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closeA few years ago social networking online was an interesting but seemingly inconsequential trend. It's now such a huge deal that every business owner better know what it's about and how it can boost or sink a company.
Last week Whatcom Community College hosted the first-ever Social Media Conference NW, which had a variety of speakers talking about how social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace are impacting businesses.
While advertising on social networks can have its benefits to a business, the remarkable thing is how customer word-of-mouth is now amplified. A small business can become a darling on a networking site through some good word-of-mouth from a few happy customers, vastly increasing exposure (and sales). It can also be a business owner's worst nightmare if a dissatisfied customer trashes the company online.
Mike Rich, director of marketing solutions at comScore and one of the presenters at the conference, said in many ways business owners can use social networking to their advantage by using the same techniques they should already be using.
"Honestly, it really comes down to the basics of how a business treats its customers," Rich said after his presentation. "If the business owner is successful at that, they don't need to do much else because the customer will do the work for them."
During the presentation, Rich gave an overview of the social networking landscape, and the numbers are mind-boggling. Facebook has around 140 million unique visitors a month. On MySpace, three out of five college students visit it at least once a month. Linked In, a business-oriented networking site, has seen 122 percent growth year-over-year. There are also places like Craig's List, Yelp and Twitter for businesses to either sell product or get their names out there.
"It's time to embrace social media, because it's here to stay," Rich said.
There are plenty of options when it comes to embracing it, according to Rich. One way is to encourage customers who like your business to talk about it online. Word gets around quickly in Whatcom County about the good and the bad of a new business; social network sites are a much bigger place to do it. For some businesses, an interesting trend these days is to create a widget, or an ad, and let people grab it and blog about it. This is a way for the company to get its message to go "viral," spreading all around the Internet. It's amazing where the widgets end up as people continue forwarding it along.
Business owners can promote their company, through advertising, creating a blog about the company or talking about it on the social network sites. It takes some work, but if business owners can connect with potential customers through conversations, it's good for business.
It's also important for companies to continuously monitor their brand, no matter how small the company, Rich said. Customers are probably commenting about the business somewhere online. On Yelp, hundreds of Bellingham businesses are listed with reviews, including more than 150 restaurants.
"The suggestion box on the desk of a company is now online for everyone to see," Rich said.
The conference was organized by Whatcom Community College, Western Washington University's Small Business Development Center and Technology Group for Northwest Washington. More information about the conference can be found at www.socialmediaconferencenw.com. Video blogs of the conference are at www.socialpastures.com, put together by Aaron Booker of Hardlines.
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Caregivers
The Courtyard -
Accounts Receivable - Contracts Manager
Sicklesteel Cranes, Inc. -
Finance Director
WTA -
Research & Development Engineer
Samson Rope -
Contracts Assistant, Financial Services
WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
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