Work At Home Business Options

Posts Tagged ‘Networking’

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!

Twitter Abbreviations to Shorten Your Marketing Tweets by Tammy Embrich

There have been so many times where I wanted to say a whole lot more than 140 characters on Twitter. We’ve all been there! And honestly, that amount of space IS quite a bit to convey a message. However, there are many that simply don’t agree. Still, we all have to abide by that one limit.

There are many clever abbreviations we can use to shorten up tweets. Most people like short and to the point. Make it a long, long message and folks often get lost in it. And what do they do? They move on!

You of course want people to stay long enough to read your post. I know for myself, on a website for example…if there is a super long welcome message, I will most often click away. However on Twitter, the platform takes care of that issue. We have 140 characters, use them wise!

Below is a handful of abbreviations, link and tweet shorteners, for your use

DM = direct message

RT = retweet

LOL = laugh out loud

BTW= by the way

b4 = before

1 = one, won

2 = to, too, two

fab = fabulous

fave = favorite

GR8 = great

FB = facebook

FYI = for your information

LMK = let me know

peeps = people

plz = please

TYT = take your time

L8er = later

thx = thanks

TY = thank you

2u = to you

Tweeple = twitter people

JK j/k = just kidding

K = okay

IMHO = in my humble opinion

IC = I see

fwd = forward

Shortening Links

The links we use on Twitter can be very long. Fortunately there are many link shortening services at our disposal. I prefer bit.ly, as I have it in my favorites so all I have to do is click and enter my URL, and click shorten, and it instantly gives me the shortened version.

However, there are various shorteners I see others using, as there are a lot of alternatives. Below are a few I have listed for your convenience.

bit.ly

twitpwr.com

ow.ly/url/shorten-url

su.pr/

is.gd/

tinyurl.com

Need to make your tweet less than 140 characters?

140it

Tweet Compressor

Twonvert

TweetShrink

TwitterEyes

Twitblogs

shortText.com

BigTweet

Twittermail.com

Twitlonger.com

tweetitin.com/

Hopefully the resources I’ve provided will be of some help with your marketing, and also make your Twitter experience a better one.

Article Written By: Tammy Embrich

Tammy has been successful in the work at home industry for many years now. She is an Internet marketer, article marketer, and ghostwriter. She offers free job leads for the job seeker, as well as other free resources, work at home articles, tips, and more at Work At Home Jobs.

You can also find Tammy at her Grandparenting Articles and Tips blog, offering grandmother’s experiences, brags, recipes, tips, photos, and more.

Article Source: WAHM Articles

Direct Sales Marketing – 6 Tips For Social Networking Success

By Lisa Young

Sitting at my desk yesterday, I checked my tweetdeck and found a message from one of my tweeps saying that social networking is the future of direct sales. I tweeted back saying that, in fact, social networking is the now of direct sales. We had a great conversation discussing the various issues that consultants face trying to make a name for themselves in a wired world.

If you’re not familiar with social media sites like MySpace, Facebook and twitter, chances are good you didn’t understand half of that last paragraph.

That’s no excuse to stick your head in the sand! Social media is here to stay, and it’s a powerful tool to add to your direct sales arsenal. Professional marketers are reaping the rewards of online connections on a daily basis. They’ve taken the art of networking and building relationships from the offline world to the online marketplace, and cashed in on the revolution in the process.

But before you jump headlong into social networking, there are six concepts you need to understand. These caveats can turn your social networking into a lead generating machine – filling your inbox with leads and building your business in unprecedented ways.

1. Social Networks are not a PITCH fest. You can’t just join a social network and start telling everyone how great your company or product is. That’s the online equivalent of shoving your business card into the hand of everyone you meet without saying ‘hello’ first. Depending on the social networking site, you can share about yourself, your company and your products to varying degrees – but only AFTER you’ve established a relationship with your audience. Who is your audience? Anyone that’s following your page, signing up for your updates or trying to become your ‘friend’. The term is different for each service, but the idea is the same: people want to get to know who you are before they want to learn about what you have to offer.

Just like in the offline world, you need to show people you can provide value to them before you start talking about your company. Social networks essentially force you to share a bit of yourself with your audience before they’re going to respond to any offers you try to make. If you don’t, you’ll come off as pushy and people will stop following you – or worse yet, block you all together.

2. Brand YOURSELF First. It bears repeating, so I’ll say it again. YOU are the most important product your company has to offer. Successful consultants make a name for themselves even while they’re promoting their company’s products and services. It is up to YOU to promote yourself. No direct selling company is going to do that for you.

People have to know, like and trust you before they’re going to do business with you. It is your responsibility to provide the information your audience needs in order to build a lasting relationship with you.

