Social Media Will Change Your Business

Look past the yakkers, hobbyists, and political mobs. Your customers and rivals are figuring blogs out. Our advice: Catch up…or catch you later

 In other words, if you have a business it does not matter if it is small or large, it does not matter if you are network marketing or have a traditionally structured home based business, you need to be must start blogging.  This article will tell you why.

I don’t think that I can state it enough when I write here, if you want to rise above the competition, you must establish yourself as an expert in your field.  You can use a blog to easily establish yourself as that expert in your customer’s mind.  When that happens, if they have a need for your product they won’t even consider getting their need filled somewhere else.  That is because they know where to find an expert and that expert is you.

Let me give you a few examples.  I have a friend that owns a wine tasting business.  She gives wine tasting parties and sells wine.  However, in addition to her wine tasting parties, she could use a blog to write articles on how to choose a wine.  She could give wine reviews.  She could write an article on how to store wines, etc…  She could put video up on her blog on what to look for when you are swishing the wine around in your mouth at a tasting.  These are all things that her customers want to know. 

Now, I know what you are probably saying – “Kevin, I can do all of those things with a traditional website”.  That is true, but I am going to let you in on a secret.  Google and all the other search engines love blogs.  Let’s just say that they get special consideration.  However, it is because that they love them so much that blogging will help you get at the top of the search listings.  You will get free organic traffic.  So in my friend’s case, let’s say that I am a consumer and I am searching for some information on a wine for tonight’s meal and I find my friend’s wine blog.  There is some interesting content there so I decide to opt in to get the free information or newsletter that she produces.  (hint - there is another little nugget right there for you, more about that later)  What has my friend just done?  Right – she has just captured a new name for her list.  She has another potential new customer.  The secret is in the list.

How about another example. Suppose that you are a contractor.  Right now, the contracting business is tough.  How can you differentiate yourself from every one else?  Well, how about some videos on your blog that show all the extra steps that you take to do the job right.  Does your competition do any of that?  No, they are competing on price.  However, just doing that one little thing will put you head and shoulders above the competition and can help justify in the consumer’s mind why your price is a little higher.  People will pay for quality if they know what they are getting.  When consumer’s are hiring contractors, half the time it is a crap shoot.  But, if you took the time to explain why dealing with you is not a crap shoot, then “ba da bing, ba do boom – you just made a sale, baby!”  Oh, and while they are there have them opt-in to get the free e-book ¹that you wrote on “How to Choose a Quality Contractor”.    There is that hint again.  You just captured the name of a potential customer that you can market to in the future. 

I know of a roofer in San Diego that does this very same thing. When he is on the roof, he video tapes and explains what he is doing.  If you do a search for roofers in San Diego, he always appears at the top of the listings because not only do the search engines love blogs, they really love video and blogs.

My final traditionally structured business example is for a friend of mine that just announced that she has started a natural healing business.  She could write an e-book with valuable content as a give away to capture names, she could do videos showing her techniques, she could write articles.  Then, when someone has a pain in their neck and wants natural healing (that is their need) they will call her because she provided valuable information that established her as expert.

If you have a network marketing business, you can do the same thing.  If it is health related, do some articles on the need for healthy living.  Maybe you can touch on the problem with depleted soils and the need for supplementation.  Travel businesses can talk about travel deals or travel tips.  Or, you could have a general business marketing tips site like this one.  Over time as you establish trust and position yourself as an expert, people will come to you when they have a need.  That need may be a product need or a need for an opportunity.  Be sure to give a way free information as an enticement to have people join your list as I have done here.

If you would like further information on how you can use business blogging to help your business, please use the form below to contact me.  As always, if you have comments for the comments section they are appreciated.

1. If you don’t know how or can’t write your own e-book, read my article on outsourcing to learn how to get someone else to do it inexpensively.

Have you ever had a prospect say something like that to you after you showed them the business that you were involved with?  I had it happen to me recently.  I was so excited about my new business that I broke my cardinal rule and shared it with some friends.  However, they were not in “the same place” that I was and could not see the possibilities.

So what do you do if you don’t want to talk to friends and family?  Well, there are techniques that are used to attract people to your business instead of your having to try to entice them to join your business.  These techniques are not new and many huge fortunes have been made in the home based business industry with them.  It is just that until all of these new Internet tools came out (you may have heard of the term Web 2.0), it was not easy nor was it very inexpensive to implement them.  Many of the industry heavy hitters used them.  Think of postcards, newspaper ads, and magazine ads.  All of these techniques have been used by past industry heavy hitters to attract people to their opportunity instead of the other way around.

Think about it.  Your positioning changes completely if someone asks you what you are doing instead of your telling them about what you are doing.  Because of the all the Web 2.0 tools that abound now, it is much easier to attract people to you if you know how it is done.  BTW, for those that don’t know, Web 2.0 tools include blogs (like what you are reading now), E-zines, Facebook, and Myspace to name a few.

If you would like to learn more of how you can use attraction marketing techniques for any online business that you may have, I encourage you to download the free e-book, “7 Great Lies of Network Marketing“.  You can use this link.

To your success! – Kevin

Think about this, if you visit Best Buy to purchase a flat screen television and you have a question do you feel more comfortable talking to the guy that just started yesterday and seems unsure when you ask a question?  Or, do you prefer the guy that confidently answers your question and positions himself as an expert in his field?  Of course, most people are going to pick the expert.  Those same people are going to pick the expert when they consider joining you in your opportunity as well.  If you position yourself as an expert, then people are going to feel very comfortable joining you in your latest venture.

Anyway, back to my friend’s business card.  There 2 things on the card that said amateur and here are two tips you can use to brand yourself and  avoid the same mistakes:

• Use of company replicated websites - The website on her card was the company’s website slash her rep id.   I don’t advocate the use of company replicated websites, the search engines don’t like them.  It is better to have your own domain and website that is either a capture page or a blog that then points to the company site.  Blogs are really easy to setup.  I happen to like Wordpress, but I hear Typepad is good too. (for a discussion that I found about one over the other, click here)  However, if you have to use the company’s site you should at least redirect the domain name to your company’s replicated website.
• Use of free e-mail accounts – My friends e-mail account was either at  Yahoo or Hotmail, I don’t remember.  Which sounds more professional to you, the free account or xxxxxx@your-domain.com.  Nothing sounds more like you are in this thing fo the long haul than having your ow domain name.  You can get one for under $10 over at Go Daddy.  You can then set up your e-mail and re-direct in one fell swoop.

Until next time….

Kevin

P.S. – If you are struggling in Network Marketing, you don’t have to anymore.  Stop trying to sign friends and family.  Don’t buy MLM leads.  Learn  attract marketing techniques to bring prospects to you.  Do yourself a favor and get the free e-book, “7 Great Lies Of Network Marketing“.  Click here to get it.

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