Posts Tagged ‘Blogs’
Author: The Ibis Network Published: April 4th, 2012
On the Internet, content is currency. Having a website, blog, or social-media profiles without content is like having a car without wheels. You’ve got the foundation but you don’t have the means to make it go. Successfully marketing your business online means you have to, not only be part of the conversation, you have to start some yourself. You have to stay active and continually engaged. The Internet values quantity over quality and, if you have both, you’re golden.
Here are some things to think about …
Types of Content: The mistake a lot of people make is feeling like their content has to always directly relate to their business. It doesn’t. Your content has to appeal to your target audience but doesn’t have to have a direct link to the services you provide. For example, if you were selling skin-care products to teenagers, you wouldn’t have to fill your Facebook fan page with posts only about teenage skin and ways to keep it healthy. You could use anything that might appeal to teenagers. Posting about issues and topics interesting to teens would be more effective than posting only about skin. After all, teenagers may want clear skin but they likely aren’t interested in reading article after article about it. Mix it up and keep it interesting.
Ways to Use It: Content is a general word. What does it mean exactly? Well, it means anything you share anywhere you share it. It can be blog posts, tweets, Facebook updates, or emails. It’s not about where, it’s about what. In other words, once you’ve created some content, think about the most appropriate ways to use it. Twitter, for example, has a very specific format. You can’t tweet a paragraph, so quick updates, links, and photos are perfect. But a blog post may also work well as an email blast. If you’ve got something to share on your blog and you’d like to share it with your email list, you’re going to boost the number of people who see it. And numbers, after all, mean more opportunities for business.
How To Think About It: Here’s the trick. Stop thinking of your Internet properties as having to compete against everything else on the Internet. If you’re in real-estate, you don’t have to worry about your real-estate blog competing with the top sources of industry news and information on the web. You’re never going to surpass the number of people looking at the top news sources and industry sites. You’re never going to become CNN. You’re goal isn’t to have the number one site on the web. You’re goal is to have the number one site among your clients and customers. If you’re sharing your content with the people you’re hoping to do business with, it doesn’t matter how many hits you receive. If you have one visitor to your blog and they end up your client, you’re an Internet success.
Tags: Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Online, Clear Skin, Currency, Email Blast, Email List, Facebook, Fan Page, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Internet Content, Internet Values, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Online, Marketing Tools, Media Profiles, Mistake, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking, Networking Strategy, Paragraph, Realtor Marketing, Skin Care, Skin Care Products, Social Networking, Something To Share, Target Audience, Teenage Skin, Teenagers, The Ibis Network, Three Keys, Tips, Twitter, Wheels
Category Marketing, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: March 21st, 2012
Nobody likes a poorly timed call from a telemarketer. Answering a call about having your carpet cleaned when your house has wall-to-wall hardwood floors is never welcome, least of all during the dinner hour. But, what if that telemarketer, rather than trying to sell you something you didn’t need, gave you some information you could use? What if every time you answered a call from a telemarketer they didn’t try to sell you anything but, instead, told you something fascinating and then left you alone. You may be more opened to future calls. This is the theory behind social-media and content marketing.
Here are some tips on content creation and building a presence and reputation online …
Know Your Audience: You’ll find articles suggesting you need to post multiple times a day to your blog, Twitter, and Facebook page. And yeah, the more you post the more attention you’re likely to get. It’s the old quantity over quality argument. In order to drum up some new business, however, you needn’t follow any arbitrary number of posts per day, week, or month. More importantly, you need to determine what kind of content your customers and potential clients would most benefit from receiving. Sending out a tweet every hour that doesn’t appeal to your customers and has nothing to do with your business won’t gain you any respect or attention. Posting something of value, however, can result in a new connection regardless of the frequency.
Know Your Topic: It’s tempting to get online and fill your pages with everything from the personal to the professional. And when you’re starting out and having difficulty finding appropriate content, posting about your favorite hobbies and habits may seem like a good way to get going. But nobody shopping for your particular services is going to choose you over your competition simply because you share the same taste in television, food, or sports teams. They will, however, take a longer look at your page if you’re consistently posting educational, informative, and interesting content aimed at helping them make better decisions. Give your audience what they’re looking for and they’re more likely to come looking for you when they’re ready to do business.
Know Your Purpose: Because it’s easy and free, setting your business up with a social-media profile may seem less valuable and vital. In other words, it may not seem like something that requires time, effort, planning, and forethought. It does. Spending a little time figuring out how you want to present yourself, what kind of content you’d like to offer, and who your target audience will be, can make the difference between a successful campaign and a half-empty Facebook fan page. You wouldn’t, for example, take out an advertisement without considering what it says, where it runs, and how it brands your business. So the same amount of consideration should go into your social-media properties. Keep them professional, up-to-date, consistent, and timely for best results.
Tags: Arbitrary Number, Articles, Audience, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Website, Carpet, Content Creation, Dinner Hour, Facebook, Fan Page, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Hardwood Floors, Hobbies, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Marketing, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Multiple Times, Networking Strategy, New Business, Presence, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Reputation, Shopping Services, Social Marketing, Social Media, Social Networking, Sports Teams, Telemarketer, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tweet, Twitter, Wall To Wall
Category Marketing, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: March 14th, 2012
Living in the Internet age is a lot like being around for the gold rush. There’s a lot of buzz about the limitless opportunities and possibilities but there are no guarantees that it’ll make you any money. Fortunately, unlike the gold rush, the Internet doesn’t require you to cross the country on a brutal horse-and-carriage led trip through the mountains and you won’t have to do hours and hours of manual labor in order to try your luck. Which is to say, if mining gold were this easy, everyone would have done it. And yet, there are those that are still hesitant to take their business online.
Here are some tips and ideas for those of you still on the fence …
Social Media Is Local: Stop thinking of the entirety of the Internet and start thinking about it as a way to get in touch with people in your area and region. The Internet may be able to reach all four corners of the known universe but its users generally are engaged with their friends, family, and community when they’re online. That means, social media is actually more efficient and valuable to small businesses than large corporations. After all, no one is going to pay too much attention to a tweet from Coca-Cola but they’d be more likely to read a post or click a link sent from a local business they know and trust. If you’re not doing business in India, there’s no need to set up a social-media campaign aimed at world domination. Keep it focused, targeted, and small to start.
Social Media Is Participatory: Here’s the part that trips a lot of people up. Despite being named “social” media, many people are turned off by the idea that they will actually need to communicate and reach out to other people. They want their social-media campaign to function like an online advertisement waiting to be seen by the right people. Unfortunately, there’s no quicker way to become lost in a pile of forgotten social-media profiles than to set up a page and quickly abandon it. You needn’t feel like you have to constantly be updating and refreshing your pages but it does help to have something to offer. And always be polite and engaging with the people that follow your pages and posts.
