In today’s business world, especially as it applies to marketing and promotion on social media, individuals need to understand and determine opportunity cost.
What do you do better? What content are you skilled at creating?
A strong writer should look to blogs, a creative will turn to video, and someone with powerful rhetoric can be a major player in the podcasting landscape. People will ask, “Shouldn’t you tap into each of these endeavors?” Sure thing, but lead with your strong suit – know who you are as a person, build on that, then capitalize. A person with a great podcast can then follow with a video snippet promoting their words on Twitter; a transcript of their show can, in turn, be posted to Facebook. At the end of the day, as always, it’s all about content.
Don’t ever stop THINKING BIG. Look to the future, have a set of goals. Realize though, that there are steps to get to where you want to be – you will need to get your hands dirty. As you track yourself to your future, always look for opportunities. Put out free content, contact individuals and businesses in the world you want to work in, ask questions and be present for your audience at all times. This information will, in turn, circle back around to your BIG idea.
For an entrepreneur just starting out, or a sole proprietor looking to kick-start a campaign, realize that with no matter what content you are putting out, the number one goal is EXPOSURE. Reach out on Twitter to 100 people a day. Tag like-minded businesses and individuals on Facebook and Instagram, thus encouraging an additional share or another form of engagement. Never forget to interact with your audience, aim to be the best communicator on the medium that you are using. If people are commenting on a post of yours, be sure to reply to each and every one of them (good, bad, or indifferent). That time spent will go along way the building of your brand and in the connection with past, present, and future customers.
With social media, always ‘keep an ear to the streets’. Listen for the new apps that will be hitting the scene, have no fear of jumping in ahead of the market to learn the platform, and how it can potentially help you. There will be a sluggish time as things develop, but the gamble is this: if you spend some time playing in the sandbox of a new app and nothing comes of it, if nothing else you figured on additional ways to develop and curate new content. On the flip side, if the app grows to tremendous heights and one day sits much where Instagram is today (and you have the work ethic to match), then you’ll be considered an ‘influencer’–a leader within the app whom people in your industry will turn to. Getting into an app early is MUCH greater than if you were to get to an app late (or not at all).
Social media platforms are the gateways to your blog, or your website, or wherever else you’d like an audience to be directed.
Be a great storyteller, generate a first impression that leaves people wanting more. Be patient, hard-working, put in the time… eventually you will build a legitimate following that in many ways ‘works’ for you, retweeting, sharing, and re-posting on your behalf.
