New Media & Software for Improved Efficiency
On Wednesday 18th January 2012, the NOVA Committee of the Chamber will host a business conference at the Trinidad Hilton. NOVA works towards the development of our local SME sector through knowledge-exchange, strategic networking and issue advocacy. This year’s conference has been modeled around the action statement “Make It Happen: Success In Any Environment” and will deliver on all three focus areas. We hope to see you there but if not, this article gives a sneak-peek into one aspect of the conference session on “New Media & Software for Improved Efficiency”.
Part I appeared last week….
How to make social media work for you
Another daunting aspect to a business life engaged in social media is the high quantity of content that is apparently required. Online marketing gurus may tell you that nothing less than a daily tweet is acceptable. When you take a look at the examples of companies heavily participating in networking sites, it seems they always have a sale coming up or a prize to win or an event to go to. You sell hand-carved rocking chairs. What are you supposed to say five days a week?
Like any advertising tool, you should tailor your social media campaign to suit your business. Perhaps Twitter is not the best platform for you, but a You Tube account where you can show people the process that you take from converting a slab of teak to a baby’s rocking chair will have definite benefit. In addition, a Facebook page where you can easily share the pictures of your finished products as well as talk about any stock clearance sales you decide to have, will also work for you.
Come up with an engagement plan for your social media campaign. Ask yourself these questions: what do you want to happen as a result of “becoming social”? Is it to increase sales, to ensure people more quickly recognise your business name, something else or a combination of many? Dependent on your purpose, how will you engage your target market? How will you measure success? If you detail the answers to those types of probing questions, content will flow from it.
Nothing in this world is free
After you finalise your social media strategic plan, you may decide that Twitter will be a definite tool to use. You may not spend money signing up for your Twitter account, but in order to use it effectively, you must spend time. If you have an account but the last time you typed 140 characters and sent it out into the world was two weeks ago, your account is dead. Dead like that tree that fell in the forest and nobody cared because nobody heard it.
The prospect of spending days sending tweets and writing on a virtual ‘wall’ is perhaps another reason why many businesses have not made the jump into the waters of social media. They believe they simply don’t have the time. But like everything else in your business, scheduling makes the impossible, possible. If your calendar tells you that from 9 am to 9:15 am on Monday morning you or someone in your organisation is giving your Facebook page it’s first of two weekly updates, then that’s what will happen.
Avoid the pitfalls
Social media marketing is a cost-effective way to disseminate information about your company. Its benefits are many but its pitfalls can be serious, especially if you’ve decided to allow members of staff to lead the way with your outreach.
If you haven’t yet started or if your outreach has grown organically, it’s important to create a social media policy which states the purpose behind what your company is doing, the principles to be followed, a statement of ethics, and the boundaries to acceptable and unacceptable professional behaviour that should exist even in the realm of the world wide web.
In addition, even if you are not posting or tweeting yourself, ensure that there is a structure of accountability and transparency in what is put out there for the general public on behalf of your organisation.
No matter what platform you choose, how often you use it, or how detailed you police it, what’s important is that you move beyond your website, move beyond your traditional advertising and add social media to your marketing agenda.
To find out more about the conference agenda, the speakers and facilitators, read our blog at http://makeithappen-conference.blogspot.com or find us on Facebook at “Chamber SME Business Conference – Make Success Happen”.
To register for the conference, email or call Ms. Sharmin Boodoo at sboodoo@chamber.org.tt, 637-6966 ext 228
The Chamber also takes this opportunity to extend best wishes to our readers and indeed, to all of Trinidad and Tobago for God’s blessing for the Holiday season and into the New Year.
