Ignoring your accounts is no way to take full advantage of social networks. They are meant to keep your customers in the loop and in constant contact so daily updates are a must! If you keep your networks current your customers will be able to stay up to date with new products and ask instant questions. This will be a leeway towards an expanding business or company. So if you open accounts make sure to stay attentive to them! If you ever feel as though you are overwhelmed or have too many accounts, simply chose one to stick with. It is much better to have one strong account rather than numerous weak accounts. 

As you begin social networking, you may need to allow your accounts some time to expand. At the beginning, it may seem as though your accounts are not showing immediate results but stay patient. Consumers and clients will need time to realize that you started networking. As the word get around and as you continue to update your account, it will soon enlarge and you will experience the outcome that you expected. In order to expand you must tell your customers you are out there. An easy way to do this is send an email telling providing them with easy links to your site, put the links at the bottom of your clients receipts, and verbally tell them or ask them if they have a Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn page- words are a lot more powerful than you think! 
 

A large mistake that account holders make is not staying in touch with followers, clients, and friends. You must be in constant contact- which means updating daily and commenting and engaging with your connections! Keeping the public updated on what your business has going on is a start, but only a start. You cannot ignore your follower’s questions and comments. If they begin to feel as though they are being overlooked, they will lose interest in your company and move on to another that responds thoroughly and efficiently. So always attempt to reply to any and all comments left by followers, it’s a MUST!
 

Accomplish these easy-to-manage must-do’s and you will be well on your way to becoming a social networking butterfly. These steps are quick and simple and are well worth it. The work put in is minute but the reward is immense. There is no better way to expand a business than through social networking! So always remember, you must stay active, be patient, and stay connected and you will be happy that you did!

 

 

And as always if you need help just give us a call! 

Kelly Jones
Owner and Social Media Expert 
973-722-3469
Kelly@SocialMarketingSolutionsLLC.com
www.SocialMarketingSolutionsLLC.com 

Social networking can and should be an excellent way to develop your business. The doors that open because of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc., are endless when done the correct way. 

In order to maintain success with social media, there are a few common mistakes that should be avoided at all costs.

 

 

Social media marketing is definitely a way to let people know about upcoming events, contests, and promotions. With that being said, it is also an opportunity to communicate with customers. Leave plenty of room for people to converse with you, ask you questions, and offer free advice in your area of expertise. You do NOT want to sound like a salesman!

 

Just because social networking is done behind a computer screen does NOT mean that it is easier to get away with a lie. For example, do NOT use a fake picture as your avatar or post a misleading link. People will only be fooled once by these tricks and then will no longer trust your business. Honesty will create long-term social networking success.

 

Having a number of social networking accounts and abandoning them is even worse then have no accounts at all! It gives the wrong impression of your business, making it seem as though you are lazy, even though we know you are not! Updating your accounts once every few months is NOT enough! If you use planning, you can update your accounts in about 10 minutes and the benefits of it will be immense.  

So there you have it! Avoid these errors and you will be well on your way to obtaining an accomplished social networking reputation. This, in turn, will truly help your business grow and you will receive immediate positive results. If you need help you know what to do, call us and we will gladly give you a FREE consultation. Enjoy the success!

Warmly, 
Kelly Jones
Social Media Expert 
973-722-3469
Kelly@SocialMarketingSolutionsLLC.com

First off, happy holidays everyone and happy 2012! I hope you enjoyed some down time with your family and friends, just as I did. Now that 2012 is in full swing I think it is appropriate to discuss how social networking fits into your 2012 marketing plan. A lot of people know and understand the importance of social networking for business, but most don't have the time or expertise to effectively maintain a presence. If you feel overwhelmed by the ever-changing social media world, never hesitate to give us a call! If you want to tackle the social networking world on your own, here are some suggestions to help! 
 

Social Networking is extremely important now more than ever. People are logging on to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn at the beginning of the day before they go to work, when they get home from work, or sometimes even on their lunch breaks. It is important to commit to social networking or hire someone like us to help you. Below are some suggestions on what to do and what NOT to do to help you effectively maintain an active social media presence. 
 

1. Make monthly goals for your social networking sites. Set goals for the growth of the pages, how active people are commenting, and see what postings work best (articles, videos, pictures, etc.). 
2. Make adjustments from what you have been doing and vary your postings. Don't do the same thing every day. Adjust your postings and capture your audiences interest. 
3. Judge the process of your social networking pages- you may do this by considering hosting a contest or giving away a freebee- if they "like" or re-tweet your postings of course! 
 

