How are you using social media?

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Permalink Reply by Ralph W. Bagnall on July 11, 2009 at 12:27pm

Carol,

I use a few different methods. Facebook is mostly reserved for my personal stuff, but the lines there are getting blurred as more vendors and magazines are "friending" me there. :)

I use Twitter to broadcast new items on my website, or articles I write as they appear online or in print.

Linkedin has been a good source for making professional connections. I use it to develop the consulting aspects of my business.

Forums are another, often overlooked venue for Social Media. I post regularly to a number of forums for both professional and hobby woodworkers. These help me establish a reputation as a knowledgable professional.

The real point of SM that many miss is that it is SOCIAL. Those who simply post ads get ignored very quickly, and on forums they tend to draw a lot of fire. These are communities. People and companies need to become productive members who are trusted and accepted by the group. Then, when another member asks a question or needs help, I can guide them to an appropriate page on my website, or offer my services in a non-pushy manner.

It takes time and effort, but the results can be well worth it. They have been for me so far.

Ralph

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Permalink Reply by Carol Flammer on July 11, 2009 at 10:45pm

Ralph:

I totally agree! Social is the first word in social media, so it is important to interact -You Engaging Others.

You can also do a lot with Social Media Optimization by posting various places to push power to your web site. It is very important not to be just creating noise, but to also interact.

I look forward to learning more about what you do. Thanks for joining the group and adding to the conversation!
Carol

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Permalink Reply by Bob Mathews on July 13, 2009 at 9:43am

Well Ralph; you're farther down the road on this than I am, but I'm catching up. I use Linkedin alot, but probably need to get a spot on Face Book. Generally speaking engineers became engineers to hide their lack of social grace. That's all changing now and the social aspect of business is becoming very important. Tech schools are going to have to offer classes in poise and charm for those of us without the genitic gift.

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Permalink Reply by Jim Tank on July 27, 2009 at 8:59am

Carol,
Most of the response to social media appears to be service oriented businesses that can provide non-manufacturing product... How woodworking companies using this venue? Do they have employees twitter at lunch to drive consumers to their websites? I suspect there are marketing opportunities on the horizon we haven't dreamed of yet.

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Permalink Reply by Carol Flammer on July 27, 2009 at 9:56am

Twitter is a HUGE referral source for company web sites. I think woodworking companies will be surprised at how much traffic they will see in their analytics from this site. We see better numbers from Twitter than Facebook for most of our clients!

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Permalink Reply by Ralph W. Bagnall on August 16, 2009 at 11:07am

The real idea is networking. It is impossible to predict what connections you will make and how that will or may help your business.

So if Black Beaver builds custom high end furniture for example, I would be providing information to customers on why they should pay you the money you want for a custom dining table rather than just going to Ikea.

Start a blog that explains what makes custom valuable, the differences in joinery, fit and finish, and coatings. Do local Twitter searches and when people are talking about furniture, jump in and answer questions. Have a FAQ page on your website that you can link people to for more in depth information.

Work your site as your customer's "go to" place for furniture (or whatever you deal in) information. Provide loads of useful links, reviews, etc. Cabinet shops should be linking to product pages and videos of Hafele, Blum and other kitchen organizing products. Most homeowners have no idea whats out there and would be happy to have the info.

Again I stress that you do NOT want to have every communication be a sales pitch! Be informative and helpful. People will begin to trust you, and THAT is where sales will be made.

Ralph

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Permalink Reply by Joshua Lynn on October 18, 2009 at 12:29am

I didn't even know the average Joe could do this until recently, but I've set up a "Fan Page" on Face Book where I promote my work and offer specails for fans. Now here's where it gets intresting, I was able to set it up so that every time I update the fan page or make a status update it not only goes on Face Book but also to my Twitter account. I think it's great! I can offer a special discount on one and it links so that people on the other (Twitter) can see what's being offered. I've also added the Face Book Fan Page to my website, so if a potential client is having a look then they can become a fan. Another thing that I like about the fan page is that it appears to the fans friends, so I don't even have to know "Bob" but since his friend "Joe" is a fan and he likes the work then he can become a fan as well. There's a lot you can do with it and I'm still working all that out.

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Permalink Reply by Advanced Cabinet Systems on March 22, 2010 at 10:49am

Our company, ACS, just started working with social media in the last month.

We use Facebook, Twitter, Sawdust Soup (of course), and are preparing for youtube. I have my company's facebook page linked with Twitter so that whatever I post goes directly to twitter. It saves time.

We decided on posting what we're working on at the current moment and posting videos in the industry.

We eventually are going to start creating videos to post online such as plant tours, machine operations, and factory automation.

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