Social Media Isn’t Going Anywhere: Fortunately, the opportunities and possibilities of the Internet will be around a lot longer than the gold was in San Francisco. Which means, there may not be a rush, but there’s also no reason to wait. The early adopters will have the advantage of offering something their competition doesn’t. If you wait five years to take your goods and services online, your Facebook fan page will still be beneficial but it won’t give you a competitive edge. Which means, not only can a properly executed social-media campaign benefit your business but the sooner you start the better those benefits are likely to be.
Tags: Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Online, Buzz, Coca Cola, Doing Business In India, Facebook, Fan Page, Four Corners, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Friends Family, Gold Rush, Guarantees, Horse And Carriage, Internet Age, Josh Millar, Large Corporations, Limitless Opportunities, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Campaign, Media Profiles, Mining Gold, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Mountains, Possibilities, Professional Networking Suite, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Small Businesses, Social Media, Social Networking, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tweet, Twitter, World Domination
Category Networking Strategy, Social Media |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: March 7th, 2012
Here’s a stat for anyone that believes blogs aren’t a viable lead generator … More than half of businesses that blog report having acquired a customer specifically through their blog. According to HubSpot’s 2012 State of Inbound Marketing survey, 57 percent of company blogs have pulled in a new client, that’s better than Facebook or Twitter. In other words, if you’re thinking of starting a social-media campaign for your business and you’re convinced business blogging is a thing of the not-so distant past, here are some things to think about …
Sharing is Marketing: The percentage of businesses with a company blog has risen in all of the past three years and has now reached 65 percent. In other words, if you’re not blogging, you’re behind the times. You’re a dying breed. A dinosaur. And there’s a reason the majority of companies are maintaining blogs. First, they’re a cheap way of increasing your web presence. Secondly, in the Internet age, marketing means getting your content passed along. Sharing is key. And a blog gives you a place to begin generating content and an audience. Once you’ve gotten accustomed to producing content set yourself up on a few social-media sites to syndicate your content even further.
More Is More: So you set up a blog, posted twice, and when it didn’t result in any new business, gave up? Well what did you expect would happen? According to the HubSpot survey, among businesses who reported acquiring a customer through their blog, 92 percent posted multiple times a day. In other words, the more you share, the more likely you generate traffic, make new contacts, and build new business. Now you may be thinking you don’t have the time to post multiple times a day. Well, 66 percent of those business blogs acquired a customer while only blogging once a week and, among blogs that only updated monthly, 56 percent gained a customer. In other words, even if you’re too busy or too lazy, chances are a business blog will benefit your bottom line.
The Future Is Now: Among respondents to the HubSpot survey, 62 percent say social media has grown more important to them in the past six months. And, on the flip side, only 14 percent named trade shows and nine percent said telemarketing. In other words, if you believed social media was a passing fancy and there was no need to participate, you’ve been proven wrong. More and more businesses are incorporating and benefiting from social media and blogs. And more of them are reporting their successes. The same survey found 81 percent of businesses said their blog was useful or better, with 34 percent calling it important and 25 percent saying it was critical. Yeah, critical.
Tags: Articles, Audience, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Dinosaur, Dying Breed, Facebook, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Hubspot, Internet Age, Internet Marketing, Josh Millar, Lead Generator, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Survey, Marketing Tools, Media Campaign, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Multiple Times, Networking, Networking Strategy, New Business, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Reason, Social Media, Stat, Strategy, The Ibis Network, Tips, Traffic, Twitter, Web Presence
Category Blogging, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: March 1st, 2012
Think of LinkedIn as the most well-attended networking event the world has ever seen. Then congratulate yourself on finding a way to meet and greet with more than 70 million professionals without having to endure the awkward conversations and business-card exchanges that go along with your regular, run-of-the-mill business gathering.
When used correctly, LinkedIn provides a platform for online networking, maintaining contacts, receiving referrals and participating in the community at large. And so, we’ve compiled the following tips and tools from past posts in order to help you take better advantage of your profile …
Your Profile: Since LinkedIn began as a vehicle for job hunters, many people are still under the impression that some form of copy-and-pasted resume is all you need to attract potential business to your page. Truth is, this is a representation of you and, hopefully, one that will be seen by potential clients and partners. That means, you’ll want to offer up a bit more than your work history. If you have a Twitter page, add it. Add your website as well. Get connected by importing your email address book and sending out an invite to your business contacts. Add a bio and job experience. The more information you offer, the more likely your profile will be found.
Get Active: So you’ve filled out your profile and imported your business contacts to LinkedIn. The next step is getting active on the site. LinkedIn offers the ability to join as many industry-related groups and discussions as you wish. So do it. Search groups by category or keyword and focus on your region or industry. Once you’ve joined, ask a question or answer an existing query. If nothing else, you may learn something from someone. At best, you’ll make new contacts within your industry and region that could lead to business down the road.
Make Recommendations: On LinkedIn, recommendations bolster your credibility. After all, if you’ve got a lot of recommendations, you’re most likely trustworthy and not out to scam, spam, or swindle anyone. But how do you get them? Well, start by recommending people you’ve had positive business experiences with. Once you’ve made some recommendations, it’ll be a lot easier to get some in return.
WordPress: If you have a business blog and haven’t added it to your LinkedIn page, you should. The WordPress application on LinkedIn allows you to easily update your profile with your most recent blog posts, provided you’re using WordPress. And, if embedding your blog on your LinkedIn profile sounds like it may be beyond your technological abilities, it’s as easy as entering your domain name into the application. Everything else is automatic.
Polls: You may think polls are only for research centers and presidential campaigns but they’re also a handy and convenient way of gathering information that will boost your business. Use the poll application on LinkedIn to pose a question to your connections and millions of other professionals, then use their answers to better your services. In addition, the poll application allows you to embed the voting module on your website or blog.
Be Strategic: Once you’ve set up a page and joined some groups, developed some content, discussion topics, or questions to share, it’s time to think strategically about how, where, and when to post it. You don’t, for example, want to post your content on Christmas morning or the 4th of July or even weekends for that matter. Posting the right topic to the right group at a time when there’s likely to be more traffic and interest will make the difference between being ignored and being found among millions of members.
Tags: Advantage, Articles, Audience, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Card, Business Contacts, Business Website, Card Exchanges, Conversations, Credibility, Email Address Book, Facebook, Finding A Way, Focus, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Job Hunters, Josh Millar, Keyword, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking Event, Networking Strategy, Professional Networking Suite, Profile, Realtors, Referrals, Resume, Search Groups, Social Media, Social Networking, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tools, Truth, Valuable Marketing, Work History
Category Linked In, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: February 22nd, 2012
Some of us are old-fashioned. Not by choice, necessarily. Mostly because it’s easier to romanticize the simplicity of the past than it is to always keep up on the newest developments here in the present. In other words, it’s tiring trying to stay current when you just figured out how to send a proper fax. So when it comes to keeping a business blog or setting up a fan page on Facebook, it’s difficult to see the reason or benefit.
