Your brand, the benefits of sharing

Social media is to be used for creating an interest in you and your brand. As a writer you are the brand. In the case of smaller internet businesses this is also the case. As the internet continues to change social media will continue to gain importance. It is the ultimate word of mouth and has increasingly taken precedence over search engines as a way to gain customers and followers. It is a trend which will continue to increase over time. Word of mouth has been used effectively for centuries to increase a company’s revenues.

Word of mouth only works when each person understands that you have knowledge about what you are sharing. Take the case of the movie you watched last night. Having seen it you now have information of value to people who have not yet seen it. An article you have read works the same. With social media you share your insights as well as the link to the article so if they have an interest they can read it also. Your insights as well as the title and summary create interest.

When you think about your brand, you want to consider what you can share written by others which will enhance your articles or business. Make a list of writers who write articles which somehow enhance your message. Share them on your social media as a way to cut your workload reducing the need to create new content.

This is especially important in business. Content creation often takes more time than looking over content created by others which often contains something of value to your visitors. Consider also that sharing the work of another helps them rank better on a search engine as their sharing will help you.

According to Paul Williams (owner of a page rank three social media and blogging website) as well as others we have talked to. If you want readers or customers the best places to share are Google +, Pinterest and Facebook,. Facebook is where a lot of people research information however higher percentages buy what they see on Pinterest. Google + helps most with page rank.

Google + is effective because it allows one on one conversation easily. It is the most effective for search engine ranking as well as sharing with friends. At the moment search engine ranking is an indicator that you know what you’re talking about, in time it is believed even this will change.

With Pinterest, if you are a writer who earns from advertisements surrounding your content you are now reaching people who are closer to making a decision to buy. If your ads and content match your chances of making a sale have increased dramatically. As a business owner you are reaching a higher percentage of people who are potential customers with money “in hand.”

Social networks you must remember are about creating personal and business relationships. Too many people are not using them properly. There are many cases where people accept anyone willing to follow and never have personal contact with those who are following. It will always be the one on one conversation which make social media worthwhile. The idea is to make every member of every social media you use feel like you are talking to them personally after you have made personal contact.

When you’re social media is properly in place the benefits of sharing will be of more help to your brand. You are now sharing with people you have talked to on a personal level. They are going to have more interest in what you are sharing because they feel you truly care about them. It is never too late to have personal contact with those who are friends and followers you have added. If they are still on your social network chances are they have found something of value you have shared.

© June 17, 2012 12:00 PM CST Dennis Thorgesen, All rights reserved.

© Updated Aug 26, 2012 5:20 PM CDT Dennis Thorgesen for Lisech eMarketing. All rights reserved.