KateShopper.com

Social media is a truly amazing avenue for marketing that utilises cutting-edge technology to enable companies to market their products and services. By harnessing the power of new social media, a company can effectively promote its products or services with a relatively low outlay or  investment. The following article will help you put this marketing medium to work for you..

YouTube users generally make for better leads because they have usually already seen a video that you have posted, and of course they will already have an idea what you’re marketing after viewing one of your videos on YouTube. The more you inform and warm visitors before they visit your site, the more likely they will be in a buying mood when they visit your website.

Don’t push products blindly upon any visitor that happens to quickly scan through your products. Engagement is key. Post a link or a story from outside providers that has to do with you niche or industry. You can run contests, ask questions or post new pictures. Rather than simply product placement, you should think of how to generate interest in your products through content. See if you can get customers to associate your brand with their personal identity and lifestyle, instead of just their money.

It takes time and patience to put together a successful network in social media network. You might not get a lot of followers in one night. It has happened in rare occurrences, but your social media posts are unlikely to become global sensations within minutes. You must simply build your profile and practice patience; it will come.

You should now know that small businesses around the world are using social media to promote their products and services with great effect. Use the insight you have gained in this article to get your piece of the social media pie! Social media is only growing more popular by the day. What are you waiting for?

There is a lot of discussion on whether organizations and brands can effectively outsource their social media activity, or whether they should be training in-house staff. Here’s my take on it.

Advantages of outsourcing for brands and organizations:

• Professionals are managing your brand – they are familiar with the rules of online engagement and are less likely to make mistakes
• Time saving – you can do ‘your job’, while those with SM knowledge do theirs
• No additional headcount needed which can be a major challenge for companies looking to get started

Disadvantages of outsourcing:

Third parties managing your social media activity….

• … Are unfamiliar with company brand and culture
• … Don’t have all the facts – for technical products this is a real challenge
• … Do not live and breath the company culture, so it’s hard to communicate it
• … Have lower motivation for activities to succeed
• … Have lower brand loyalty than internal staff
• … Can be problematic if the relationship goes sour
• … Are not always empowered to make decisions and may be held to a pre-defined script
• … Are unfamiliar with Industry terms and details. How much of this can the outsourcer pick up, and will they be convincing?
• … May never be fully aligned to a company’s global marketing strategy

Bottom line: You can’t outsource your relationships, so don’t try to.

I’d really like to hear about whether you outsource any part of your social media activities and what your experience is