Here are some old ways of thinking about new things …
Mailers, Newsletters & Blogs: Used to be that businesses would send out mailers or newsletters hoping to attract prospective clients. Printed mailers sent through the postal service were meant to inform, educate, and entertain, as well as announce new services and promotions. In other words, your business blog is just an ongoing version of the same thing. In fact, keeping a blog updated with information aimed at attracting and interesting potential customers also makes it easy to produce an old-fashioned monthly or weekly newsletter. After all, you now have the content. All you’ll need to decide is whether to print and mail it or copy-and-paste it into an email.
Social-Media & The Town Crier: All the way back to the beginnings of civilized society, people found ways to inform their neighbors of important news and announce happenings, deals, and developments. There’s little difference between what’s happening on social-media sites and what used to happen in the town square. In other words, today’s town square is online. Go where the people are. Sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, based purely on membership numbers, are where people are spending their time. Setting up an account is the virtual equivalent of having a platform in the center of town. Now you’ve got a space, make some noise.
Fliers, Email & Announcements: Email is about delivery. It’s the post office online. In fact, it’s so much like the post office people regularly discount it’s usefulness and say it’s obsolete. Sending emails is a way of getting your information, links, and offers to their appropriate destination. It’s like putting a flier up on a telephone pole. Say you’ve recently started a business blog. Send out an email to your contact list inviting them to have a look. In other words, it’s an easier, and more directed, way of getting your information and announcements into the right hands without having to buy a staple gun and walk 10 miles a day.
Tags: Amp, Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Civilized Society, Email Delivery, Email Newsletters, Facebook, Fan Page, Fliers, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Important News, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Mailers, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Membership Numbers, Mortgage Loan Officers, Neighbors, Post Office, Postal Service, Prospective Clients, Realtor Marketing, Simplicity, Social Media, Social Networking, The Ibis Network, Tips, Town Crier, Town Criers, Twitter, Virtual Equivalent, Weekly Newsletter
Category Marketing, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: February 16th, 2012
- Photo by C!../Flickr
Sharing is a big part of a successful social-media campaign. You’ve got to share and be shared to gather followers, fans, and friends online. But, for a lot of people, curiosity about social media is overwhelmed by a sense of dread over having to come up with content, posts, updates, and tweets on a regular basis.
Here are some ways to ideas, hints, and tips on what and where to share …
You’re A Curator: First things first, you don’t have to have anything interesting to say. The Internet is a vast resource and no one person can absorb all the information that’s available online. Which is to say, if you’ve come across anything in the news or anything that would be of interest to a potential client, share a link on your Twitter page. It’s a great way of informing and keeping in touch with existing customers and potential business. And it relieves you of the necessity of always having to come up with something to say off the top of your head. A curator is in charge of choosing the art that hangs on a museum’s walls, not creating it. Think of yourself as a curator and share the most interesting and relevant news that relates to your target audience.
You’re An Expert: Now, you may not think of yourself as an expert. Few people do. However, if you’ve spent any time in your current business, chances are you know more than the people paying you for your services. Otherwise, they’d do it themselves. That means, at the very least, you can add insights, context, and explanation to any information you’ve tweeted. If, for example, you tweet a link to an article related to your industry, add another tweet with some background or explanation. Give your Twitter followers some of your insight and expertise and they just may end up as your customers and clients
You’re A Media Mogul: Most importantly, share your content between your social-media sites. If you’re setting up a Twitter page, there are many ways to import blog posts and such to your Twitter feed. There are also easy-to-use apps and tools that will export your tweets to your Facebook page, LinkedIn profile, or blog. In other words, think of each of your individual pages as part of one whole. Spread your content around and make sure it’s getting out and circulating among all your connections and contacts across the Internet. The more you share, the more visible you are. The more visible you are, the more likely you are to turn online contacts into real-world clients.
Tags: Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Chances, Curator, Curiosity, Dread, Existing Customers, Facebook, Fans, Flickr, Followers, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Insight, Insights, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Lot, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Campaign, Media Mogul, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Nbsp, Networking, Networking Strategy, People, Professional Networking Suite, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Relevant News, Social Media, Social Networking, Target Audience, The Ibis Network, Tweet, Tweets, Twitter
Category Networking Strategy, Twitter |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: February 6th, 2012
Change can be challenging for some and totally paralyzing for others. It’s among the reasons so many dismiss the benefits of taking their business online. It’s easier to retreat than it is to keep up with the ever-evolving nature of the Internet and its boundless opportunities. There is, however, a simpler way of thinking of things and we offer a few of them below
Content is Conversation: Content is key when marketing your business online. But what is content? Well, instead of trying to break down the ins-and-outs of “content marketing,” imagine you’re having a conversation with a potential client. What types of things would you want to share with them? Maybe some news, a hot tip, a new deal? That’s your content. Blog posts, tweets, and Facebook updates needn’t be perfectly composed, crafty, clever, or even that creative. The only thing they need to be is relevant to the types of people you’d like to turn into customers.
Social Media is a Satellite: Think of your social-media profiles or blog as a satellite office. It’s your website away from home. It’s like an easily customized billboard that you have complete control over. Sure, it won’t replace your business website but it will become a place where you can communicate and connect with potential partners and future customers. Keep ‘em professional and relevant to your target audience and they’ll become a vital part of how you do business and how you reach new business.
The Internet is Everywhere: Increasingly, people are accessing the Internet wherever they go and whenever they want. And with the popularity of products like the iPhone and iPad, the ease with which people can access the Internet will only increase. That means, if you plan to stay in business for another five or 10 years, you’ll likely end up using the Internet in some way to promote and market your services. Starting now just means you’ll be better positioned to take advantage of future opportunities as the Internet becomes more and more integrated with everyday life.
Tags: 10 Years, Articles, Billboard, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Boundless Opportunities, Business Online, Business Website, Complete Control, Ease With Which People, Evolving Nature, Facebook, Fan Page, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Hot Tip, Ins And Outs, Iphone, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Marketing, Media Profiles, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking, Networking Strategy, New Business, New Deal, Potential Partners, Professional Networking Suite, Satellite Office, Simplified Guide, Social Media, Social Networking, Strategy, Target Audience, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tweets, Twitter
Category Marketing, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: January 25th, 2012
The lesson behind the story of the Three Little Pigs isn’t that the pig is a particularly industrious animal. It’s that the pig who used bricks rather than sticks to build his house survived by being the most intelligent pig. He outsmarted the wolf and saved his fat friends by having the smarts to choose a sturdy building material rather than one more easily blown down. In other words, sometimes outsmarting the competition and surviving means choosing the right tools and materials to build upon. And that’s how the story of the three little pigs relates to social-media marketing. You may not feel the need or understand the benefits yet of marketing your business online. But having an online presence means you’re building a sturdy foundation for your business and using all the tools available to you. In other words, you’re not a pig in a straw house hoping for the best.
