All A Twitter About Social Networking

You might think social networking is just for the kids, but if you want to stay ahead in today’s business environment, you just have to Facebook up to the fact that you need to get Twiterring, or risk getting left behind.

 

Regardless of how tech savvy – or even un-savvy – you are, you have probably at least heard of Twitter, Facebook, blogging and Myspace. While these websites might seem a far cry from your core business marketing strategies, they offer a great deal of potential for attracting new customers. Currently, all these sites are free, but there is online buzz suggesting that in the future there will be charges. So, explore as much as you can while the services are free for all.

 

Twitter is the newest net application, it is essentially an online service that gives users the opportunity to write updates, letting people know "what am I doing right now." Twitter is frequently described as a "microblogging" service. It allows users to send short posts consisting of 140 characters or less. Updates are read by "followers,” meaning people who subscribe to the service to find out what you are up to. Posts sent out are called “tweets.”

 

IDEX Online uses Twitter to alert followers to new news items that posted online. By supplying the title of the new news article, followers can choose to read the item that they are most interested in, as soon as they are alerted about it.

 

On a commercial level, Twitter is used as a very targeted marketing tool, reaching specific users, because to receive a tweet, you must become a follower of the person, group or company sending out the tweets.

 

An example of a successful use of Twitter is a store sending out a tweet at 2 p.m., February 14, offering a 10 percent discount to all buyers between 3-4 p.m. and having the store flush with customers.

 

The small number of characters means that updates are easily sent from mobile devices such as iPods, iPhones, Blackberrys, Androids and any other personal digital assistant (PDA).

 

Another social networking service, Facebook, lets users quickly refresh their “status updates” letting their online “friends” know exactly what they are doing. This means that you can also create a page for your business with photos and other content generated by you or other users. It is important to know that content generated by other users can be negative as well as positive. However, you can use Facebook to attract users with devices such as virtual gifts, online trivia quizzes, links to music and embedding Youtube videos.

 

Recently, jewelry manufacturer Kirk Kara launched their own “fan” site so that potential buyers, who see or hear of the brand, can stay informed easily of any news, deals or promotions. They can also meet other soon to be brides and grooms who are already fans of the jeweler. 

“Our partners and our brides are looking for new ways to stay informed about what’s hot in the fine jewelry industry and at Kirk Kara. Together with Facebook, Kirk Kara uses the latest in technology and social media marketing to further its commitment to nurturing our trade and consumer relationships” said Grace Karaguezian, director of sales and marketing for the company.

 

Another company joining rushing to bridge the gap between social networking and commercial spending is Louisiana-based Stuller Inc. The DTC Sightholder recently held a competition on Facebook, which was designed to increase sales of their Red Box Diamonds brand by pushing bridal jewelry shoppers to local, independent retailers.

 

All users had to do was visit the Stuller Facebook page and become a “fan” of the company. All the consumers who did so were entered into a draw at the end of October to win a 1 carat diamond.

 

“This giveaway is designed to help our Red Box Diamond retailers,” said Stanley Zale, vice president of diamonds at the launch of the competition. “Our goal is to generate excitement among consumers about Red Box Diamonds, resulting in increased business for our Red Box Diamond retailers.”

 

Back in August, the company got on another trend of the moment by launching an iPhone App – Live Diamond Try-On. The free application allows consumers to browse for diamonds from Red Box Diamond Moment retailers, which the company supplies with goods. Users can then pick a gold ring from a range of designs and see what it looks like on a photo of their own finger, using the iPhone camera.

 

Cleverly, once the consumer is satisfied with the selection, the app will direct them to the nearest Red Box Diamond Moment retailer.

 

“We’ve received such amazing support from our retailers,” says Matt Stuller, president, founder and CEO. “We want to make sure all retailers take advantage of another option that will help drive traffic to their stores.”

 

Like Twitter, Facebook has the option of accessing the website using a PDA, meaning it is a less image heavy access site, but still allows users to update and share with others. Orkut is a website similar to Facebook and owned by Google. At the moment it is more popular than Facebook in India and Brazil.

 

You can also link the two different sites to each other. On Twitter, you can place a link to Facebook, so that Twitter tweets go directly to the Facebook page you chose. Thus, both sites remain concurrently updated.

 

Business people may want to experiment using Twitter or Facebook as a means of creating a new connection with their customers and building their business. Both sites allow status updates, but with Twitter, that is all you can do. Facebook allows adding pictures, music, images and other interactive features. Both can be good to advertise a sale, send customers a holiday greeting or let them know about new products. Facebook is more focused on displaying photos of your products and even starting a fan page for people following your site.

 

Another option is to create a Myspace page. This website allows users to make a personal, or company page, which incorporates photos, music and allows visitors who are registered users to add their own comments.

 

You can always explore the world of blogging. Here you can add photos, video clips and describe your experiences, but you cannot always control incoming comments or display everything you wanted to.

 

Even though use of the sites is free, it might be worth hiring experts who can dedicate themselves to maintaining and updating your online presence. It may just be time to expand your personnel to include a social media expert.

 

Such an expert can help gear your page to the right audience. If your site is aimed at teenagers, but you play classical music and show diamonds, you may not have the people you want looking at your page.

 

Finally, the world of web-based professional networking is also an option. If you choose sites such as Linkedin, Pipl or Spoke, you can reach out to, or join an online professional association which can offer help and advice or enroll you into services you weren't aware existed.

 

The online future is endless…