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Thursday, July 12, 2012

Social Media Marketing in 15 Minutes a Day.

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PRWeb : The Connection
Social Media Marketing in 15 Minutes a Day.

By now you're well aware of the importance of social media marketing to connect with customers and drive new business. Yet trying to keep up with Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Pinterest and more (while also running a business) can be overwhelming. Here's how to stay on top of social media marketing in just fifteen minutes per day.

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1

Show Face (5 mins)
Spend the first minute scanning your company Facebook wall to answer any new posts, comments or questions from fans and customers. Then, post an update, add a new product photo, or link to a story about something relevant to your industry. Aim for one new Facebook post per day. If you're short of ideas, look at current events. Need to drum up business during a particularly hot week, for example? Come up with a fun Facebook coupon code (such as HEATWAVE) for any customer who gets two friends to "like" your page that week.

2

Tweet Away (4 mins)
Do a quick search on trending news in your topic of business. Find a few stories that might be of interest to your customers or industry partners. Tweet one, and schedule a few others to be automatically sent from your Twitter account later in the day. Applications like the Vocus Marketing Suite can do this for you.

3

Pin It (2 mins)
Find or upload five great images that relate to your brand and "pin" them to your Pinterest boards. Don't overthink it. Did you recently witness a great example of customer service, like homemade cookies at the check-in desk of your hotel? Pin that photo under "Inspiration" or "Customer Service."

4

Blog Roll (3 min)
Review the latest headlines of posts on the influential blogs in your industry. Setting up an RSS feed makes easy to see them all in one place. Read a few, and post comments on one or two (with your Twitter handle or website attached, if possible). This helps to make readers aware of your brand and builds your online network.

5

Give Some Gratitude (1 min)
Did a customer rave about you on Twitter? Tweet back and say thank you. The same goes for positive reviews on Yelp! and other social media forums. Expressing gratitude humanizes your business and makes people want to be a part of your social circle. Take the time to thank customers personally and your business will grow.

And… relax! Managing social media on top of your other marketing duties and making it all fit into your long-term strategy can appear daunting. Breaking up the job into small tasks makes it easier. Just like the sales and marketing efforts it supports, social media is all about relationships. The more you put into it, the more you'll get back. Connections and brand awareness tend to have a snowball effect. Plus, it can be lots of fun.