Here are answers to three common excuses and misconceptions about social-media marketing …
The Internet Isn’t Going Anywhere: It may seem tempting to dismiss social-media marketing as hogwash. It’s a convenient excuse to seem smarter than everyone else by not buying into the newest thing. Unfortunately, the Internet is no longer a new thing nor does it appear to be on the way out. The choice here isn’t whether or not you’re going to use social media to market your business. The choice is between doing it now and doing it later. Small businesses using social-media sites and blogs have found them to be an effective way to boost brand loyalty, communication with customers and clients, and new business. Just because it doesn’t work overnight and without any effort from you doesn’t mean it doesn’t work.
Don’t Think Of It As Facebook: It may seem silly to have a Facebook page or Twitter account for your business. So don’t think of it as social media. Think of it as a mini-website, a branch office, or satellite location. In other words, just because it’s a Facebook page doesn’t mean you have to use it to update your friends on where you’re hanging out on Friday night. Think of it as an extension of your website being hosted on the web’s most popular site. If your Twitter page is just an easily-updated extension of your online brand, then it’s a much easier concept to grasp. After all, making changes to your business website is difficult and not something you want to do a couple of times a day. But if you want to get a quick message out to your clients and customers, having a presence on any of the major social-networking sites means you can. You can never have too many avenues for communicating, keeping in touch, and generating word-of-mouth.
It Does Work, Just Not On Its Own: It’s also easy to say it doesn’t work. Or that you tried and nothing happened once you set up your page. It will take some time and effort but it will work. If you bought a phone and never used it, it wouldn’t be a broken phone. And you couldn’t return it due to a lack of calls. In other words, social media and online marketing is just another form of communication. Having an account on Facebook or Twitter won’t bring in business by itself but if you use your account to get in touch with past and potential clients, it will result in more familiarity with your business, new leads, and new business.
Tags: Blogging, Blogs, Brand Loyalty, Bricks, Building Material, Business Online, Cop, Excuse, Facebook, Fan Page, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Josh Millar, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Online, Marketing Tools, Media Marketing, Mini Website, Misconceptions, Mortgage Marketing, Networking, Networking Strategy, New Business, Pig, Professional Networking Suite, Realtor Marketing, Right Tools, Satellite Location, Small Businesses, Smarts, Social Media, Social Networking, Story Of The Three Little Pigs, Sturdy Foundation, The Ibis Network, Three Little Pigs, Tools And Materials, Twitter, Wolf
Category Networking Strategy, Social Media |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: January 4th, 2012
If you opened a retail store and had a flood of customers coming through your door everyday but never buying anything, you wouldn’t call that success. Sure, you would have succeeded in getting people to visit but, if your visitors do nothing but look, you wouldn’t be able to afford your rent, employees, or merchandise. Which means, you would be out of business just as quickly as you got into it. Social-media marketing works the same way. Converting visitors into customers takes effort and some organization. Concentrating on quantity over quality can leave you with an impressive stat sheet but no new leads.
Here are some tips on organizing your efforts and making the most of your online properties …
The Operations Center: Maybe you feel like blogs are yesterday’s news and you’d prefer to skip a step and take your online efforts directly to Facebook or Twitter. Don’t. A blog gives you much more control over how and what your customers see. Facebook, for example, is continually changing and evolving. You have no control over the next update and how that may affect your ability to share your content with potential customers, clients, and partners. Set up a blog and use that as your central hub. From there you can send your posts to whatever other online properties you use for business. In short, start with the blog and share from there. You’ll have more control and an easier time organizing your info and where it’s shared.
Use Your Base: Maintaining a blog takes effort. If nothing else, it requires regular content. That can be a challenge. So much so that getting your blog in front of your target audience can be a secondary concern. Turning your latest post into a lead generator can be tricky but building an audience may be easier than it seems. For one, you can use existing and past clients to generate an audience that’s focused and familiar. How, you may ask, would having past customers reading your blog help build your business? Well it will boost awareness and readership, in addition to providing all important word-of-mouth. After all, a past customer who’s already familiar with you and work will be more willing to pass along your info to family, friends, and colleagues.
Merge and Integrate: Too often, professionals set themselves up with social-media sites and blogs but don’t take the time to link them together or to their business website. Using RSS feeds or any available plugins and widgets online makes it easier than ever to incorporate your blog into your business site, your Facebook fan page, and your Twitter feed. If the purpose of keeping a business blog is to build business, then your main objective should be getting people to visit any or all of your online properties. Driving traffic back to your business website is key. Make sure you’re making it easy for visitors to find you before complaining that your online marketing efforts are a waste of time and effort.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Leads, Business Website, Central Hub, Control, Facebook, Fan Page, Flood, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Josh Millar, Lead Generator, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Marketing, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking, New Leads, Operations Center, Reading Help, Realtor Marketing, Retail Store, Secondary Concern, Social Media, Social Networking, Stat Sheet, Strategy, Target Audience, The Ibis Network, Tips, Twitter
Category Blogging, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: December 13th, 2011
If you’ve ever been a child, you know that making a mess is far easier than cleaning one up. Which is to say, we’ve all been guilty – at one time or another- of putting off the thankless task of cleaning up after ourselves. Cleaning, however, often exposes things previously hidden by clutter and makes it easier to use what you have. Your Internet presence is no different. Having a social-media presence for your business requires maintenance.
Here are a few tips, hints, and motivations for an end-of-the-year social-media house cleaning …
Google Yourself: It won’t make you an egomaniac to have a look at the results that come up when your name is plugged into any of the more popular online search engines. In fact, it’s an effective way of discovering what appears when a prospective client searches for you or your business. If you run your business’ name through Google or Bing and are embarrassed by the results or find pages with old contact information, you can be sure your prospective clients have seen the same. It’s also a good way of finding the Twitter or Facebook fan page you set up and abandoned a year ago. Have a good look at how you’re being presented online and go to work cleaning and updating your presence.
Be Consistent: Having an Internet presence is one thing. Having a consistent presence is another. If you have multiple social-media pages for your business, make sure you’re presenting yourself in an uniform way. That means, they all have the same contact info, bio, photo, name, addresses, and tone. If you’re “Crazy Eddie”on Facebook but “Edward” on Twitter, you’re likely to confuse anyone searching for you or your services. Having a consistently professional online presence means, no matter where someone finds you on the web, you’re well represented and offering the most up-to-date contact information.
