Free Marketing: 101 Low and No-Cost Ways to Grow Your Business, Online and Off

CHAPTER 11

SOCIAL MEDIA AND FREE MARKETING

Facebook, Twitter, and the other dozens of social media sites are still a bit of a mystery to most businesses. While there are plenty of books and training courses on the subject, most businesses still feel like they are in experimental mode, at best, when it comes to their social media marketing efforts.

In Part 12 of this book I cover social media marketing in more detail, but this chapter is a brief reminder that it is worth the effort to put your business on Facebook, Twitter, and other social marketing sites only if you can make it a habit. An effective social media marketing effort is not a one-time program or effort that can be assigned to one staff member. It has to become part of your culture and it may not pay big dividends overnight. Committing to social media marketing means committing to a new level of intimacy with your prospects and customers. Success relies on many of the same factors that make any relationship work—time, effort, and attention to “the little things” as you build a genuine authentic relationship with those most interested in your products, services, or message.

The good news is that you can start anytime you'd like, and it's free. Many of the most creative and inspirational success stories in business have their roots in social media. It's time to start learning the basics and then get in the habit of being there—even if you start slowly.