Web Marketing Strategies, SEO, Web 2.0, Social Media, Trends & Tips

If you don’t sell advertising space or you don’t sell a product or service to the under 35 crowd, then how does a B2B marketer make money in Web 2.0 social networking sites?

To answer this question, I’ll tell a story (fictitious but illustrative).  Let’s say I started a new organization in my community about something worthy and noble.  It doesn’t matter what it is for this illustration.  If I went around to everyone in the community and pitched my organization, I may get a few recruits but it would be like pushing on a rope.  After a while I might get discouraged and fold my organization, or just keep “selling” the hard way.

On the other hand what if I am very active in my community and have developed a lot of friends and acquaintances who have come to know me well.  They know my passions and I have gotten to know their’s too.  These are people in my community with whom I have developed relationships based on mutual trust and respect over time.  Most of all, these people have been witness to my contributions to the community.  My contributions to the community have been genuine and heartfelt.

So, when I start telling these trusted friends about my organization and I invite them to visit, they come.  And, they tell their friends about it and eventually over some time (not overnight) my organization grows and flourishes because it was built on a word of mouth reputation.

It is the word of mouth factor that doesn’t get talked about much in the social networking world.  But, it’s a huge factor.  Trust, respect and community is the very essence of social networking. 

To be successful in social networking you have to be – well you have to be social!  You have to participate in the community and develop a reputation.  So, you can see by my illustration that it’s no different than the physical communities in which we participate. 

As marketers in social networking sites like Facebook, we build profiles of ourselves and our companies and we invite friends to connect to our profiles.  We can also create “groups” and “networks” about relevant topics or workplaces. 

When we participate in the communities that fit our interests we build relationships and when you invite them to participate in your group about a business topic they will come.

But, just like the story I told, expect it to take time.  Just like building relationships in our communities takes time so it does in social networking sites.  But with those relationships, the word of mouth about your groups or networks can grow and you can build traffic or buzz or brand or all of the above.  Just be patient and persistent. 

BTW, visit my Facebook group on B2B web marketing strategies here.  If you like what you see, tell your friends about it….

 

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• A Blog is a “conversation on the web” with people who have something in common.
• People subscribe to a blog using RSS (the channel).
• RSS feeds create a channel to your favorite blogs to stay current on topics of importance and interest.
• Blogs “posts” are organized in chronological order and by topic.
• BusinessWeek May 2005 cover story: “Blogs - Catch Up or Catcha Later”
• When, not if you should blog…Start by blogging on other blogs in your industry.
• Observe, learn and participate in those blogs.  Get a feel for their personalities and the participants.
• Study competitive blogs to observe what is being said.  Consider commenting on competitive blogs. 
• Remember you are part of a community.  Be professional (don’t be a jerk).
• Develop a strategy!  Know your objective(s) and measure results.
• Blog types: industry trends/visionary, product (technical) blog, customer service, P.R. blog, etc.
• Set up roles for people in your company in the blog and manage these roles: analytical, product (technical), P.R., controversy, executive/leadership.
• Don’t shy away from comments on your  blog especially criticism.
• Post comments frequently.
• Respond to comments very quickly (within hours).
• Remember that others are watching your blog conduct.
• Respond to negative comments positively.  Thank them and explain your course of action.
• Blogs are good for search engine optimization particularly when you give each blog post a title with a post-slug URL.
• Add blog post-slug URLs to your site map.
• Use social plug’ins to get your blog tagged and linked.
• Submit your blog to Technorati and track it.
• Track blog stats in your website stats/analytics.
• Link to other blogs you like.  Don’t expect anything in return (but you may get links from other blog sites).
• Embrace a blog with commitment - don’t start and stop a blog.
• Business blogs take time - get over it.
• Business blogs will pay dividends if implemented and managed well. 

I’ve had many questions from B2B marketers about podcasting.  They range from how do you get started to what is the return on investment?    Effective podcasting requires you begin with the end in mind.  What do you want to accomplish?  Who is your target audience for podcasts? And how will you measure success? There are two important factors to consider in podcast marketing:

• Content
• Delivery

What content do you have that is of interest to your audience?  This is often the easiest question to answer because you could have a lot of useful content.  So, how do you decide what content to put in a podcast?  Consider topics you can break up into segments or episodes.  Each episode should stand on its own merit.  But each episode should also leave your audience interested in another episode.   

Allow the content to be your primary marketing.  Don’t sell your company or products too aggressively or at all.  It’s ok to plug your company a little bit but let the primary marketing message be the value of your content.  In time, you’ll get people contacting you if your content is of interest to them.   

The delivery of your content can make or break your podcast.  Who will record your podcast?  Will it be someone who can engage listeners for ten or twenty minutes?  BTW, most business podcasts shouldn’t be longer than about twenty minutes.  Consider an interview style of delivery.  Interview styles can work well especially when the people involved can be somewhat spontaneous and very natural.  They should not sound scripted at all. Podcasting offers marketers a lot of potential. 

This blog post is very brief but offers some food for thought based on my experience with my podcasts.   I can send you a survey report citing statistics about podcast usage among 3900 business and I.T. professionals surveyed.  If you want to receive a copy of this report send an email to podcasts@findandconvert.com and mention podcast survey in the subject line. 

Happy podcasting!

 

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Amy Norman, CEO - Tampa Bay Technology Forum

Amy spoke on November 6, 2007 at the Tampa Bay CEO Magazine Power Play breakfast event.  Amy spoke to over 100 CEO’s and local business executives about the origins of the Tampa Bay Technology Forum (TBTF), its vision and current contributions and achievements in central Florida. 

In this podcast you’ll learn how TBTF has grown to over 450 member companies representing over 45,000 people, hosting over 120 events throughout the year and is connecting business professionals through various peer groups.  TBTF is focused on providing an environment where business, innovation and technology thrive.  You’ll also learn about TBTF’s commitment to the community through its foundation which is dedicated to providing computer labs to disadvantaged youth across Tampa Bay. 

TBTF’s vision is to make Tampa Bay a recognized top 10 technology hub in the U.S. by 2015.

 

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• Bernie’s definition of Web 2.0: web properties where you “hang out” and communicate and collaborate with other people who share common interests (communities).
• Social networking: “same as physical networking, just online.” 
• Don’t overanalyze - dive in with your toe.
• Find social sites that fit your industry.
• Facebook (maybe), LinkedIn (maybe) MySpace (maybe not).
• Look for industry social networks, keep looking if you don’t find one today.
• Consider starting one in your industry as a non profit.
• They are often at an industry blog site.
• Search engines are increasingly watching the content in social networking sites.
• You can create links from Web 2.0 sites which will improve your search engine rankings.
• You can create buzz which will increase visibility and traffic to your website.
• You can create controversy (give something away).
• You can use emotion if it’s ethical and appropriate.
• You can be conspicuously absent if you don’t get involved.
• Would you miss out on the biggest trade show in your industry?
• Don’t miss out on social networking sites that pertain to your industry, or where like minded people are collaborating.
• Designate one person in your company the Web 2.0 guru, coach him or her and stay in the know.
• Encourage him or her to hang out at these sites - allow it to be a portion of how their time is spent. 
• Create buzz, thought leadership, controversy or emotion.
• Develop your own “Matt Cutts.”
• Don’t be reluctant of Web 2.0.
• Devote time to Web 2.0 each week.
• Embrace Web 2.0 into your marketing strategy.
• Don’t get caught behind because your competitors may be way ahead.
• People who participate in conversations in Web 2.0 are visible and can be influential.
• Don’t make the mistake of thinking Web 2.0 is limited to one demographic because it’s not!