Let your company handle the marketing and promotions for your products and services. You need to worry about making a name for yourself. Your company can’t stop you from creating your own website that is about your interests and your life. They CAN (and usually will) prevent you from using their product names, descriptions, images and trademarks. They have every right to do so. It dilutes their brand. It’s also a sign of a weak marketer to tie your marketing back to your company.

Some companies will let you use their content – but what happens if you leave that company? You have to start all over again. If instead, you promote yourself, then no matter what company you’re with, you’ve got a consistent social networking strategy that’s built around your reputation, rather than your company.

3. Don’t Do It All In One Day. Social networking sites are designed to be “sticky”. That means once you visit, they entice you with lots of content to suck up your time and get you to stick around for a while. You need to view social networking as a piece of your marketing puzzle – not the whole enchilada. Start with ONE site that appeals to you. Strictly limit your time, and be sure you’re using it for networking activities, not for mindlessly playing games or adding “apps” to enhance your page. Your time is best spent building and creating relationships with others on the site – not playing games with the computer!

Once you’ve “gotten the hang of it”, then consider other social networks, but realize that each site requires a bit of time to navigate and participate. Don’t commit to more groups than you can handle. Only YOU know your time availability and building marketing relationships takes time.

4. Social Networking Is Like Offline Networking. Just like offline networking groups, they are NOT the backbone of your direct sales business. Booking, selling and recruitng are the staples of a successful home party business, and nothing will ever replace that. Social Networking is a marketing tool that you can use to move beyond your family and friends and reach out to a global audience. The global audience can help establish yourself as an expert, but it doesn’t always help you get a show on your calendar for next week. Like all networking functions, building relationships takes time.

Social Networking should be considered as a way to enhance your traditional book, sell, recruit activities – not as a replacement for them. Just like you wouldn’t rely only on live networking events to build your business, neither should you rely completely on online social media to build your business. The Internet can speed the relationship building process along, but it still takes time.

5. Don’t Expect Miracles. You get what you give in social media. The more you interact, the more people will interact with you. The better content you provide, the more people will want to hear from you. Unless you’re already a celebrity, don’t expect that you’ll have overnight success with any social networking site. Miracles do happen, but to expect them would be social networking suicide. Often times, you can connect with other direct sellers, coaches, and trainers, and find yourself hob-knobbing with the rich and famous – people you might not otherwise have ever met – through social media. But this should not be your expectation or purpose for social networking. Connect and share with “regular Joes” like you and watch your network grow.

Twitter is a great place to start. With only 140 characters, there are no lengthy pages to read, and it’s easy to start. Plus it can work with some other social media sites as well. If you sign up, follow me and I’ll follow you!

6. Stories Sell. The best way to connect and build an online network is to share yourself – via stories and videos – and let your audience know more about you. A word of caution, though: don’t share anything you wouldn’t feel comfortable having the whole world know. This is the internet, after all, and anyone could see those pictures, that video or hear those stories. Transparency is one of the great qualities of the internet – it’s also one of the curses. It only takes a second for everyone in your social network (friends, family and business associates) to see those compromising details. Be sure you’re sharing quality information that builds your reputation.

It can be challenging for direct sellers that aren’t very tech savvy to get connected to social networks. Take your time, start slowly, and do what you can. Don’t get sucked into the time vacuum, and get distracted from your core business building activities. Great business relationships can be cultivated online, but you need to enter the fray in a controlled and meaningful way. Otherwise, you’re just spinning in circles.

After nearly 10 years in Direct Sales, Lisa Young stopped listening to her up-line and started seeking professional sales and marketing wisdom from the far corners of big business. Today Lisa offers ready-to-use insights, tips and inspiration to others in the Home Party Plan community looking to run their business like a business and achieve success. Lisa’s free monthly newsletter “PartyOn!” features articles from a business perspective designed to help MLM reps reach their booking, sales and recruiting goals. You can sign up for the newsletter at http://www.HomePartySolution.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lisa_Young
http://EzineArticles.com/?Direct-Sales-Marketing—6-Tips-For-Social-Networking-Success&id=2058504

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Twitter Marketing – Avoid the Hard Sell by Tammy Embrich

Twitter marketing can be a powerful tool. I see professional home based business owners capitalizing on this most widely used social network every day of the week. And most prove to be quite successful.

However, I see other online entrepreneurs using their 140 characters to post their sale ads and links every chance they get. They overwhelm their followers with pushy tactics to get their sales. This is labeled as “hard selling.” Many people who utilize this reputable social media (that houses well over 150 million members), find this rude and unprofessional, including myself.

