Social Search Results in Google

Recently, I have begun to notice something interesting in my Google search results. At the bottom of the page for some searches, I get a section of results categorized as “results from people in your social circle.” These are specialized search results that provide links to articles that people I know (or at least follow) have written. Other than being pretty darn cool, this is an exciting way to continue to grow your business brand.

Build Your Brand Through Personal Search Results

Imagine a scenario where you connect with all of your customers, plus more than a few prospects, via things like Twitter, Facebook, Google Buzz, Gmail, etc. When those people search for something related to your business, you hope that your page is optimized enough to appear in those search results. But if you are connected with these people, if they follow you or have e-mailed back and forth with you, for instance, you have a good chance of having your relevant page show up in the social circle area. Think of how nice it is for your brand when your image pops up with an article related to what they are searching for. This is a way that you can provide personalized results to customers and prospects that you connect with.

Of course, to show up in those results, you need to connect with people. You need to be active on social networks. You need to engage. Sure, there is a lot of hype surrounding social media, but having your page pop up in a special section on Google search results is not hype. It is marketing and branding gold.

In this episode:

• Why choose a Facebook Page instead of a Group
• How to customize a Facebook Page
• How to get your first fans
• How to integrate the Facebook Page with your website
• Why small businesses should set up a Facebook Page

Denny Jaconi

Joe Sapienza

Lizzy Shaw

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Credits: This podcast was recorded using Google Voice. Music by Kevin MacLeod. Editing done with Audacity.

His take got me thinking about charity and business. Is it ever right to raise money for or support a charity if part of your goal in doing so is to bring in more business?

There are certainly businesses that co-exist with charity and causes. Tom’s Shoes comes to mind. But in a lot of those cases the business actually exists to help fund a charity. This is an interesting and worthwhile business model.

But how about raising money and donating with the hopes of creating positive buzz for your business? Does it work? Can it backfire?

I think it depends on where your heart is. Hooking your business up with a charity JUST to increase sales is not a good move. Really caring and devoting actual efforts to support a charity can be a great move.

I don’t think it would be a bad thing if every business had some sort of charity initiative. Whether or not the business promotes the connection is a matter of personal taste, but sometimes you can do more good by promoting your efforts and getting others involved.

I know for my business I am considered some charity options. For one, I provide my work at a discount or for free to some non-profits. But what if I could do more? What if I can pick one charity to donate to and to get others to donate to? I think that would be worthwhile, and if my business benefits from helping out a good cause, I wouldn’t mind that at all.

What do you think? Is business and charity a good mix?

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Hi there, I am Bradford Shimp. You can find me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/bradfordshimp. I want to get to know you better. Please leave comments and reach out. Lets make business better together!

My business, Broad River Creative, helps small businesses create a presence online so they can be found by more customers.

In part two of my conversation with Desiree Scales, we discuss social media and how small business can benefit from getting involved on sites like Twitter and Facebook.

Follow Desiree on Twitter at twitter.com/desireescales.

Visit Desiree’s web site at www.bellawebdesign.com.

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Call for Interviews: I am looking to interview business owners, authors, experts, and interesting people on a regular basis. If you would like to tell your story on this podcast, please contact me.

Credits: This podcast was recorded using Skype and Pamela. Thanks to Joe Magennis and Desiree Scales for technical advice. Music by Kevin MacLeod. Editing done with Audacity.

Bradford Shimp is the publisher of AllBizAnswers.com.

While social networks like Facebook and Twitter make communication easy, they don’t make you good at it. If you want to grow your contacts and get business via social networks, you need to learn how to effectively use them to communicate.

Make it Past the Threshold

Before you can become the Cicero of social media, you first need to learn the tools. Each new social network has a learning curve. Some, like Twitter, have easy entry but still take lots of use to master. Others, such as LinkedIn, are a little more difficult to get going on.

It is essential that you learn how to use your social network(s) of choice. Without knowledge of how the tool works, you won’t be able to use it properly. A tool misused can cause more damage than good. So, before you try to use social networks to get sales, use them for fun. Play around in the sandbox until you have the feel of things.

Remember, each social network is a little different. What is appropriate on one may not be appropriate on another. As communicator, it is up to you to figure out what is accepted where. If you are talking in a crowded bar, it is perfectly fine to raise your voice and even shout. In fact, this is probably necessary just so the person next to you can hear you. But you wouldn’t use that same voice in the library. Social networks are different venues with different rules as well. The best way to learn them is to get active on the network, primarily as a listener at first.

Get a Focus

Once you find a social network of choice and get a feel for how it works, you can start using it to communicate with potential customers. In order to cultivate a group of appropriate listeners, you need to gain a focus.

There are two main things to focus on. The first is what you are going to talk about. If you want to sell washing machines, you should spend the larger percentage of your time talking about washing machines. This will attract people who are also interested in washing machines, and you can start to build a focused audience.

The second area of focus is who you are going to talk to. When you first get started, you will probably be happy add anyone to your network. But as you start to think about how to communicate effectively, you’ll realize that you need a group of active listeners. These are the people who will be interested in what you have to say.

