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Importance of Using Social Media as part of your Business Marketing

Guest Post Article by Zac Grace from Dejan SEO

25/10/11

Category: Social Media Marketing, Business Marketing, SEO

When contemplating various online marketing methods, there is one strategy in particular that is often overlooked, especially by older business owners: Social media. In its early life, social media was a way for teenagers and young adults to communicate with each other. While this is still a major use for social media, online marketers and social media site owners realised that they can leverage the power of social interaction.

Why would you, a business owner, want to use social media as part of your online marketing strategy? You may be surprised to find out that it was declared the best way to advertise online multiple times by various professional groups. Here are some very basic yet important reasons why you should use social media as part of your business marketing strategy.

Vastly increase your customer base

Facebook alone has over 800 million users according to Facebook's blog. Can you imagine reaching all of those people? Would you be happy to just reach 1% of all those people? Actually, businesses all over the world are launched into a viral spin thanks to Facebook alone. It is not uncommon for brand new businesses to make thousands in monthly revenue in just a short time by advertising on Facebook.

There are literally thousands of videos on YouTube that have millions of views. What would you do if your company's promotional videos gained millions of views? Many viral YouTube videos become popular thanks to word of mouth marketing. All it takes is one person that likes what he or she sees and sends that video to friends and family.

Personally communicate with your customers

As a business owner you probably know that your PR management must be properly maintained. However, without being able to communicate with your customers, you may find it difficult to maintain a positive reputation. Did you know that you can solve your PR problems by communicating with your customers on social media sites? The need for Press releases is diminishing as more business owners are moving their marketing strategy online, now communicating with customers via blogs, Twitter and Facebook.

Any kind of bad press can be counteracted with a simple Tweet that clears up any confusion or misunderstanding. There is no better way to clear up misunderstanding than going directly to the source of the subject.

Improve your rankings

Though Google and Facebook are considered direct competition, Google does register Facebook pages in its search listings. Therefore, if you owned a cleaning business in say, Gladstone and a Gladstone resident decided to use Google (or Bing or Yahoo) to find a cleaning business, he/she would potentially find your Facebook page, Google maps listing as well as your website in the search results. By utilizing social media sites, you improve your SEO and increase your exposure in search listings. Instead of just seeing one result for your company, customers may see multiple listings about your company, greatly increasing the chance of them choosing you for their needs.

Reach a specific audience

If you run special deals or promotions, there is no better way to advertise those deals than with social media. In fact, many business owners create special coupons or discounts that are only available to Twitter followers, Facebook page fans or newsletter receivers. Some business owners even hold online contests for customers. With a little creativity, you can generate a buzz about your company, sparking curiosity in your customers.

Conclusion

Using social media for your marketing strategy is effective; however, it is also difficult to master. Some online marketers devote much of their time to learn new social media marketing methods. Therefore, if you are a very busy business owner, you may even want to hire a special staff member or hire a third-party business to take care of your company's social media accounts. This will ensure your social media accounts are being properly maintained, thus increasing its effectiveness.

About The Author
Zac Grace works as SEO strategist and link building team leader at Dejan SEO. You can connect with Zac on Twitter and Google+.

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