What do you think these folks gain by using this hard sell, in-your-face marketing approach?

I would definitely venture to say, “not much!” I know for certain that this does not encourage a follow. In fact, these type of marketers get a large number of unfollows and blocks. And more importantly, they certainly don’t gain credibility for their online reputation.

I learned by trial and error when I first tested the Twitter waters, just as many others have. And I’ve provided a set of social networking tips below for avoiding the hard sell and making your marketing experience a positive and successful one.

* Engage in friendly and helpful conversation, don’t log in only to post your ads and links.

* Always address others politely and ask them how their day is going. Show genuine concern and interest.

*Provide beneficial tips (without web or affiliate links) and talk about your product first, before actually providing a link.

* Always space out your tweets. Don’t tweet every single minute. If you practice this, your followers will probably not be able to catch all your tweets. And what’s the point of tweeting if they won’t see them?

* Offer advice and answer questions when you know the answers.

* Connect with others and discuss and ask questions about their business. Of course, always use good tactics when doing this. Show your followers you are interested in them, and build effective relationships. This will encourage them to find out what you have to offer, visit your website, and possibly result in a sale.

* And finally, try to avoid posting just 1 or 2 tweets, and then leaving. Invest your time wisely, and try to offer worthy information that others will be interested in.

Associating with other business professionals and partners is what the Twitter platform is all about. Use it to your advantage and use it properly, and the benefits can be substantial for your business success.

Article Written By Tammy Embrich

Tammy has been successful in the work at home industry for many years. She is an Internet marketer, article marketer, and ghostwriter. She offers free job leads for the job seeker, as well as other work at home resources, work at home articles, tips, and more at Work At Home Jobs.

You can also find Tammy at her Grandparenting Articles and Tips blog, offering grandmother’s experiences, brags, recipes, tips, photos, and more.

Article Source: WAHM Articles

Bombarding Your Followers On Twitter With Too Many Tweets

One of the hottest online social media sites is a web site called Twitter. If you are not familiar with Twitter, it is a site where you can meet millions of people from all over the world and have a public, in real time conversation with them.

Many business professionals and companies are using the social media site Twitter as a way to brand and market their products as well as communicate with their customers. When you Tweet on Twitter, each message to your Twitter followers has to be less than 140 characters so it is like having an instant message with thousands of followers at one time.

When you are networking your business over on Twitter you need to be very careful to not bombard your followers with too many Tweets in a short amount of time. What do I mean? I often see marketers make the mistake of Tweeting out 20 Tweets/Messages in under 3 minutes. When you bombard those who are following you with too many messages…it doesn’t give them the chance to read it before you slam out another one. When you do this too often, others will also brand you as a Twitter Spammer which is the last thing you want for your business over on Twitter.

When Tweeting…it is important to space out your tweets so that you are allowing enough time in between them for followers to read them. A good rule of thumb is to allow 3+ minutes. The only time this rule does not apply is when you are conversing with a follower or followers in a more personal chatty type of way. However, this rule of thumb does apply if you are Tweeting out business links, web site links or important information that you want them to read.

In conclusion, the next time you are Tweeting over on Twitter…slow it down and space out those important business Tweets. Allow enough time in between them for followers to see and want to read them.

Shelly Hill is the owner of the Work At Home Business Options web site where you can find home business, social media, direct sales and other articles & business tips. You can visit Work At Home Business Options at http://www.workathomebusinessoptions.com. You can also find Shelly at her Ghostwriting Web Site with her partner Chris Caroll at http://www.twoclassyghostwritingchics.com where they offer their Ghostwriting services to others.

One of the biggest online Social Media Networking sites is Twitter and it seems to be the flavor of the day when it comes to advertising & marketing an online business.

With that said…there is a right and a wrong way to market your business on Twitter. Today I would like to discuss how you can lose oodles of Twitter followers if you don’t market yourself properly on Twitter.

Here is what you shouldn’t be doing over on Twitter.

1. Using foul language.
2. Being hateful, racist, sexist and just overall being a mean argumentive person.
3. Don’t tweet out business spam links 24/7. We all get spammed enough.
4. If you discuss hot button topics like religion, politics, headline news, etc. Be prepared to chase off followers who are not going to agree with your views.
5. Tweet too much – No one wants their twitter stream junked up by 50 tweets from you every hour. Find a nice balance.
6. Tweet out the same thing over and over every hour or two. No one wants to read about the same topic or item 10 times in an hour.

The point of this post is…there is a right and a wrong way to gain followers over on Twitter. If you are tweeting out things that folks want to read/hear about they will follow you and continue to follow you. If you tweet out garbage & spam…you will lose the followers you worked so hard to gain.

Shelly