Organize It: Once you’ve had a look at where you’re being represented online and spent some time updating your pages, take the time to organize things and make it easier to maintain in the future. Start by saving all your login and password information in one place. There’s no quicker way to lose motivation for maintaining your social-media presence than to try to repeatedly log in to your profiles only to be turned away because of a forgotten password. Next, link your pages wherever possible. Having your blog posts appear on your LinkedIn page or your tweets on your Facebook page makes it easier to keep everything fresh, consistent, and up-to-date. Once you’ve found your pages, updated your contact info, linked them together, and saved your login information in an easily accessible place, you’ll be better able to communicate with potential customers and take advantage of any available online opportunities.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Name, Clutter, Consistent Presence, Contact Information, Crazy Eddie, Egomaniac, Facebook, Fan Page, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Google, House Cleaning, Internet Presence, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Maintenance, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Presence, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Motivations, Nbsp, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, Photo Name, Professional Networking Suite, Prospective Client, Prospective Clients, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Search Engines, Social Media, Social Networking, Strategy, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tweets, Twitter
Category Networking Strategy, Social Media |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: December 7th, 2011
Predictions are a dangerous business. After all, if they’re wrong, it’s only a matter of time before everyone knows it. Nevertheless, the end of each year brings with it a flood of forecasts, predictions, and crystal-ball gazing gurus who claim to know what will happen in the year ahead. For your convenience, we’ve scoured the web in an effort to collect the experts’ most frequently forecast trends in social-media and email marketing for 2012 …
Email and Social-Media Marketing: A recent survey found that among the marketing programs businesses planned to invest in during the coming year, email and social-media marketing topped the list. And though the edge of the cutting edge will tell you that email is obsolete, everyone uses it – which explains its continued presence on trend lists. More than two-thirds of companies surveyed said they plan on integrating their social-media and email campaigns in 2012 and 47 percent said they would focus on using email to grow their social-media channels, such as Facebook and Twitter pages.
Content Curation: If you have a friend that’s particularly good at finding adorable puppy videos and insists on sending every one of them to everyone in their email address book, you’re already familiar with the concept behind content curation. Which is to say, it’s nothing more than sharing. For business, that means sharing good, relevant content with your fans and followers. When you come across something that would be informative or interesting to your customer base, post a link with an explanatory note. Make it your goal to become a trusted source of quality content. Sure, anyone can do a Google search and find what they want on their own but collecting the best bits and presenting them in one place will save them time and keep ‘em coming back.
Facebook: Facebook is hardly new but the number one social-media site on the web continues to evolve. And that evolution means Facebook will continue to weave itself into the everyday life of their members through new platforms, apps, and smart phone functionality. Once upon a time, merely having a Facebook presence for your business was the trend but now it’s time to take it seriously. Just based on the staggering membership numbers or the fact that it’s the website Americans spend most of their time using, Facebook has become an essential part of any social-media campaign.
Content Marketing: The difference between content marketing and content curation is simply who’s writing the blog posts, composing tweets, and creating videos. So while it’s a good idea to share interesting industry-relevant news with your online network, you’ll also have to create some content on your own. And no, this doesn’t mean you need an audio/video department and a team of former newspaper editors. It means you need to communicate. How and when are up to you.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Adorable Puppy, Articles, Best Bits, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Crystal Ball, Curation, Customer Base, Dangerous Business, Email Address Book, Email Campaigns, Email Marketing, Facebook, Fan Page, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Google, Google Search, Gurus, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Marketing, Marketing Email, Marketing Programs, Marketing Tools, Matter Of Time, Media Channels, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, Professional Networking Suite, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Relevant Content, Social Media, Social Networking, Strategy, Survey Found That, The Ibis Network, Tips, Twitter, Valuable Marketing
Category Marketing, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: November 30th, 2011
If there’s a television network you watch more than any other, it’s not because they run more commercials than their competitors. It’s because you like their shows. In short, it’s the content. A cable channel devoted to food-related advertising wouldn’t garner nearly as many viewers as any one of the many cooking/food networks.
The same applies to your business blog. You’ll have to create content that makes people take interest and you’ll have to post it regularly enough that they come back in the future. And, if that sounds like a lot of pressure, here are a few tips to remember while blogging for business …
Give it Time: The good news is nobody is likely going to be reading your blog when you first get going. And, though that doesn’t sound like good news, it will provide you some time to come up with a plan, some content, and a schedule that fits your schedule. Don’t be afraid to try things. Gather some industry-related stats or surveys, news or links and focus on the most interesting bits and pieces. Grab a couple, write up a short explanatory sentence or two, then summarize the details. That’s a blog post. Experiment with lists and how-to posts. Most importantly, keep at it. It’ll take some time and a little promotion before you have any readers, use that time wisely.
Write it Right: Okay, we understand that one of the biggest deterrents to keeping a business blog is the writing. But you don’t have to be the second coming of William Shakespeare in order to have a successful blog. You only need to pay a little more attention. Turn your spell check on and fix any mistakes. Keep it short and simple. You don’t need to know what a semicolon does. You don’t even have to use them. You do, however, have to make it readable. Break it up into shorter paragraphs and read what you wrote before posting. In fact, step away for a half hour or so and reread what you wrote with fresh eyes.
Keep a Schedule: There are those that will say, “Who has the time?” And yeah, the day is only so long. But keeping a regular schedule is better than keeping a bruising schedule. Which means, while you may notice more attention from search engines if you post 10 times a day, you’d also notice fewer hours in your day available for doing business. The answer is setting a schedule in advance. If you only blog on Monday and Friday, but you put something up every Monday and Friday, any readers you have will know when to check in for your latest offering. If you post 49 times the first week and then once a month and a half later, you’ll lose any momentum you had. Be consistent.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Articles, Bits And Pieces, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Writing, Cable Channel, Commercials, Cooking Food, Deterrents, Focus, Food Networks, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Half Hour, Josh Millar, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Nbsp, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, Paragraphs, Professional Networking Suite, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Second Coming, Semicolon, SEO, Shakespeare, Social Media, Social Networking, Spell Check, Strategy, Surveys, Television Network, The Ibis Network, Tips, William Shakespeare
Category Blogging, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: November 21st, 2011
It’s hard to argue with numbers, unless you’re a mathematician or Pythagoras. And so, we’ve provided a list of social-media stats, numbers, and raw data to help convert the skeptics and offer encouragement to those who seek it.
There are more than 800 million active Facebook users. That’s right, 800 million. And Americans spend more time on Facebook than on any other website. That means, they aren’t on your website. Which means, you should probably have a Facebook page. Setting up a Facebook fan page for your business is an excellent way of making sure that you have a presence on the website most of us are presently perusing.
Social media apps are the third most downloaded apps among smartphone users. That means, the increasing number of people who access the Internet from their cell phone are, increasingly, using it to access their social-media pages. If people are that invested in their social-media pages that they want to be able to access them wherever they are, that’s a pretty good indication that having a social-media plan for your business isn’t likely to be time wasted on a passing fad.
78% of small businesses are using Twitter. Now we understand this comes dangerously close to the everybody-else-is-doing-it line of thinking but everybody else is doing it. And they can’t all be wrong.
