Casual Fridays BLOG

Casual Fridays is going through a growth spurt! I guess you could call it our teenage years. We are over 3 years old now, but in the world of tech, you have to multiple that by four, right?

You hear it everywhere you turn: ‘like’ us on Facebook, ‘follow’ us on Twitter, ‘connect’ with us on LinkedIn, ‘check-in’ with us on Foursquare, add us to your Google+ ‘circles,’ and now ‘pin it’ on Pinterest. These are just a few of the phrases businesses are throwing at people to connect with them via social media. With social media, businesses have a huge opportunity to get in front and stay top of mind with their current and prospective customers. The problem is, maintaining and utilizing each of these social networks properly can easily get overwhelming for a business.

• Scrawl - Scrawl is a note taking application that rests right on your desktop. It's awesome and rests right in the top toolbar of your desktop. Post it notes are a thing of the past. Best part is Scrawl is easy to access, easy to use, and you can copy/paste your notes with ease to other applications. It's perfect for taking quick notes on compelling social media content or drafting that perfect status update.
• Reeder - This is by far my favorite RSS reader application. For starters, it syncs with your Google Reader account, so no multiple set-ups. On top of that, if you have an iPhone and iPad, they all sync together. Set up the RSS feeds of all your favorite blogs and websites and you'll never miss a thing. Plus, it has one step sharing and saving functionality built right within the app. Making it easy to email, tweet or save an article to Evernote.
• Buffer - Hootsuite is one application we use for social media management, Buffer is the other. To be honest with you, Buffer only lacks one small thing that would make it our exclusive tool for scheduleing status updates, which is the ability to schedule an update on an exact date, while keeping other updates in your buffer que. But outside of that, it is awesome, easy and efficient.

By now you’ve probably heard of this rapidly growing site, and if not: you’re not talking to any women under the age of 40. It cracked the top 10 social media sites last month and it is getting buzz all over the social media space: it’s Pinterest. I’m guessing as a busy business owner, you haven’t had time to check it out. Let me just tell you, if your business wants to talk to women 25-40, you better get educated. Here’s why it’s so great:

It amazes me how many businesses I see that literally have no clue how to properly engage with their audience in social media. They treat their Facebook and Twitter company pages like one long advertisement rotating between text updates and links to their website about their products, services and specials.

• Don't leave any part of the profile incomplete. If you leave parts missing, then the page looks unfinished and unprofessional. Pay attention to detail, and don't let small things like that slip through the cracks.
  
  
• Make sure to create a unique Facebook URL. Directing customers to facebook.com/CompanyName is a lot easier then telling them to find you at facebook.com/345e5949ufl. It is like having a website. It is far better to have www.companyname.com than www.freewebsite.yourcompanyname.com.

• Make use of different Facebook applications to give your Facebook page a more professional and enhanced look. Facebook along with third party applications allow businesses to customize their Facebook page quickly and easily. It's like having a personalized website, but easier and most of the time 100% free! Of course, there are companies out there that can help you with these features too - like Casual Fridays!

• Perhaps a business has an online store? Well how about integrating a "Shop Now" tab on the Facebook page? This allows the audience to easily shop products and services right from Facebook. This makes for great customer service and ease of use. People like ease of use.
  
  
• Engage fans by pushing out unique and valuable content. I know this is standard, but it is surprising how many companies only use social networks for self-promotion. This is a business' chance to show their audience what they know, and how good they are at what they do. Strive to become an industry expert. Be the brand that the audience looks to for valuable insight into the industry.
  
  
• Run Facebook contests and promotions. People love having the chance to win free stuff or obtain something at a discount.  Giveaway your product or service or perhaps even third party products (last we checked, people love Visa gift cards). A person who may not even be a fan of the brand will take advantage of the opportunity to win something free. On this note, when running contests or promotions make use of the customized pages and tabs I talked about earlier. These make them more official and professional.
  
  
• Finally, be friendly, funny and inviting. Facebook is a marketing playground, and the best part about this sandbox is its filled with millions of people to play with. Don't be the bully that no one wants to build the castle with. Invite people to engage and join the conversation with lighter topics and content. You don't always have to be so intense. Peoples' lives are stressful and serious enough. Give the audience something to laugh at and something to enjoy. People are attracted to positive energy and attitudes, and will be more likely to engage with the "feel good" company, rather than the thundercloud.

1. Investigate - Do some simple searches on their own personal social media presence. Check out their company's Facebook page, Twitter profile, YouTube page, etc. If they don't have much for a fan base, ask them why. Odds are if they don't have a presence, they are learning on the job with your business and your money. Ask them their philosophy on managing each of the popular social networks and see if it's consistent with what you observe on their company's social networks. If it's not, they probably are just selling you a bunch of fluff.
   
   
2. Ask For Examples - Ask them to provide current examples of clients that they work for where they perform the exact same services you are hiring them to do for you. Go a step further and compare what they are doing to their clients competitors. Are they truly providing their clients with a superior presence?
   
   
3. Compare - Take one of your competitors social media campaigns and ask the agency or consultant you are looking to hire to tell you what they would copy or do differently. If they tell you "contests," run! Be sure to hire an agency or consultant that is thinking forward and providing fresh and new ideas. FYI...contests are so 1980s and 1990s. 

People often ask us 'Why do we need to hire a social media consultant when our business already has a full time marketing manager?' It's actually a great question. But the reality is, in the technology savvy world we now live in, we ask, why wouldn't you?

It's not the 1970s, 80s, 90s or even early 2000s anymore. We live in a ridiculously fast paced world, where the reality is the technology and advancements that go behind something as technical as digital and social media is ALWAYS changing. To think your full time marketing manager can stay on top of these advancements along with doing the day-to-day responsibilties that also come with their job is a colossal mistake.

Thus we give you three reasons why you need a socila media marketing consultant whether you are a marketing manager for a company or even a business owner that thinks you can do all this stuff yourself.