Harnessing the power of Social Media to help your small business An open discussion facilitated by Calvin Jones SOHO Solo West Cork member & Co-author of “Understanding Digital Marketing

An open discussion facilitated by

Calvin Jones

SOHO Solo West Cork member

& Co-author of “Understanding Digital Marketing

...and it's time to engage! There's a conversation going on...

A bit about me.... Freelance writer SOHO Solo member since early 2004 Co-Author of “Understanding Digital Marketing” Blogger Social Media Advocate

Freelance writer

SOHO Solo member since early 2004

Co-Author of “Understanding Digital Marketing”

Blogger

Social Media Advocate

'Why does listening to your customers sound like a web 2.0 idea? It should be a business 1.0 necessity.' - Jeff Jarvis 'We have technology, finally, that for the first time in human history allows people to really maintain rich connections with much larger numbers of people.' - Pierre Omidyar, founder of EBay

'Why does listening to your customers sound like a web 2.0 idea? It should be a business 1.0 necessity.' - Jeff Jarvis

'We have technology, finally, that for the first time in human history allows people to really maintain rich connections with much larger numbers of people.' - Pierre Omidyar, founder of EBay

Some of the things we'll talk about (but not necessarily, and perhaps not in this order ...because this is a conversation, not a lecture)‏ What is Social Media and why should I care? How is social media changing the business landscape? Is social media really useful for smaller businesses? How do I get started? What are the Social Media rules of engagement?

What is Social Media and why should I care?

How is social media changing the business landscape?

Is social media really useful for smaller businesses?

How do I get started?

What are the Social Media rules of engagement?

What “ is” Social Media Let's look to a social media site to give us a short explanation of “ social media in plain English” (*crossing fingers that the Hotel WiFi works*)‏ You'll find more great “In Plain English” stuff from CommonCraft on YouTube or at www.commoncraft.com

? What is Social Media Web 2.0 Reviews & Ratings Social Networks Social Bookmarking Groups Social Submission Blogs Podcasts Wikis

?

? Why should you get involved? Learn Influence Engage Collaborate Reputation Authority Trust Exposure

?

Where to begin... Start small... baby steps are OK as long as you're moving in the right direction. Use what you already know Pick the social media platforms most relevant to your business Listen first... only fools rush in! Be constructive; add value to the conversation. Know the rules and abide by them. Don't try and do everything at once!

Start small... baby steps are OK as long as you're moving in the right direction.

Use what you already know

Pick the social media platforms most relevant to your business

Listen first... only fools rush in!

Be constructive; add value to the conversation.

Know the rules and abide by them.

Don't try and do everything at once!

Easing into things.... Sign up as a SOHO Solo Member Create an account on the SOHO Solo West Cork Blog Post a few comments to get yourself into the swing of things Start contributing your own posts to the blog Set up a Twitter account and follow @SOHOSolo Join LinkedIn and become a member of the SOHO Solo group

Sign up as a SOHO Solo Member

Create an account on the SOHO Solo West Cork Blog

Post a few comments to get yourself into the swing of things

Start contributing your own posts to the blog

Set up a Twitter account and follow @SOHOSolo

Join LinkedIn and become a member of the SOHO Solo group

...ENGAGE! You'll find me on... My blog: http://www.blog.cjwriting.com Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/calvin141170 LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/calvinjones Skype YahooIM AIM: calvin141170 ...among other places online and of course on www.sohosolowestcork.com www.twitter.com/sohosolo