Social Network Marketing - Please keep it Pofessional

WAHM Marketing

Social network marketing has really picked up steam these days because it is a way for potential customers to get up close and personal with WAHM businesses with which they may want to become involved. Most smart consumers are now searching for product reviews before making a substantial purchase and many of those people search for consumer reviews of businesses.
Just as you would thoroughly research a new investment opportunity before throwing down your money, your customers are seeking out information about you before handing over their credit card numbers.
Social networking sites were originally used for people to connect on a personal level; social network marketing is now picking up steam. People have become extremely comfortable interacting in this laid back virtual environment and are now looking up businesses as well as personal connections.
If you aren't listing your business on these social networking sites you are missing a valuable opportunity to increase exposure for your business, connect with customers in a personal manner so they trust you more, and of course publicize your existence to new customers. These are the main benefits of social network marketing.

Putting Your Best Foot Forward

Many different social media tools enrich the experience on your end and on the end of potential customers, but you have to be careful which ones you use and how you use them.
The most important thing in social network marketing is the image that you put out there. Just as you would put on nice clothing, fix your hair and makeup, and present yourself in a professional manner to your colleagues and important clients in the offline business world, every interaction you have with others online under the name of your business must be completely professional.
If there is any way for your personal name to be connected with your business, then everything that you do on personal social networking sites must be in line with this professional image as well!
You definitely want to play with web 2.0 applications and use the newest and most exciting tools when you select your social media strategy, but you must always keep your image in the back of your mind. If you have the slightest suspicion that some aspect of your social network marketing strategy may look unprofessional or reflect badly on your business simply don't do it.
You can come up with more compelling ideas, but it is extremely difficult to undo a damaging social network marketing mistake.
You can come up with more compelling ideas, but it is extremely difficult to undo a damaging social network marketing mistake.
Remember, videos and other forms of web 2.0 marketing are literally impossible to contain once they have been released. When something goes viral, it is a great thing most of the time. However, if something that reflects badly on you or repels serious customers goes viral, there is no way to limit the damage.

Building Your Reputation

From the very first sale your business made, you started building your reputation. People like to talk and once they find a company that they really love, they will mention it to other people. Similarly, once they have an annoying or horrible experience with a retailer they will pass that information and frustration around as well.
Through that talk, your business begins to establish a reputation, online and offline.
Much of social network marketing has more to do with building up this reputation than with actually pulling in sales. Of course, the ultimate goal when you learn how to use the top social networking sites is to increase your sales or increase website traffic, but when you go into Twitter marketing or FaceBook advertising you do so with the immediate intention of making others think of you as an expert in your field.
By discussing current events and issues that are related to your business niche in wikis and on social sites like FaceBook you allow others to see your knowledge and passion so they begin to see you as someone who can be trusted with this sort of information.
You can also allow your company's personality to shine through FaceBook marketing by designing your profile and posting regular information that gives a more personal glimpse into the person behind your business (you!). This is the perfect space to present a personal story that has driven your interest in your niche, while remaining professional and informational.

Top Blog Marketing Tips

Another form of social network marketing, which lends itself well to giving personal glimpses into your business, is blog network marketing. When you learn to blog effectively you learn to connect with your target market in a more personal manner. You essentially let them into you personally, rather than hiding behind the mask of your business.
While blog optimization and blog promotion are very important so that more people will actually discover your blog, the most important aspect of blog web marketing is the comment section where your readers can leave feedback.
You want to constantly watch this feedback and respond to your readers, making them feel as if they are being heard. Effective blog marketing tactics will include gaining the trust of your readers through personal interactions.
This starts with the friendly tone of your blog posts, which should feel like you are talking directly to the reader personally, but it also extends to the time you take to respond to individual feedback comments.
This type of interaction is not possible with most basic websites that are set up for converting sales, though more of the top web design experts are now working web 2.0 features such as personal videos into business websites so more of this personal connection can be established.
In order for blogging to serve as an effective social network marketing strategy you have to be very active with it and post on a regular basis. If you are struggling to maintain your blog or have several blog ideas to implement, consider using SEO blogging software to help you keep things rolling.
Whether your social network marketing plan will include blogs, articles, press releases or just a lot of chatting with your target market on sites like Twitter and FaceBook, you may also want to consider hiring a social media consultant or taking some form of online social media training to improve your skills.
This does take more financial investment, but it can speed up the learning curve as you start to learn how to implement social network marketing into your business.