By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

Twitter can be a tough concept to wrap your head around. Many business owners I meet are either overwhelmed by the conversations (or lack thereof) or can’t figure out how to use the service as a business tool.  Connie Benson, Community Strategist for Techrigy, created a comprehensive slide presentation about how Twitter can support lead generation.

The primary points of the presentation include:

• Engage people as people first and don’t push your sales pitch.
• Listening is a critical key for engagement on Twitter.
• Establish goals and challenges and assess how Twitter can support your efforts.

Benson began her journey into the world of Twitter with 5 eager team members and no budget. She notes that once she began engaging in the Twitter community:

• Within 3 months her customer base increased by 57%
• Within 6 months her customer base increased by 269%
• Within 1 year her customer base increased by 840%

I hope that you enjoy this presentation as much as I did. It’s quite inspiring and says a lot about the viability of Twitter as a sales tool.

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

We’ve talked a lot lately about the ROI of social media and how we measure success. There are a variety of theories on the most effective way to assess social media ROI, and Interactive Insights Group has created one of the most comprehensive list of resources I have ever seen.

Social Media Metrics Superlist: Measurement, ROI, & Key Statistics Resources

This enormous list is broken into two categories:

• Social Media Measurement, ROI and Monitoring
• Key Social Media Statistics and Research Studies

This list ranges from the very basic to more complex theories of assessing ROI data points. There are also a variety of tools including:

• Calculating the ROI of blogging
• Social Media Monitoring Wiki
• Social Media Metrics Wiki
• Analytics Toolbox: 50+ More Ways to Track Website Traffic
• Social Media measurement

Also, check out my previous posts on ROI:

• How One Company Assessed ROI on Social Media
• Social Capital – How Do I Measure Success?

What are the most critical points of social media ROI for your firm?

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.

By Aaron Taylor

This week’s Pivot newsletter article on expanding the client relationship seemed to resonate with many of our readers. In the article, we submit evidence that most clients aren’t aware of the range of services provided by their professional services firms.

Why do clients who are pleased with the job your firm has done in the past occasionally turn around and buy services you offer from a competitor? Usually it is because they don’t know all that you do. If you aren’t actively explaining your services to clients, you are probably missing a lot of opportunities. According to our study — and reader’s responses — clients want this information and they want it delivered personally.

David Galen, a commercial photographer (who doesn’t shoot weddings), put it this way:

“I am always educating clients about different services we offer. Despite that, I still get the stereotypical response from businesses that have known me or at least known OF me for years — “Oh, you do weddings, right?” I quietly excuse myself, go to my car and scream, regain my composure and return to my meeting. Those experiences teach me that businesses who I thought knew me obviously don’t. Nothing beats the personal contact. Despite our websites, print ads, direct mail, etc., we need to be reminded that a personal meeting or phone call beats EVERYTHING else.”

Don’t get so caught up in the details of an engagement that you forget to educate your clients. Existing clients are, after all, a professional services firm’s best source of future business. Just because you work with people on a regular basis doesn’t mean they know you — according to our research, they probably don’t. And they’ll go elsewhere for a service they would have been happy to send your way.

One IP attorney explains,”We have patent clients that don’t know about our trademark and corporate services, and my experience has generally been that the personal visit is the best way to educate the client as to the range and breadth of services.”

Ignorance is bliss only if you don’t need a lot of repeat business.

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

Social Media Today recently published a very interesting (albeit not surprising) post about why companies are reluctant, and in some cases, downright scared to use social media. I really like this post because the six reasons given are ones that I have heard many times. The post goes on to address these concerns using compelling facts and statistics. Here are the six common worries (and some answers):

1. Employees will waste time with social media. Truth is, employees have a variety of ways to access the Internet during the work day — with or without permission. So, why not encourage them to be part of your brand story instead of banning them from it?
2. Haters will damage our brand. Scott Monty of Ford once said that “crisis brings opportunity.” If folks are having negative discussions about your brand, you may need to make some adjustments.
3. We’ll lose control of the brand. People are talking about your brand, which is out of your control anyway. By participating in the conversation, you can help shape your brand instead of letting it crash forward like a runaway train.
4. Social media requires a real budget! It’s not really cheap, or free. Social media requires experienced staffers or consultants to guide you in integrating your social media marketing into your overall marketing plan. But the upside is worth it.
5. Fear of being sued. This is highly unlikely.
6. Fear of giving away corporate secrets or that information on social networks will affect the stock price. This can be guided with a social media policy for your employees. Most companies have guidelines for any type of corporate communications. Social media shouldn’t be any different.