41% of people using LinkedIn for marketing have generated business with it. LinkedIn is often confused for a job-hunting website but it’s also a great place to connect with other professionals, referral partners, and potential clients.
There are 3.5 billion things shared on Facebook each week. That means, blog posts, links, news, etc. That also means social-media is a high-tech word-of-mouth machine. Having your info shared is the quickest way to meet potential business online.
On Twitter, interesting content is the number one reason people retweet. In other words, if your content is interesting you’re more likely to have your content shared. Humor and personal connection were the second and third most common reasons for retweeting. Which means, if you’re not funny, you’d better be interesting.
79% of companies are using or planning on using social media. And that’s according to Harvard Business Review. Their survey found 58 percent of companies were already engaged on social-media sites, while an additional 21 percent had plans to launch a social-networking campaign.
57% of companies using blogs reported that they’d acquired customers from leads they generated through their blogs. And don’t believe it when you hear someone say that blogs are no longer relevant. In fact, between 2009 and 2011, the percentage of businesses that blog increased from 48 percent to 65 percent.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Active Rain, Americans Spend More Time, Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Online, Business Website, Cell Phone, Encouragement, Facebook, Fad, Fan Page, Followers, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Job Hunting, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Links News, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Business, Marketing Tools, Mathematician, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, People, Presence, Professional Networking Suite, Pythagoras, Raw Data, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Referral Partners, Skeptics, Small Businesses, Social Media, Social Networking, Strategy, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tweets, Twitter, Valuable Marketing, Word Of Mouth
Category Networking Strategy, Social Media |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: November 15th, 2011
So you signed up for a Twitter account, tweeted around a little, and think you know everything there is to know about the Twitterverse. Well there’s 1,000 ways to use Twitter and an ever-expanding list of tools available to help you figure one or two of those ways that’ll make it work for you and your business.
Here’s a list of some of tools, apps, and ideas to help you maximize your tweets …
Contaxio: A tool to help manage, track, and interconnect your Twitter account. With Contaxio, you’ll be able to find contacts with similar interests, review your activity, scan stats about the people you follow and those who follow you, and even keep up with new contacts from your Facebook page.
Twaitter: Twaitter is another all-in-one Twitter tool aimed at increasing your efficiency, managing your accounts, and organizing your Twitter output. Schedule a tweet for later or even set it up to send recurring tweets on a daily, monthly, or even yearly basis. You’ll also be able to manage your activity with an interactive calendar, link a RSS feed to your Twitter account, and invite co-workers to join your account.
Twictionary: If you’re new to social media, the lingo alone can be intimidating. Luckily, there’s a Twictionary, which is exactly what it sounds like it might be. A dictionary of Twitter-related terms you’ll learn everything from the meaning of the hashtag to what it means to be an Atwistocrat.
Twitter Counter: Twitter Counter claims to be the number one Twitter stat site, tracking more than 14 million Twitter users and providing stats, widgets, and buttons for its users. For a price, they even offer a featured spot on their website for people looking to gain some attention and followers.
Twitter-Search: The quickest way to find who and what you’re looking for on Twitter. Filter real-time tweets to find people and businesses in your region and industry, then follow the results.
Nearby Tweets: See who’s tweeting what in your area. The simple set-up delivers search results based on a keyword and a location. Search for anything anywhere and see who’s tweeting what near you.
TwitPic: Feeling limited by Twitter’s 140 character maximum? Use TwitPic to share photos with your Twitter followers. If you have a Twitter account, then you’re already signed up for TwitPic. Log in using your Twitter username and password and get started.
TweetScan: Another easy-to-use search tool for keeping on top of what’s happening on Twitter.
CoTweet: A popular site for managing your Twitter accounts. Handy for tracking multiple accounts and keeping you on top of all your online activity.
Twibs: A Twitter-based business directory, Twibs aims to help businesses reach their customers. It’s as simple as registering your business, choosing some keywords, and adding links to your email and blog.
Twitdom: A directory of nearly 2,000 available applications and sites offering Twitter-related services.
Tags: Apps, Articles, Blogging, Blogs, Buttons, Calendar Link, Co Workers, Dictionary, Efficiency, Facebook, Fan Page, Followers, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Interactive Calendar, Josh Millar, Lingo, Loan Originators, Marketing Tools, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, Organizing, People, Professional Networking Suite, Real Time, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, SEO, Simpl, Social Media, Social Networking, Stat, Strategy, Success, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tool, Tools, Tweet, Tweets, Twitter, Valuable Marketing, Widgets
Category Networking Strategy, Twitter |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: November 9th, 2011
It’s tempting to think social-media success involves a little magic and some sleight-of-hand. There must be some app, service, software, or site that would propel your profits and boost your business. Maybe the spammers are right and you should just buy 1,000 Facebook fans and wait for them to spread the word. Sadly, though there are many helpful tools available to help you along the way (See our previous posts on apps and plugins for LinkedIn, Facebook, and WordPress), social media isn’t magic. It is, however, an effective way to develop relationships and create word-of-mouth if done correctly.
Here are some tips on successfully marketing your business through social media …
Content is King: Social-media success requires a bit of restraint. Which means, while you may want to fill your blog or Twitter feed with advertisements for you and your business, you’ll do better offering content that is interesting to your potential customer base and forming relationships with any followers or fans you make along the way. Keep your content short and easy to read. On Facebook, for example, it’s been shown that shorter posts get shared 27 percent more than longer posts. And, when you think about it, it’s just common sense. If you’re selling cupcakes, people will get tired of hearing about how you’ve got cupcakes for sale. But what if you posted a recipe instead? It’s likely that the recipe would be shared and enjoyed by more people than yet another plea for business.
Relationships Matter: Whether you have 10 Twitter followers or 5,000 Facebook fans, you should make an effort to treat them as something more than potential dollar signs. After all, people will be more loyal and likely to tell their friends if there’s a person behind the page rather than a company logo that rarely responds to messages or comments. Don’t be as concerned with the number of connections you’ve made as much as the connections themselves. Be personable, appreciative, and responsive. You may find shifting your focus from quantity to quality will, strangely enough, end up boosting your numbers.
Sharing is Caring: Your goal is to get people to share your content or your contact info. You may find someone in search of exactly the service you provide through your social-media efforts or you may be contacted by someone who had a link sent to them or had a friend tell them about your business. In other words, it’s about word-of-mouth. And the best way to create word-of-mouth is to do your best to be respectful and not an annoyance. Post regularly to your blog or social-media site but not so much that people tune you out. Share good information and think it through. Think about what you’d be interested in or what would be helpful to your customers and allow that to guide what you post.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Advertisements, Apps, Articles, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Business Relationships, Common Sense, Company Logo, Customer Base, Customer Relationships, Dollar Signs, Facebook, Fan Page, Followers, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Helpful Tools, Josh Millar, Keys To Success, LinkedIn, Little Magic, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Content, Media Marketing, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, Plea, Professional Networking Suite, Profits, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, SEO, Service Software, Sleight Of Hand, Social Media, Social Networking, Spammers, The Ibis Network, Tips, Tweets, Twitter, Word Of Mouth
Category Networking Strategy, Social Media |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: November 1st, 2011
Keeping a business blog can be an effective tool for branding your business, generating leads, and keeping in touch with clients, partners, and anyone else who stumbles across your site. It can also be a headache. That’s why you should be taking advantage of the large directory of plugins available to WordPress users. Plugins, like apps, are easy-to-use and greatly increase the functionality of your site. They can help with everything from reducing spam comments to spell checking to syndicating your content and improving your search-engine rankings. Best of all, they’re typically free and shouldn’t require a degree in computer programming to use.
