10 Tips to Optimising Social Media For Your Business

When social media sites like Orkut, Facebook and Twitter debuted, the paradigm of communication and public relations changed forever. These sites, and others that came after them, opened the floodgates to information-sharing.   But simply using a social media site for your product or service is not enough. It's all about using creative content in the right way, that is, what you say and how you say it makes all the difference. Countless businesses have made Internet history by using these Web-based tools, from global corporations to mom-and-pop outfits.   Remember, the key to making social media work for you is to engage, interact and keep it fresh and exciting.   Put yourselves in your audience's shoes  Find out what your audience wants. Ask yourself what you would want if you were at the receiving end. Doesn't it feel great to get what you have always wanted? "How you say the expected is important," says Samit Malkani, Creative Head, Jack In The Box World Wide.   It's never about hardsell Never use the social media only for direct sales promotion; it bores people. Instead, engage users with visual content, contests and discussions. Use content that will hook your audience and make them want to visit your profile again and again, and even talk about it.   People want to discuss new products - not buy them  Social media users love talking about things and offering their views. They are not there to buy products online. Give them a platform that will allow them to do this. "For instance, Twitter is a portal for online social messaging and interacting with like-minded people," explains Suveer Bajaj, Co-Founder, Foxymoron. "Thus, it can be a great platform for discussion." So engage your audience and make them want to talk about your profile. Accept their advice and feedback, and conduct an online poll to capture their interest.   Remember, you're not the only brand in your category Since you are bound to have competitors, you should do tons of research before you introduce your brand on social media. People are always excited to get information but it needs to be correct. This is sacrosanct. Make your brand stand out from the competition.   People search for products, not brands After research, what next? It's simple - you have to be the best among the rest. Find out what is unique about you via-a-via your competitors and then highlight it. It's easy to get lost in a sea of similar products and/or services and for people to overlook you.    Why people are online Never forget, people are online for entertainment, information and utility. So entertain your audience with attractive visuals, contests and discussions. Provide them with information, like using important days/dates to gel with your product on social media. There are many upgradations to social sites which are very useful. Suveer Bajaj, Co-Founder, Foxymoron, points out, "Facebook's shift from its old format to a timeline is an advantage as one can now dig back into history."     Surprise your audience - but leave them delighted too The equation of social media is, "What you say + how you say it," reveals Samit Malkani, Creative Head, Jack In The Box World Wide. Always excite your audience by giving them the unexpected but not shocking them. Make them an offer or modify your product in a way that will delight them.    Reply to negative questions / comments as well and solve their problemNo one likes to be ignored. If someone does not like your product and posts a negative comment, you could always delete it but that will not solve the problem. Instead, talk to the user, find out exactly what they do not like or whether they had a bad experience with your product. Apologise, if necessary, and try and make amends instead of giving them a chance to bad-mouth you.   Your content should be topical and relatable Stick to the topic and do not digress. Understand your brand thoroughly and speak in that voice. You could, for instance, amaze your audience or tell stories which connect with your audience.   It's an exciting world of social media out there. Get it right and it works! Another plus - instead of hiring an army of marketing execs, let social media do the talking. It's also a great way to save precious resources and money. via

Be More Social Using Buffer for Social Media

Chances are you’ve heard of the social media tool called Buffer. If you haven’t, it is a sharing and scheduling tool that allows you to stack up posts to be sent out at prescheduled times. You can send out messages, links, and pictures to the major social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. 

Buffer is different from many other social scheduling tools because you don’t have to manually schedule each post or upload complicated spreadsheets. Simply set the times, day or night, that your followers are most active and that’s when updates will be sent.

If this sounds like the app you’ve been looking for there is a free version or you can enter to win the pro version on my Facebook page.

So how does Buffer make your social media experience more social?

Simple, it gives you more time to listen, find new followers, and join conversations.

As social media managers, marketers, and junkies we know it’s important to keep our feeds fresh and flowing. We know that sharing our own content drives traffic but we must also share what is relevant and engaging from others to build a trusting community. The problem is that finding this content and sharing it at the right time isn’t easy. It can take an hour or two out of each day to get this task done.

One of the quickest and easiest ways to consume content is through RSS feeds. If you haven’t already, add all of your favorite blogs to a free RSS aggregator like Google Reader. This allows you to quickly skim through a lot of content and read the articles that really stand out to you. 

Buffer has recently added a sharing button to Google Reader using their browser extensions. This allows you to easily share content that your followers would find useful while only spending about 10-15 minutes each day ‘buffering’. 

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