1. Don’t go more than a week without posting. A dead social media presence is WORSE than no social media presence. 
2. Be honest, truthful, and exciting. Don’t bore your audience by pushing sales, sales, and more sales- instead be educational and conversational.
3. Don’t forget who your audience is. Keep your target audience and mind and cater to their desires. You want to entice a large audience on social networking sites, but you don’t want to loose potential customers interests. 
 

Warmly, 
Kelly Jones
Owner and Social Media Expert
Kelly@SocialMarketingSolutionsLLC.com 
973-265-2833
www.SocialMarketingSolutionsLLC.com 

Social networking is awesome for socializing, networking, and making new connections and friends. The important question when dealing with social media sites for business purposes is, what do you have to do to make it generate business leads and deals? I have three BIG suggestions I want to discuss today and I guarantee there will be more blog posts and suggestions on this topic in the future. 

 

 

1. Adapt to social media
2. Be the expert
3. Stay proactive, be proactive

 

– Find out what your competitors are doing on social networking sites, research who they are friends with, and research what they are posting. Social media is about staying ahead of the competition. In order to stay one step ahead every time you need to know what your competitors are doing, so you can plan how you’re going to strategize your social media efforts. 

 

 

– Treat your social media presence as a referral source. People will go to your page judge your postings, the content, and how you interact with the people who are commenting on your social media pages. Think of your social media pages as an email from a potential customer. If you didn’t get a response from that company for a week or more how would you feel about using their services? I know I wouldn’t feel as comfortable. It is the same with social media- stay active, stay engaged, and stay informed. You must know what is going on and stayed keyed in, in able to achieve credibility and generate business leads. Now if you find you don’t have time to keep up with social networking and the commitment is too much that’s when you give Social Marketing Solutions a call and we manage 100% of your social networking presence for you. 

 

 

Having someone else manage your social networking presence may be more time efficient as well as prosperous for your business. All of our social media managers are trained on how to make social media effective for every industry. We know what works, what doesn’t, what to say, and what to avoid. Our social media managers also know how to effectively reach your target audience leaving you time to sit back and close the business deals. So why carry the weight on your shoulders when Social Marketing Solutions can greatly help your company? Just give us a call today – 973-265-2833

Warmly,
Kelly Jones
Owner and Social Media Manager
Kelly@SocialMarketingSolutionsLLC.com
Cell- 973-722-3469

 If you’re not on at least the first page of your search results then your website needs some SEO work!
 

Getting started with my SEO work was an adventure. My website was created in August by Pinnacle Graphic Communications (didn't they do a great job?), but since I had such a new website and domain I was not anywhere to be found on search engines. 

 

 

After finding a few moments to begin my SEO research I began learning about different levels of SEO work. I looked into tons of different companies – some were very small with minimal work, some were huge with extensively monthly SEO updates. After deciding I was not going to spend thousands of dollars, I was luckily introduced to John Tully of DSM-LLC. John Tully and his team did a wonderful job of analyzing my key words, my websites strengths, my websites weaknesses, and he provided us with suggestions for how to improve. At a low price I realized I had a lot to learn, but I finally had a place to start. 

First off, I identified a list of a few things that were most important to me: 
1. What did I want to get accomplished?
2. How much was I willing to spend?
3. What is most important to me in relation to SEO (did I need to be on the first page or get to #1)?
4. Have I thought about keywords and how I can improve on my own?
5. How much time am I willing to invest weekly into SEO?

 

 

Identifying what you want to accomplish is the first step to moving forward with SEO. 
Without a plan things can get very confusing, very quickly.

For those who read my last post you may have read about my online marketing guru- Alexa Steele. I want to mention her again because, she truly is apart of my online marketing strategy and I wouldn't have the online presence I have without her help. After working with John Tully and Alexa Steele I am so thrilled to say that I now come up on the first page of Google (more often then not)! Alexa has truly helped me find my online identity and she keeps up with me to make sure I am not slacking! Out of anything I have done, it has been most beneficial to have a bi-weekly phone conference with Alexa so she can tell me how I am doing, and what I can improve on. I found if I don’t check in with Alexa I will not complete the tasks we discussed which in turn have positively impacted my online presence. 

 

 

 

SEO is extremely important. It makes a huge difference in who, what, and why people are viewing your website. Make sure your site is updated, clean, easy to search, and easy to navigate. 

 

 

Ask for help if you need it and I would highly recommend DSM- John Tully and The Website Wordsmith- Alexa Steele if you need further SEO assistance! 

Warmly, 
Kelly Jones
Kelly@SocialMarketingSolutionsLLC.com 
Owner and Social Media Manager
Social Marketing Solutions, LLC