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Archive for the ‘Networking’ Category

 Twitter is one of the hottest social media networking online sites today and that means you and your business need to be utilizing Twitter on almost a daily basis.

If you are not familiar with Twitter, it is basically an instant message system that works in “real” time. What is really cool about Twitter is that each message you send or receive is only 140 characters in length and you can pick and choose who you want to communicate with. It is a great way for you to reach out and network with others in your same niche or it’s a great way for you to market your business online to those who you normally wouldn’t come into contact with. Although you will fine thousands of just “personal users” on Twitter you will also found thousands of “businesses” there too!

When you join Twitter you want to fill out your profile page fully and make it look professional and pretty. Once your profile page is done you want to send out a few messages (known as Tweets) right away because no one wants to follow someone who has a blank Tweet stream. Once you have sent out several messages you will want to find some like-minded people to follow so that they will follow you back if they are interested in you and your business products/services.

One way you find people to follow is by using Twitter’s keyword search function. Here is an example:

If you sell candles you will want to do a keyword search for the word candles. Once your search results come up you will want to read those user’s profile pages to see if you are interested in following them. If yes…click on the follow button…if not, continue through the list.

When using the keyword search function on Twitter it is very important that you use it properly. You never want to keyword search a word and then send out Tweets to those people which sound like spam. In other words…if you see someone chatting about candles you don’t want to tweet out that you sell candles and that they should check out your web sites as most folks consider that to be TWEET SPAM. What you want to do is follow them & hopefully they will follow you back and you can engage them in some conversation. You can also send them a tweet (not a direct message) and just introduce yourself and try to connect and build a rapport with them. Once you do…then you can mention that you sell candles.

There is a wrong and a right way to use the Twitter keyword search function and it is important to use it the right way and not use it for spamming your business info & links because if you spam…I guarantee you that people/users will report you for spam.

To Your Twitter Marketing Success….

Shelly

Twitter is one of the hottest online social media networking sites and if you want to conduct an online business you need to have a business and personal presence on Twitter.com.

However…I am seeing way too many direct sales consultants, network marketers and even so-called direct sales coaches/gurus inproperly using Twitter to market themselves or their business.

With that said…you never want to sit over on Twitter and hammer out self-promoting links to your articles, blog, business site, etc. 24 hours a day, on weekends and/or on holidays! C’mon now…everyone needs a break and that includes your followers! No one wants to read tweet after tweet after tweet of you spamming out your business info, links, articles, blog posts and blah blah blah continually!

Twitter is not a classified ad site…it is a social networking site and that means you must socialize with the people who are following you on twitter! (socializing means having a 2-way conversation often with your followers).

Thousands of people are getting fed up with the constant self-promotion going on over on Twitter and they are blocking those who practice it. If you get yourself blocked by numerous followers that defeats your purpose of being over there to network for your business.

My advice…at least 50% of your tweets on twitter should be conversational tweets with your followers or random chit-chat! Like I said, marketers and direct sellers are irking off thousands of twitter users by constantly spamming out self-promoting garbage 24/7.

Twitter will ONLY work for you if you use it properly! So please if you are in direct sales…calm down on the self-promoting and interact with others who are following you on Twitter.

Are you marketing a Direct Sales or MLM business on the social media networking site called Twitter? If so, There is a right and a wrong way to do it.

Every day I get home business owners sending tweets to me and I don’t even follow them on Twitter. These tweets are considered SPAM if they contain your home business information and/or links in them and if I didn’t ask you directly for the information it is indeed spam!

Just recently I had a consultant with a Direct Sales company who I am not following over on Twitter send me 2 Tweets and BOTH of them contained her business information. The Tweets were:

@Ravish30 I heard you were looking for a job. Did you know our company (company name) is hiring?

First of all…I am not looking for a job, not sure where she got that information. Second of all, I am not following her nor is she following me. She simply sits on Twitter and looks for certain keywords and then spams out her message to hundreds of people who are NOT following her. (I checked her Tweet Stream…all of her tweets are @ mention business spam).

So, I tweeted back and called her out on this spam. She replies back that it’s not spam to give people info that her Candle Company is hiring. Sadly, a lot of consultants believe this and it simply is not true.

Any time you send your business info via email, tweets, private messages, etc. and the person receiving the info from you did not specifically ask you for the information it is indeed considered spam! Spamming folks over on Twitter is not the way to grow your Direct Sales business. Matter of fact, people are tired of Twitter spam and have been reporting people left & right for this practice.

My suggestion…Stop spamming folks on Twitter immediately! Networking is about you trying to make a connection with another person and it is about you acting like a professional while networking. Obviously sending spam tweets is not accomplishing either of those 2 purposes.

Shelly

When you are on social media networking sites like Facebook and Twitter and you are on those sites to help promote your business it is very important that you conduct yourself in a professional manner at all times.

For most of us that is common sense but for others…well…I am not really sure what kind of sense they have!

A few days ago I was over on Twitter and I was following a girl who has been in direct sales for several years now. The majority of this girls Tweets on Twitter were professional and I enjoyed those tweets. With that said…for the past few weeks I have noticed a change in her and she has been tweeting out offensive language several times a week. I am not sure what is going on in her life (if anything) but if you are using these sites for business you can not use curse words or offensive language in your posts/tweets. While some of your followers are not going to be offended by that type of language, I assure you that others (like myself) will be.

In addition…I have seen a lot of people the past few months sit on Twitter and bash other people and sling mud. Again, that is not appropriate behavior for a person who is on Twitter to network and promote their business.

