Trainers help! On Social Media, do you ever find a new Follower, or clock a new Contact and think: "Why on Earth have they chosen to link up with me?!"
Whether it's a balloon-bender from Bolton, or a butler-in-the-buff from Brighton, there are times when the folk who want to be "part of my gang" make no sense whatsoever! To be fair, when I started out on Social Media, I probably did the same. I hadn't a clue what I was doing and assumed that the more "Likes" or "Friends" I had, the more popular I'd appear and the more the phone would ring, or my email would ping with offers of work. Wrong!
Over the last couple of days, I've reflected on how I use Social Media and who I'd like to be in my troop. For a training and consultancy service such as mine, Linkedin has reaped rewards in terms of hooking-up with long-lost colleagues, showcasing what I do and bringing in business. I've happily sought out other professionals with a vested interest in careers guidance and working with children, young people and adults in the hope they'll be just a wee bit interested in what I post.
My question is - what do you "do" with your list of contacts? Do they just sit there looking lovely, or, do you actively engage with them, promote and market what you do? Do they respond to that? I often worry it feels a bit like "cold emailing" and that gets up people's noses.
I run a Linkedin Group for professionals in the Career Guidance sector. It's very rare I shout from the rooftops what I do. I've seen other forums become choc-a-block full of self-promoting posts and I wouldn't want that. However, of late, I HAVE promoted an exclusive qualification discount for staff who are members. Even THEN I felt a bit cheeky!
Am I just being overly sensitive? Some online gurus would say: "Well, these people CHOSE to be one of your contacts and it IS "social media", therefore, they need to be sociable!"
Your thoughts please?
Ade.
6 Responses
Good question! I’ve always
Good question! I’ve always approached social media from the perspective of it being social in the friendly & chatty sense, and think it rarely works well when used purely as a foghorn to promote yourself.
Of course I sometimes mention things I’ve done on Twitter/Facebook/LinkedIn, but overall I’ve found the approach you’ve taken far more beneficial, as in creating a specific group centred around common interests (in my case social media or writing) which means we can legitimately share and discuss projects we’re working on, as well as promote some of our work. The problem with this approach is that we’re often preaching to the converted, but likewise it’s a useful network to have, and I’ve got a lot of referrals through the people who are in these groups and come to the meetups we organise through them.
I think people are becoming more savvy about those who just try to stack up their followers/connections for the sake of vanity stats; it’s much more about having meaningful conversations with people, who are then more likely to recommend you, as well as pass on useful advice and tips along the way!
Thanks Shonette, some great
Thanks Shonette, some great tips and advice there!
Not sure if this piece we’ve
Not sure if this piece we’ve just posted is of use too? https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/develop/cpd/how-freelancers-can-use-social-media
Thanks Shonette,
Thanks Shonette,
Brilliant! I think that should be Jon’s audition video for the next “Big Brother” !! Ade
Hi Ade, as previously
Hi Ade, as previously mentioned, I’m not marketing a business but do have a view on this. I think that you need to think wider than your immediate contact list and ask your contacts to share your content with their contacts (who may have an interest). So while I agree that your contacts are probably on-side it’s about growing that network through people you know. A ‘truth’ about selling and marketing is sometimes you have to ask for the sale so asking your contacts to share your posts is ok, I think and they will decide if they want to or not. Don’t forget you may be helping someone who genuinely needs what you are offering and didn’t otherwise knwo about it.
Cheers Clive. Great idea and
Cheers Clive. Great idea and that approach “fits” better with me. How about other members, how do YOU approach Social Media? Ade