If you want to learn more about Social Networking you have got to check out the animation below and visit http://www.vizedu.com. These interactive animations are awesome teaching tools.
VizEdu’s objective is to explain Social Media, Web2.0, Search and Emerging technologies visually. They make learning visual, fun, simple and actionable.
Take a look at these three Social Networking case studies and let me know what you think.
I have only been using the micro blogging tool Twitter for just under a month and I have to say I am hooked. My first Tweet or Twit was on a myspace page that someone emailed me of a lady who makes dresses out of Barack Obama T-shirts, and my latest Tweet was about my testing out a new broadcast email service called Mad Mimi. I can send Twitter updates directly from the Twitter website or from my cell phone using SMS. I can even send them via voice activation using a service called Jott that will take my spoken word and translate it into text on the Twitter network.
Some of you Solopreneurs and Small Business Owners are probably asking yourself why in the world would I need to get a Twitter account and start Tweeting. I said the same thing over a month ago but a funny thing happened when I sent out my first Tweet. I got an answer back in a Follower. A follower is someone who sees what you just put out on the Twitter network, then looks at your profile and then at a push of a button follows all your twitter update from now until they want to no more.
I know it may sound like a religious experience or maybe even cyber stalking and NO it is not. It is more like a voluntary way of telling you that I like what you wrote about and thereafter checking your profile out, I don’t mind getting more information from you.
If you goto a website called Twitterholic.com you can find out who the top 100 people being followed on the Twitter network. Barack Obama is number three on this list. Not only do I follow him but in return he follows me. How thrilling was it to see that the current Democratic Presidential Candidate is following little ole me.
So how can you use this to your advantage as a Solopreneur or Small Business Owner? Very simple. Think of it as Micro Marketing 140 characters at a time. 140 characters is all that you are allowed to post at a time on Twitter so your messages need to be short and to the point. Use it as a way to make timely announcements of your new services or product launches. Invite your many followers to your next event or just share a great website that would help someone in their time of need.
What you should not do is abuse the Twitter network of followers by sending them Twitter spam. Twitter spam is just like email spam unwanted information that serves no purpose. If you do this you will lose followers in a heartbeat. The best thing to do is just be yourself and share topics of discussion your audience of followers would appreciate.
I will do a follow up post on the many Twitter Tools for Solopreneurs and Small Businesses. In the mean time please get your own Twitter account and start sharing. If you share good information you will get a great following.
I have been a member of Facebook for alomst 3 months now and I am hooked. I have already amassed about 380 friends and countng at the time of this posting. I have all but abandoned the myspace.com page I once had and I suggest that all Solopreneurs and Small Business persons do the same.
My good friend Brent Leary a CRM Analyst turned me onto Facebook but I really never took it seriously until I saw how many professional people were on Facebook. I, like everyone esle on the planet thought myspace.com would be the answer to helping me promote my business online. All I got from myspace.com was a bunch of junk advertising and requests from internet porn spammers to be my friend.
Facebook has changed my way of thinking when it comes to online social networking. I have met some of the most positive and productive people on the planet within Facebook pages. My favorite Facebook application has got to be “Events” where you can post your upcoming event for thousands if not millions of fellow professionals and Solopreneurs to see. I have been invited to some of the best teleseminars, webnars and networking events through this Facebook application.
As quoted in the Facebook Pages The Insider’s Guide to Viral Marketing.
“Businesses now have the ability to expand their revenue base and acquire new customers through free Facebook Pages. Pages enable customers to interact, learn, purchase, and spread the word about your business to their friends”
“Every day, most of Facebook’s 70 million active users log on to Facebook to learn about their friends and share information about their interests and activities. This regular interaction gives businesses the opportunity to connect with existing and new customers as effectively as a face-to-face meeting”
Here are the four Keys to using Facebook
1) Make business personal.
2) Update your Facebook Page frequently.
3) Harness the power of News Feed.
4) Choose the applications that are best for your business.
I have also posted the complete guide below. My suggestion is that you quickly download it, Read it and then take action on all that is has to offer.
Twitip.com is the brainchild of Darren Rowse (@problogger) Editor and Publisher of the blogsite Problogger.net, Digital Photography School and a book that was named after his Problogger blog. At first glance I was very impressed. Darren’s main mission is to help beginner Twitter users. TwiTip is about capturing some of the lessons that I’ve been lea […]
I read one of the most incredible post today on Guy Kawasaki’s (http://twitter.com/guykawasaki) blog How to Change the World. Guy gives a breakdown on how he used Twitter to promote his Alltop website and his new book Reality Check. Here are the 10 ways to use Twitter as a Twool. Forget the “influentials Defocus your efforts Get as [...]
The launch of the New Election 2008 site customized by Twitter has come at the best time ever. It was launched on the eve of the first Presidential debate between Barack Obama and John McCain. This new site will be showcasing how Twitter can assist other major events and brands get real time brand recognition and market [...]