So today…my post is just a friendly reminder that it is important that you remain a professional on social media networking sites and keep the potty mouth to yourself. Nothing says you are unprofessional more than you using offensive language and it is a quick way to lose followers which means you are losing potential business!

Shelly

10 Ways to Enhance Your LinkedIn Profile by Terri Seymour

Social media sites are more popular than ever and with over 100 million users LinkedIn is in the top five most popular. LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network and is an extremely resourceful tool for job hunters, recruiters, business owners, etc. Once you sign up for a LinkedIn account, you must create your professional profile. The more effective your profile, the more professionals can find you and connect with you.

Below are ten things you can do to enhance your profile so it is the most effective it can be in building your network of connections.

1. Complete the Profile – This is very important in that you do not want a half-done, unprofessional profile. This will not accomplish much in the way of building your network of connections. Complete each section, completely and professionally to make the most of your online professional identity. According to LinkedIn, you are 40% more likely to be found in a LinkedIn search with a 100% completed profile as opposed to one that is not completely finished.

2. Always Use a Photo – There are many people who do not want to use photos for various reasons but you need to post a photo on your LinkedIn profile to get more results. You do not have to have a professionally taken photo but you do want it to look professional. People will be more likely to remember your profile if you present a photo of yourself. Photos can also increase the chances of people trusting you.

3. Use a Persuasive Headline – Don’t just plaster your name and title as your profile headline. Add a short slogan or benefit you provide. Compare the two headlines below and decide which one would capture your interest more.

Jane Doe

Virtual Assistant

Jane Doe

Virtual Assistant – I will free up your time and grow your business.

You don’t even have to have your title, you can just stress the benefits you provide or the skills you possess. Use something that makes you the one to choose.

4. List Your Websites – Be sure to add your URL and/or blog to your profile. You can add up to three urls. Customize the tiles of your links as opposed to My Site, My Blog, etc. You can do this by choosing the “Other” category in the Edit Profile section.

5. Get Recommendations – Having people give you recommendations will increase your chances of being found as well as give people more reason to choose you and/or your business or connect with you. You can ask people who have worked with you or past customers for recommendations. If they like your work/service, they will be glad to give a testimonial. You can also trade with people you would recommend but always remember, your reputation is on the line every time you recommend someone so don’t ask random people to trade recommendations.

6. Video Presentation – Add a video presentation to your profile highlighting your skills, services, products, etc. You can do this by going to Google Presentations under “More” in the toolbar at the top of your profile page. Click on More Applications….. then scroll down to Google Presentations. Add the Application and follow the directions on creating your presentation. Be sure to check out the other apps as well for a more productive profile.

7. Experience and Skills – Be sure to list all your experience and skills using relevant keywords. Be thorough, precise and complete when describing your skills and your experience. Be sure to be grammatically correct and proofread every sentence.

8. Professional Summary and Specialties – When writing your summary, let people know what you are about and what you can do for them. Use short precise paragraphs. Get to the point and be convincing. List your Specialties so they are much easier to read and capture attention quicker.

9. Keep Active – Do NOT fill out your profile and never come back. You need to keep updating regularly and be active on your profile. Get involved with LinkedIn and become a participant. Nobody wants to connect with a dead page!

10. Join Relevant Groups – Joining groups is one way to stay active and become involved with other LinkedIn users and professionals. Participate in the discussions and offer help, advice, support whenever you can.

When joining networking sites such as LinkedIn, you have to take the time to create productive profiles and pages. Put the time and effort into all the above enhancements and your LinkedIn profile will be much more effective.

Terri Seymour has over twelve years of online experience and has helped many people start their own business. Visit her site for resources, $1 and $2 resell ebooks & software, informative articles, and affiliate programs. Sign up for the RSS Feed for a free business ebook with MRR. http://www.SeymourProducts.com

Article Source: WAHM Articles

One of the most popular online social media networking sites happens to be called Twitter.com and when you visit and use Twitter.com you will quickly see why it has become one of the favorite online networking sites for those who are in Direct Sales or a Service-Type of home business.

When you are marketing your business on Twitter, it is very important that you NEVER do any of the following things that I am going to list for you today. Why you might ask? These are the top pet peeves of experienced marketers on Twitter and they absolutely hate it when newbies do these things. With that said, if you want to lose followers and not gain them…then by all means, do these things!

1. Do not send out automatic direct messages to people who follow you. People who follow you view this as Direct Message Spam. Not sure what this is? Let me explain. Some people set up their Twitter accounts to send out automatic direct messages to those who follow them and it does nothing but junk up their message inbox and it “irks” your followers with business spam.

2. Do not set up your Twitter account to automatically spam out numerous Tweets for your account every hour of the day, 24/7 as it is considered to be Tweet Spam. Your account should always have MORE real-live tweets made by you than prescheduled spam tweets. People want to network and chat with a ‘real live human’ and not some set-up spam factory Tweeter over there on Twitter.

3. Do not post unprofessional photo’s of yourself as your business avatar on your Twitter profile home page. Whatever graphic you decide to use as your company’s avatar does reflect on you and your professionalism so please choose an appropriate avatar graphic.

4. Please watch your language when Tweeting on Twitter!!! I have been spending some time this past week reading a lot of people’s Tweet streams and I have been “disgusted” with some of the language I have seen used on Twitter this past week. Please…keep the trash talking language to yourself.

These are 4 very important things you should avoid doing over on the social media networking site called Twitter. If you ask me…they are pretty common sense but apparently…they do need to be repeated since a lot of people are still networking incorrectly on Twitter.

Take your time with your business networking tactics….learn to do things the right way so that you avoid mistakes down the road. Happy Networking!