I have to admit that I have become a little tired of how demanding the “social” call has been for all those with a website. Sure, I know it’s important, but upon reflection is seems that “Social” is taking over the Internet. I liken the social changes to the many body-snatcher Sci Fi movies I’ve seen over the years, … it always starts off small, but the few become many, and the growth is exponential.
In any case, I awoke today early as I often do, I noted the time (4 a.m.) and as always my first thing upon waking is to check my emails. What do I see? Gmail has changed their format again, this time with tabs that read “Primary”, “Social”, and “Promotions”. Not surprisingly the social tab included social media, and related content. This decision to separate the content from the whole is clearly intended to acknowledge its importance amidst the stream of messages that one receives. Google notes that their new tab inbox puts you in control by allowing you to see what’s new at a glance. What I noted is that their use of categories, and the ability to customize is very similar to what Google+ provides. Want to learn more, watch their video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFf7dlewJus&hl=en
Okay, so if you are using Google Mail for Business there are no changes, at least not as yet. In any case, the reason for this blog post is really just a “heads up” for all those who are still indecisive about using social media. Consider the new Google ranking algorithm which ranks a site based upon their “Authority” (defined primarily by the number of social links to your site, frequent content changes/additions, and of course social media shares, likes, etc). If you haven’t already guessed it, well, you need to create a Facebook page, a Twitter account, a LinkedIn account, and a Google+ account. Each of these should be accessible on your website, so not hidden away as a tiny little icon at the page bottom. There are other great social media options such as Pinterest, so I encourage everyone to browse the different social options available and decide where they are “willing’ to invest their time. The willing part is important since it makes no sense to create social media pages and then never update them or seek to engage your audience.
If you have an static website, and don’t use a blog, then the value of social media is all the more important since it provides a platform for you to share what’s new about your business and industry, add promotions and incentives, and maybe most importantly engage your fan base. And don’t forget the many review websites. My suggestion is to start writing your own reviews of your client’s businesses that you have visited (as well as others). Considering that “turn about is fair play” you will likely receive reciprocal reviews from clients about your business. The reality is, all this social media stuff is hard work!
Not long back I noted how the business with a Google+ page linked to, and a decent number of people in their circles, was ranking higher than those without. This alone shows me that Google takes their social page seriously so yes, I created one and linked to it, and even added some content. And I recently created a Craig’s list page for my business, and while I don’t expect to get lots of business from it, CL pages are known to rank high in the search engines which in turn can increase the inbound links my site receives, as well as the increased possibility of social media linking.
The other option of course is to pay someone to manage all of your social media. In the past many of my clients had paid someone to manage their SEO. Guess what? Managing one’s SEO ranking will have little value in today’s web since the tricks applied by the SEO gurus don’t really work anymore. Well, I should note that it is still important to have keyword rich page titles, headings, navigation, and content, but the weight of these in the searches is much less (similar to how the keyword metatag was once important, and now it has basically no value).
The long and short is that I am tired of the trend to make all things social, but my business sense tells me
that “yes” I, you, all of us need to take it seriously
My final suggestions, when you do create your different social media properties see if you can differentiate the content some. I must admit that when I do my own pages my blog, Facebook, Google+, and Tweets will all have basically the same content. Is this a good idea? Probably not since duplicate content across web pages is seen as spamming. Be sure to brand your pages by incorporating your logo and a business specific header image where possible. The headers in Facebook and Google+ can actually be fun to make, and it allows the creative types to make a statement. And lastly, be sure to link to all of your web properties on every social media option you have chosen.
Well, … social media just makes me tired! Maybe I’ll take a nap 🙂
I agree with you Edmund, there are too many social venues for a small business to keep up with. You almost need someone to manage these on a full time basis .