How has your firm overcome social media fears?

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.

By Aaron Taylor

The air outside was noticeably colder this week, but each day brings new signs that the worst of the economic winter may be behind us. That’s good news, but nobody is pouring champaign just yet. Many professional services firms are still struggling with the same issues that dogged them a year ago — sluggish demand, competitive price cutting and reduced budgets. You can catch whiffs of caution almost anywhere you go.

One notable exception — the federal government contracting marketplace — has remained relatively hot throughout the recession. But even that industry hasn’t put away it’s winter coat just yet. A recent pair of articles on the WashingtonTechnology website discuss strategies government contractors can use to make it through these difficult times. Whether or not your business prospects are warming up as the economy thaws, the articles offer solid advice for marketing any professional services firm in good times and bad. The four tips below, taken from “Marketing Tips for Today’s Business Climate,” are supported by independent research Hinge has conducted into professional services firms:

1. Spend your marketing dollars where they will have the most impact. Challenge your assumptions and discover what will actually help you win.
2. Find out what your customer needs. Then customize your marketing — and your service offerings — to address that need.
3. Prove you’ve done similar work before. Case studies and relevant references can be important credential-building tools.
4. Make sure your proposal addresses every issue. A spot-on proposal is critical to outcompeting other firms.

There is a lot more, of course, you can do to heat up business development when the market is cool. But if your marketing plan hasn’t been delivering great results lately, consider rethinking your approach. These four tips should be a great place to start.

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

Many are saying that the first page of Google is the new resume. If it’s about you and searchable, recruiters can find it and use it to judge whether you are a good candidate. With that said, have you Googled yourself lately?

This same theory applies to your brand. I’ve recently had several new clients tell me that they found me through Google and were able to gauge whether I was a good match for their projects solely based on my Google links — without ever speaking to me. Scary, huh?

I Googled myself and my business just for this post to better explain why they way you appear on Google is important. First I searched “Beth J. Bates”:

• Link 1 – My professional blog. This gives any potential customer a window into my viewpoints, knowledge and sensibility about my industry.
• Link 2 – Link to a random post within my professional blog.
• Link 3 – Another link to my professional blog. I own most of the variations on my blog domain, so it appears in many searches.
• Link 4 – My blog on Second Life’s Nonprofit Commons. The NPC blog shows potential clients that I am tuned into the world of nonprofits, particularly as it relates to virtual worlds.
• Link 5 – My Twitter profile. I communicate using Twitter a lot, so this is a great place to asses both my personal and professional views.
• Link 6 – My company website. This is where the customer can review my services, other projects and see if I’m strategically a good fit.
• Link 7 – My blog posts on Women Grow Business, a Network Solutions-sponsored blog for women business owners and entrepreneurs. This is a great way to see how I mesh with other women in my field.
• Link 8 – My profile on my nonprofit NING community. This shows my commitment to animal welfare, love of dogs and work with the nonprofit community.
• Link 9 – My profile on Twitter’s GeoFollow. This shows where I am located in the U.S. comparable to other Twitter users. Not that important, but its likely you’ll have one link that’s not like the others.
• Link 10 – My professional blog on Facebook’s “Networked Blogs”. Again, another way to access my blog.

What’s missing? My Facebook profile which I recently changed to a vanity URL, so it should display soon. And my LinkedIn profile which also changed from “bethbates” to “bethjbates” so, again, waiting for Google to catch-up.

My company name “Web Strategies” is more difficult to gauge since its a pretty broad term as keywords go, but it is the #1 link when searched.

Since Google is the #1 search engine and more potential clients are using it to research service providers, it makes sense to not only check your brand on Google but to monitor it from time-to-time. By staying on top of Google, you can ensure that potential clients see what you truly bring to their company.

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

The White House is hiring a Social Media Archivist. Not because they want to keep all of your Twitter conversations or save incriminating Facebook photos. The 1978 Presidential Records Act (PRA) changed the legal ownership of official records generated from the Executive Office of the President from private to public and mandated that these records be filed with the National Archives and Records Administration. The act came about as a result of Watergate and has been a huge yet manageable regulation to uphold…until now. Enter social media.

