Business - Dave Gallagher

POSTED: Thursday, Sep. 10, 2009

Finding that niche in the social media world

No matter what is happening with the economy, reaching out and connecting with customers is crucial to a business. When it comes to social media, many Whatcom County businesses are getting it.

While the current state of the economy is still the most popular topic I hear when talking to local business people, social media - Web sites like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace - is a close second these days. Most of the business people I talk to are excited about the possibilities, but plenty also have questions as it continues to change.

One business I've been impressed with is BelleWood Acres, which has a fan page on Facebook. It's apple harvest season right now, so John and Dorie Belisle are very busy, but those involved with the farm near Lynden are regularly posting updates on the fan page, which has 431 fans as of last week.

Through the fan page, the Belisles are posting details about what varieties are being harvested, uploading pictures showing what the apples look like and the work that's being done on the farm. Fans are writing back as well, asking about the apples or how the hot spell in late July impacted the fruit. There's a lot of interest in what is happening at that farm, and that should be good for sales.

Trying to find a niche and connecting with customers through social media is keeping business owners busy. Greg Marshall, director of community education at Whatcom Community College, said the college has nine different social media classes in the coming months, many of which are directed at business owners. Based on the interest from people he's talked to, he expects each of those classes to fill up.

The most common question he gets from business owners is how much they should be doing.

"I tell business owners to focus on one or two tools and learn to do them really well, rather than trying to be everywhere," Marshall said. "Figure out where your target audience is. For example, if you're target audience is over 30, try Facebook and Twitter. If your marketing toward teens, that may not be your place."

Here are some other trends that Marshall has noticed:

• More people are asking about iPhones. WCC has added a couple of classes about using iPhones because of its growing popularity. As iPhones and other similar products become better at allowing people to update Web sites and post information from anywhere, it's catching the interest of the business owners who have to travel.

• More interesting changes are on the way. Marshall believes we're just about at the point where people standing in one area can access an iPhone-type device and ask for the nearest coffee place and give out plenty of information. The device will be able to give you a Google Earth-type view of where the other cafes are, along with reviews and coupons and maybe point out which Facebook friends are nearby.

• There's more interest about writing effectively for the Web. Marshall said it takes a bit longer to read things on the Internet, so writing tightly is the way to go. It's one reason Twitter is so popular: People can easily digest a message that has 140 characters or less.

• Social media will be an ongoing learning process.

"Who knows what (classes) we'll be adding in the winter and spring. That's what makes social media so interesting, there is so much taking place as this industry matures," Marshall said.

Is it worth the effort for businesses? I guess we'll find out, but if a small farm like BelleWood Acres can regularly connect with more than 400 people on a fan page that gets plenty of comments and questions, I would think the farm is building the kind of customer loyalty business owners dream of building.

By the way, Marshall said there is still room in some of the social media classes at Whatcom Community College and they are always looking for ideas for other topics. For questions and more information, e-mail him at comed@whatcom.ctc.edu.