature for all products and services
you offer. This feature is a link that sends the article, product
description, etc. to a recipient via e-mail.

For starter, Yahoo provides a service called Action Buttons
(search for Yahoo Action Buttons) that add links to your website
for users to share, save, and blog about your website. The Yahoo
action buttons use delicious for social bookmarking, and Yahoo
blog site for blogging. It also has a print feature.

The social media is not a fad. It is here to stay and bring in
profound changes to web surfers' experiences. It is the right
time for implementing features that will make your site social
media friendly. Also, using marketing techniques that utilize
popular social media sites, you will be able to bring traffic to
your site.