The process of archiving online conversations via Twitter, Facebook, blogs, etc. has proven to be a challenge. And President Obama has been quick to embrace Gov 2.0 as a communications tool. So the White House is searching for a firm to create a method to ensure that archived social streams are efficient and available for future use.

Although we’re always warned that online content will be there “forever,” it’s actually very easy for data to disappear when blogs shut down or hosts go out of business. Archiving that data for the future is an important part of the PRA and I think it will be interesting to see what the new Social Media Archivist produces.

How do you archive your own streams? How important is it to you?

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

I was recently presenting a workshop on social media for business and was asked the question, “How much time can I expect to spend on my social media marketing?” It’s a valid question and one that gets asked all the time. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy to answer.

The short answer is “quite a bit” if you truly want to keep a consistent line of communication with your customers. But what is harder to explain is that social media doesn’t have to be a time suck if you spend your time wisely.

The Miami Herald ran a great article this week entitled “Make social media a business tool, not a distraction” and is one of the best articles that I’ve seen on the topic. Social media should be part of your marketing campaign, just like your website, e-newsletters, networking events and print collateral. So like any other task in your campaign, it should be scheduled and managed.

Here’s how I do social media on a typical day. First thing, I check my Facebook and Twitter accounts for items that require a response. Then I check my email for anything requiring immediate action. This takes 15-20 minutes. Then I spend about 30 minutes writing for my personal blog, posting my short article for the day and responding to comments. Finally, I check my RSS feeds for any interesting news or blog posts that I want to read and potentially share on Twitter. So it takes me about an hour a day to complete what I consider my minimal social media marketing requirements. I do check Facebook and Twitter at other times during the day, but just to see if there is anything that I need to tend to (much like email). In the evening, after dinner, I might login to enjoy more in-depth conversations with friends, clients and colleagues.

Everyone’s timeline will be different and will change as your needs change. But, as the Miami Herald article recommends:

• Set boundaries (schedule your time)
• Make it a lifestyle (have fun with it)
• Set personal limits (so you don’t spend all day on Facebook)
• Bridge the gap between work, family and friends (it’s important for everyone to be connected)

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

In the past, I’ve written about what to expect when attempting to determine your social media ROI. I still believe that results are largely qualitative and for some companies difficult to assign a number. However, I found a great example of putting the numbers to the test.

Computer World recently ran an interesting article about a small company — Reality Digital — that publicly assessed the ROI of its social media campaign. Reality Digital did a great job of not jumping in with both feet and got tangible results. CEO Cynthia Francis and her management team analyzed why they wanted to use social media and established specific goals. They determined their online audience and researched how the audience preferred to communicate. Then they selected tools that would help them reach that audience. It’s clear they really understood that they didn’t need to be in every social media community or spend every minute updating their profiles. And it worked.

Their social media marketing campaign resulted in:

• Total investment for social media programs (including technology costs and PR agency hours): roughly $3,000 per month
• Total sales leads generated in April, May and June: 72
• Average sales leads per month: 24
• Average cost per sales lead: $125
• Lead conversion to sales opportunities: 11.1%
• Lead conversion to closed deals: 1.4%

Francis noted that a single closed sale covers the annual cost of their social media campaign.

Not all companies will be able to roll up their ROI into a neat little bundle, but this study shows that there are ways to evaluate your success by taking a look at the numbers.

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

Despite an uncertain economy, spending on word-of -mouth (WoM) marketing (including social media) rose 14.2% to $1.54 billion in 2008 according to research from PQ Media and is on target to grow another 10.2% this year. This includes budgets spent on tools like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

PQ Media defines WoM marketing as an “alternative marketing strategy” driven by “brand ambassadors” (evangelists) online and offline.

Why? I believe that as the economy remains weak, businesses are realizing that their customers are clamoring for trust. Consumers want to spend their money with people they trust and can relate to…not big name businesses. So, companies like Zappos.com, Comcast and JetBlue, who pride themselves on personal relationships and total transparency, are growing and big, anonymous corporations are losing.

And while print  and television advertising fees rise, WoM and social media marketing remain within reach of most businesses. Social media is not free, but compared to other marketing avenues, it’s a pill that’s easy to swallow.

Has your business shifted its marketing budget to WoM marketing?

Beth J. Bates consults with Hinge on social media tool selection and strategy and helps its clients find effective ways to leverage these new mediums to meet business goals.