Here are a few to benefit your blog and your business …
Postie: Posting regular content to your business blog can be challenging, if only because it can be difficult to fit into an otherwise busy work schedule. Using the Postie plugin, however, can take some of the work out of blogging by making it possible to send your posts via email. You can set categories and tags, include pictures and videos, and strip off your email signature and anything else you wouldn’t want appearing on your blog. Easy to set up and customize, Postie requires nothing more than a dedicated email address to send your posts to. After that, posting to your blog will be no more difficult than sending any other email.
Network Publisher: In order to use Network Publisher, you’ll need to register for an account with the plugin’s author, Links Alpha. That’s the bad news. The good news is it’s free and will make updating your entire social network a breeze. Network Publisher allows you to publish your blog posts to any, or all, of the 30 social-media sites offered, including Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Tumblr, Blogger, and Google Buzz.
WPTouch: In the age of the iPhone, iPod, and Android, it’s important that people accessing the Internet from their phone or tablet are still able to find and use your site. WPTouch will automatically transform your blog into a mobile-friendly theme without requiring any coding. In other words, this WordPress plugin will provide an accessible and user-friendly version of your site for mobile visitors without affecting your regular blog theme.
Jetpack: Jetpack is actually a set of plugins, including a widget for displaying your Twitter feed, stats, a URL shortener, and a collection of share buttons that allow your readers to easily pass your posts along to their social networks. It even includes a spelling, style, and grammar check to help you edit your writing efficiently. The all-in-one package is allows users of self-hosting WordPress sites to access the same easy-to-use widgets and tools available from wordpress.com.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Apps, Articles, Bad News, Blog, Blogger, Blogging, Blogs, Buzz, Computer Programming, Email Address, Email Network, Email Signature, Facebook, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Functionality, Generating Leads, Google, Headache, Iphone, Ipod, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Network Publisher, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, Professional Networking Suite, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Search Engine Rankings, Send Email, SEO, Social Media, Social Networking, Strategy, The Ibis Network, Tips, Touch With Clients, Twitter
Category Blogging, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: October 18th, 2011
Everyone likes a bonus. Whether it’s an extra check before the holidays or the surprise in a box of Cracker Jacks, getting something for nothing is always a welcomed development. When it comes to social media, most sites offer bonuses in the form of applications, or apps. Apps provide extra function and are, in most cases, free.
Here are four free apps available on LinkedIn that will add function to your professional profile …
SlideShare: Any application that counts The White House, IBM, and the United Nations among their users must have something to offer. SlideShare is the world’s largest community for sharing documents, PDFs, videos, and webinars. Using the free application on LinkedIn, you can upload presentations and documents to your profile and make them available to anyone visiting your page. You can also upload YouTube videos. And, if that wasn’t enough, SlideShare also allows you to sync your LinkedIn and Facebook accounts, so anything you share will instantly appear on both pages.
Polls: You may think polls are only for research centers and presidential campaigns but they’re also a handy and convenient way to gather information that will boost your business. Use the poll application on LinkedIn to pose a question to your connections and the millions of other professionals on LinkedIn, then use their answers to better your services. In addition, the poll application allows you to embed that voting module on your website or blog.
WordPress: If you have a business blog and haven’t added it to your LinkedIn page, you should. The WordPress application on LinkedIn allows you to easily update your profile with your most recent blog posts, provided you’re using WordPress. And, if embedding your blog on your LinkedIn profile sounds like it may be beyond your technological abilities, it’s as easy as entering your domain name into the application. Everything else is automatic.
Events: Social media is great for networking, but even better when you integrate your online efforts with old-fashioned, face-to-face functionality. The events app allows you to see what industry events and regional functions your connections are attending, in addition to providing you with recommend events based on your profession. Learn more about the conferences and industry seminars that are coming to town and let your network know where you’ll be and when.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Articles, Blogging, Blogs, Bonus, Cracker Jacks, Domain Name, Facebook, Free Application, Free Apps, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Holidays, Josh Millar, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Poll, Polls, Presidential Campaigns, Professional Networking Suite, Professional Profile, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, SEO, Social Media, Social Networking, Strategy, Surprise In A Box, Sync, Technological Abilities, The Ibis Network, Tips, United Nations, Valuable Marketing, Webinars, White House, Wordpress, Youtube Videos
Category Linked In, Networking Strategy |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: October 11th, 2011
There aren’t a lot of self-described idiots out there. Which is to say, people like to believe they’re smart. And that’s the reason branding your business online is so important. After all, your customers and clients want to feel like they’re making an informed decision before spending their money. So the more information you share, the more they feel like they’re making a smart choice by choosing to do business with you.
Here are some tips to building a better business brand through social media …
The Foundation: In order to properly brand your business, you’ll need a foundation. That means, having a business blog. Having a blog provides your social network with a focal point. It also offers a convenient way to share content that can then be posted on any additional social-media sites you’ve set up. Make sure, though, that your blog represents your business professionally and consistently. Pay attention to the theme, layout, and widgets you’re using. Though it’s tempting to use all the bells and whistles available to you, a cluttered blog means a cluttered brand. Make sure it’s easy to read and, most importantly, easy to identify who’s in charge. You’ll want visitors to read what you’ve posted on your blog but you’ll also want them to know who you are and what you do.
The Goal: It’s easy enough to get yourself a blog and/or a Facebook page, Twitter account, or LinkedIn profile but you’ll also need a goal. The idea behind social-media marketing is to brand yourself as an expert and a resource. You want people to do business with you and you’re online to give them better access to you, your knowledge, and your business. In other words, your goal is to offer valuable information about your services, industry, and business and to share it with potential clients and customers. If you’re seen as knowledgeable, experienced, and willing to spend the time to make sure your clients are informed, you’ll increase the visibility and reputation of your business.
The Benefits: A properly branded social-media campaign can provide many benefits to your business. Most of all, it increases customer loyalty and referrals as it creates a stronger bond between you and your clients. If you’re communicating with your customers, sharing content, and responding to comments and questions online, you’re boosting the likelihood that those customers will remember you next time they’re in the market for your services or know someone that is. Social media also offers a platform for you to research your region and industry to help you better your business. Most of all, though, it serves as a word-of-mouth generator. The more you participate, the better the success rate.
