5 key questions answered about social media

Social Media, such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are having a major impact on the way people build business relationships and make purchasing decisions. Google is using these sites, plus review sites like Tripadviser and Qype to contribute to web site rankings.

Social media sites are the fastest growing on the web, doubling in traffic over the last year. Of all social media users, 47% say social media sites influence their purchasing decisions.

Here are the answers to 5 key questions that were asked in 2011…

Why participate in social media?

We believe that social media should be part of a companies overall internet marketing strategy. Done well, social media can:

1) Generate more exposure for your business
2) Increase traffic to your web site
3) Bring in new qualified leads
4) Build new and existing business relationships
5) Increase sales and profits

What are the benefits of entering social media now?

The situation with regard to social media is very dynamic. If you defer participation, then you will not have the knowledge to compete with companies that have gained experience of social media, and who can communicate this to their clients.

What is PDC Internet Solutions approach to social media and engaging with customers?

The primary networks for B2B are LinkedIn and Twitter. Although Facebook is primarily a medium for B2C. Given the vast number of Facebook users, it is advisable to have an attractive Facebook page for your company as well.

We have a plan to deliver valuable content through our blog, white papers and tweets. These are focused on the market sectors that we are targeting.

Our plan is to:

· Develop a social media marketing strategy.
· Establish presence (as described above).
· Engage with new contacts by participating in groups and discussions on LinkedIn and Twitter. Also, by searching these media you will find who is talking about your key topic areas and you can respond to them.
· Nurture relationships by adding our existing contact base to LinkedIn.
· Analyse progress (there are many tools to do this).
· Obtain positive feedback and recommendations.
· Continue to add valuable content and expand your network.

How do social media relate to an Internet marketing strategy?

The social media presence must be cohesive with the internet marketing strategy. This means that:

· The website must reflect the same key marketing messages, products and services.
· The keywords that feature in social media should be the same as those on the web.
· Pay-per-click marketing should be used to test keywords and markets.
· The website should be optimised for search engine visibility and performance.
· It is vitally important to measure and analyse the performance of the website and social media and to react to trends as they occur.

How do you measure ROI from social media?

Measurement and analysis are key to an online marketing strategy. The objective of the activities is to increase the number of contacts and expand the business. Therefore it is important to establish where new clients are coming from. It is likely that the website and social media will be used to confirm a clients view of your company. Using LinkedIn or Facebook will mean that the potential customer already has a business relationship with you.

Tracking is very important and should include amongst other tools:
· Google Analytics for web site performance, new and returning visitors
· Google Adwords for referrals and keyword performance
· Google Maps for regional positioning
· Qype and other recommendation sites for reviews.
· Klout for Twitter performance.
· Google Alerts and SocialMention for mentions and references.

Please contact Lynne Lycett @ PDC Internet Solutions for further information on telephone number: 01455 290 222 or e-mail: llycett@pdcnet.org.uk.

About PDC - PDC Internet Solutions Experience of social media for B2B

PDC Internet Solutions have been involved in large-scale business networks for over 10 years. Originally, these were on our own content-managed extranet systems, and more recently using open-source software. We have been training many organisations to use social media, both for B2B and B2C, including professional services. Please have a look at our recommendations on Qype: http://www.qype.co.uk/place/1515254-PDC-Internet-Solutions-Nuneaton.

For further information on PDC please visit: http://www.pdcnet.org.uk/pdf/pdc-brochure-29072010-web.pdf to see our online brochure.