You can attract some of these listeners just by talking about your focus subject. Others, you will have to go out and find. Use tools likes Search.Twitter.com and Twellow.com to find people on Twitter who are interested in your topic. On other social networks, you can join groups and forums to find people with an interest in your topic.

Once you start to develop a group, you need to learn to focus on them. Its not just having them that is important. You need to talk to them.

Engage the Audience

Social communication is two-way communication. If you think its just about pushing out your message and hoping it will be heard, you didn’t spend enough time learning the platform. The beauty of social networks are that they make personal communication possible on a large scale.

If you want to communicate effectively on social networks, you need to learn the importance of listening and responding. In fact, you should spend as much time responding as you do starting conversations. You can do this whether or not you have people asking you direct questions. On LinkedIn, for example, there is a whole section devoted to questions and answers. On a feed oriented network, like Facebook and Twitter, just pay attention to what people are saying and asking, and then respond.

When you do put out content, try to word it in such a way that it will start conversations. For instance, I see a lot of quotes on Twitter. Why not add a “what do you think about that?” type of question at the end of the quote. The goal when you push content is to get people to respond in some way. Sometimes, you’ll want them to visit your site and buy your product. Other times, you’ll just want to start conversations by asking questions.

Conversations

The beauty of social networks is that they make conversations easy. Conversations can lead to many things. You can have a conversation with a customer in which you solve an issue they are having. They can then have a conversation with a friend about how helpful you were. That friend could have a conversation with her spouse about how they should hire you. And then it comes back to you in the form of a sale and a new relationship.

The power of social networks is that these conversations are happening on an expansive scale. Its not one on one anymore. Instead, many people can listen in and hear what a good job you did. You can engage with a large number of customers and future customers all at once. The word can spread faster and farther than ever. Don’t doubt the power of conversation in helping you get and keep customers.

It all starts with you learning how to effectively communicate on social networks. Have any questions?

When you are getting started, you need to hitch your wagon to other people’s horses. In other words, join the conversations that are already happening, even if they are happening in orbit around a competitor.

Where to Join

Conversations are happening everywhere. Pick a few places you are comfortable with and then join. You will be most effective if you can find conversations that take place within your industry. I highly suggest finding an active forum to be a part of. Forums have plenty of conversations going on, and will also provide you with lots of links out to blogs and such to explore.

Blogs are another great place for conversation. Find the top blogs in your industry and start commenting on them regularly. Always stay on topic and add something to the conversation. In fact, that is a rule across the board when joining ongoing conversations.

Social networks are powerful conversation tools. On Facebook, you can try to connect with friends of friends, and then join streams that are talking about things within your industry. On LinkedIn, get active by posting answers to people’s questions. Twitter may be the mother load for conversations. It is easy to find people with an interest in your topic through Twitter search and tools such as Twellow. Also, you can find Twitter chats on all sorts of subjects. These are great conversations to join to hone your art and network with more people.

How to Act

There is one rule to keep in mind when joining ongoing conversations. Be a contributor, not a publicity hound. Yes, your ultimate goal is to build your own brand. Keep in mind that there are many steps to the process of building your own community though, and creating trust in existing communities is a big one.

So when you join conversations, make sure you are adding value. Be a good listener and talk when you have something worth saying. Do not blast your marketing message all over the place when it is not asked for. Give good, solid, advice and you won’t have to.

What to Do Next

The end goal is to grow your own brand and bring in more sales. To that end, you are going to want to build relationships from the communities you join and eventually invite people into your own sphere. If you ultimately want conversations to happen around your brand, you need to create hubs for this to happen. One big one would be a blog.

You need to have some place to send people who are interested in learning more about you and your business. A static business web site isn’t going to cut it. We are living in a world of engagement, so make it easy for people to engage with you.

Once you have some influence, start hosting your own conversations. Here’s one option. Host a webinar on a topic that you know something about. Invite the people you meet through ongoing conversations, and ask them to invite their friends as well. Of course, keep in mind the rule of giving and provide excellent content in your webinar. This is not a traditional sales pitch, but rather a way to educate prospects and show them why they need your business.

There are all kinds of ways you can start to build your own engagement portals. Take it one thing at a time and don’t overdo it. Always keep relationship and trust in the forefront of your mind. If you do a good job of engaging with people in ongoing conversations, chances are good that many of them will be happy to join your new conversations that revolve around your business.

All of this leads to sales. While it may seem indirect, you will actually be building a foundation from which to attract more sales then you could ever go out and get. Building your influence today will pay off in business tomorrow.

photo credit: stevendamron

Have a Small Business Question? Ask me and I will answer it here – email me with your question now.

Get Unique Content Weekly with The All Biz Answers Insider Newsletter

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Bradford Shimp is the publisher of All Biz Answers. He is also the co-creator of Idea Anglers, a place to see your ideas come to life through collaboration. Follow on Twitter @bradfordshimp. Let Bradford help you with your business – visit BroadRiverCreative.com

1. Put contact info everywhere

Wonder why people never call? Maybe its because they don’t know your number. Your primary contact info should be everywhere, including your web site, business cards, and all of your marketing material. Make it easy for people to find your number, email, or any other means of contacting you.