The Ibis Network / www.theibisnetwork.com
Tags: Bells And Whistles, Better Business, Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Branding, Business Online, Business Website, Expert, Facebook, Fan Page, Focal Point, Free Loan Officer Training, Free Realtor Training, Free Training, Josh Millar, Knowledge, LinkedIn, Loan Originators, Lot, Marketing, Marketing Tools, Media Marketing, Money, Mortgage Loan Officers, Mortgage Marketing, Mortgage Professionals, Networking, Networking Strategy, Networking Suite, People, Professional Networking Suite, Realtor Marketing, Realtors, Reason, Reputation, Share Content, Smart Choice, Social Media, Social Networking, Strategy, The Ibis Network, Three Keys, Tips, Twitter, Valuable Marketing, Visibility, Widgets
Category Networking Strategy, Social Media |
Author: The Ibis Network Published: September 27th, 2011
The Internet is an incredible resource but keeping up with an always-evolving online world can be a challenge. Sometimes the lingo alone can stand between successfully implementing a social-media strategy and being overwhelmed by widgets, avatars, and hashtags.
Here’s an update of our previous list of basic terms to familiarize yourself with (New terms in bold) …
Active Rain – The largest social network for real-estate professionals. Launched in 2006, Active Rain has nearly 200,000 members.
Aggregator – A web-based tool or desktop application that collects syndicated content from across the Internet.
API (Application Programming Interface) – A computer system or application that allows programs and websites to communicate and exchange data.
App – An application performing a specific task able to be accessed by your computer or phone.
Archives – An index page that organizes past entries and older posts by date.
Avatar – The image, picture, or username a person uses to identify themselves on social-networking sites.
Badge – A linked image displayed on a blog that promotes a person’s profiles or participation on other social-media sites, such as Facebook or Twitter.
Bit.ly – A popular – and free – URL shortening service that makes it easier to share lengthy web addresses on social-networking sites such as Twitter.
Blog – A regularly updated website or “web log” that allows a company or individual to post content and interact with readers through commentary, subscriptions, widgets, and syndicated RSS feeds.
Blogosphere – A term used to describe the totality of blogs on the Internet.
Blogroll – A list of sites, typically found in the sidebar of a blog, showing the sites that particular blogger recommends.
Content – Content on any website, including text, pictures, video, and audio materials.
Creative Commons - A nonprofit corporation that provides free licenses and legal tools that label creative work with the creator’s specifications on reuse, sharing, and using commercially.
Dashboard – The administrative area on blogs and social-media sites that allows you to edit your information, manage comments, monitor traffic, upload files, etc.
Delicious - A free online bookmarking service that allows users to save web addresses publicly and privately online, so they can be easily accessed and shared.
Domain Name – The identifying name or address of an Internet site.
Facebook – The largest social-networking site for individuals and businesses. Facebook has more than 500 million users.
Feeds (RSS Feed) – A program used by a website that allows the user to syndicate their content and provide subscribers with new blog posts and articles without requiring them to visit the site.
FeedBurner – A Google-based tool that provides a way for users to accept subscriptions by email for their blog posts, podcasts, and online content.
Forums – Online forums allow members of social-media sites to interact with other members by posting messages or questions on particular topics.
Geotagging – Adding location-based data to media such as photos and video to help users find businesses and services by region.
Groups – Communities within social-media sites that allow users interested in particular topics or activities to share information, posts, and messages with other members.
Hashtag – Used on Twitter, a hashtag is a keyword or phrase preceded by a “#” that helps organize posts, making them easier to find in Twitter searches.
Hits – A measurement defined as any request for a file from a web server.
HootSuite – A web-based Twitter service that allows users to manage multiple Twitter profiles, schedule tweets, and view statistics and metrics.
Hyperlink – A navigational reference that embeds a link to a document or page on the Internet.
HTML – The coding language used to link documents, text and multimedia files on the Internet. HTML is the programming language that provides content and structure for web pages in order to define layout, font, color, and graphics.
LinkedIn – A business-oriented social-media site for professional networking. Launched in 2002, LinkedIn now has more than 70 million registered users.
Links – Highlighted text that, when clicked, takes readers to another page containing related content or source materials.
Link Building – The process of generating links to your website from other sites in an effort to boost search-engine ranking. Blogging is a popular method of link building.
Metadata – Information, including titles, tags, and captions, used to describe a media item or blog post in order to make it more easily found by search engines and aggregators.
Micro-Blogging – A form of blogging that limits the amount of characters or words per post, such as Twitter.
Open Media – A term referring to any media, including video, text, and audio, that can be freely shared online.
Permalinks – The permanent address or URL of a blog post or web page. A permalink is what is used when linking to another story within an email message or post.
Profiles and Pages – The pages on social-networking sites where a person or business displays their contact information, pictures, posts, and files.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – The process of improving and increasing traffic to a website from search engines.
Sidebar – A column or columns along either or both sides of a blog’s main content area that includes widgets, contact and biographical information, links to previous posts and favorite sites, archives, badges, subscription information, RSS feeds, and more.
Social Media – Websites that provide communities with common interests a means to communicate and engage with one another online.
Social Networking – Socializing online through a social-media site, such as Facebook or LinkedIn, that allows you to create a profile and communicate with other members.
Subscribing – Signing up for a site’s feed, which automatically sends you new content from that site.
Syndication – The process of sharing and distributing content online.
Tag Cloud – A visual representation of the most popular tags on a blog or website. More popular tags are usually shown in larger type while less popular tags appear smaller.
Tags – Keywords associated with a blog post or other content making them more easily found through searches.
Threads – Messages or posts under a single forum topic or the comments and trackbacks of a particular blog post.
Trulia – A real-estate search engine and networking site that allows professionals to create business profiles and allows consumers to find listings, blogs, and real-estate information.
Tweet – A post or update on Twitter.
TweetDeck – A Twitter application that serves as a real-time browser that connects you with your contacts across Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and more.
Twitter – A micro-blogging site where members post “tweets” or messages of 140 characters or less.
Upload – The process of transferring a file from your computer to a website.
URL (Uniform Resource Locator) – A URL is the technical term for a website’s address.
Video Blog – A blog that produces and posts video content on a regular basis.
Wall – The shared portion, or discussion board, displayed on a social-media profile.
Webinar – A web-based seminar, presentation, lecture, or workshop transmitted over the web.
Widget – An application offered on social-media sites and blogs that performs a specific function allowing users to customize their profiles or blog.
Wiki – A technology that allows many users to edit a web page, such as Wikipedia.
WordPress – A blog publishing application that offers users an easy-to-use template through which they can create their own blog and maintain their own blog.
YouTube – Popular video-sharing website through which users upload, share, and view videos. It is the largest video-sharing site in the world.
Source materials here, here, here, here, here, and here.
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