2. Set up a Twitter account

Twitter is tops for ease of access when it comes to the social networks. Having a Twitter account and actively using it opens up a new channel of communication.

3. Set up some chat accounts

People actively use chat software, such as AIM, Google Chat, and Skype. You don’t have to use all of them, but you should use some. There are even chat clients that support multiple chat platforms.

Take this a step further by incorporating chat into your web site. Google Chat has a function to make this easy. It is often easier for people to reach out to you via live chat than to pick up the phone.

4. Have easy to find and use contact forms

Have a contact form on your web site. It is up to you what information to ask for, but if you just want a person to reach out to you, make it simple. Ask for name and email, along with their question.

5. Get active on Facebook

Facebook is here to stay, obviously. Chances are, you probably already have a lot of customers actively using Facebook. So it makes sense to start an account for your business. Alternatively, you can start a fan page for your business using your personal account.

Provide links on your site to friend you on Facebook. Once you get established there, many of your Facebooking customers and prospects will reach out to you there.

6. Allow comments on your blog

If you write a blog, allow for comments. Don’t worry about spam or negative stuff, you can moderate your comments to keep that stuff out. By having comments, you are opening up another means of communication. It is a good idea to respond to the comments on your blog as well as to send an email response to the commentator. Its a great way to start a conversation.

7. Get a toll free number

Make it as easy as possible for people to call you. If you don’t have a toll free number, consider using an online service such as Ring Central to get one. People will be more likely to call if its free.

8. Make signing up for your newsletter easy and obvious

Your newsletter is a primary means of regular communication from you to your customer. Sometimes, the only way  a person will reach out to you is to sign up for it. So make it easy and painless. Include big links to it on your site, and only ask for name and email when a person first signs up.

9. Host webinars and calls

A great way to be accessible is by putting yourself out there. Hosting a webinar or live call on a regular basis allows people to interact with you on a group level with the opportunity to make it more personal by them asking a question. This is easier for some people than picking up the phone and asking questions directly. With a webinar, they have a chance to just listen in. Its up to you to excite them enough to move that to the next level of interaction.

10. Engage in plenty of conversations

A hermit is not very accessible. Instead, be the life of the party. Be everywhere. If you are active on social networks, a regular blog commentator, a blogger yourself, you will have more face time and make it easier for people to discover you and engage you in conversation. Just by being there, you are naturally much more accessible.

photo credit: Mr. Read

Recommended Reading

I am constantly on the prowl for good business books. Right now, I am reading Crush It, by Gary Vaynerchuk. I love Gary’s take on passion and business. This book will give you a kick in the butt to get up and get moving as you pursue your passions and your business.

If you are interested in Crush It, you can get it through Amazon by clicking here or by visiting your local bookstore.

Have a Small Business Question? Ask me and I will answer it here – email me with your question now.

Get Unique Content Weekly with The All Biz Answers Insider Newsletter

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Bradford Shimp is the publisher of All Biz Answers. He is also the co-creator of Idea Anglers, a place to see your ideas come to life through collaboration. Follow on Twitter @bradfordshimp. Let Bradford help you with your business – visit BroadRiverCreative.com

1. Do not Auto-DM. Yes, it is tempting to send a link through to everyone who follows you. However, most people find this annoying. People follow you because they want good content and interaction. If you start off your end of the relationship with a sales pitch, and an automated one at that, you are setting the wrong tone. Plus, you will get unfollowed by a lot of people. Leave the Auto-DMs to internet marketers who value quantity over substance.
2. Push Others as Much as You Push Yourself. Twitter is a great tool for promotion. However, if you spend all of your time promoting yourself, people won’t want to listen. Spend at least as much time promoting other’s tweets, articles, and businesses. And don’t forget, what goes around, comes around.
3. Save the Embarrassing Stuff for Facebook. Don’t post that compromising photo or that bit of gossip on Twitter. All tweets can be seen via Twitter Search, even by people who don’t follow you.
4. Provide Value Instead of Pitches. People flock to value. If you want to increase your followers and keep them happy, provide quality tweets. This value play will lead people back to you and your business, so you can keep your direct pitches to a minimum.
5. Answer Questions. More and more people are using Twitter as a search tool. If you see a question pop up that you know the answer to, take the time to answer it. Not only will you be helpful, you might start a great new relationship.
6. Always Give Credit. Don’t poach someone else’s great tweet. Instead, retweet it with their username attached. If you have to, edit the tweet so that the originators username still fits.
7. Leave Room for the RT. To make things easier for people to retweet your posts, always leave about 10 characters open at the end. This will give people the opportunity to retweet without having to edit your original tweet.

Add your Twitter etiquette suggestions in the comments. If they are really good, I will update the post with them (giving you full credit, of course)!