Get a flying start to harnessing the power of social media in your business.

• Don’t know your Tweets from your Facebook?
• You’re aware that 15% of all global internet traffic is attributed to social media but you have no idea what all those people are doing or talking about?
• You know more people are communicating via social media than e-mail, but you don’t know how or why?
• You thought that Facebook was for kids but you’ve just heard that Barack Obama is on there.
• You could not see the relevance of having a blog but you’ve just heard that a supermarket “check out girl” has had her blogs published as a book which has now sold over 100,000 copies.
• Feel like there’s a big party going on and you’re sitting on the sidelines?

Lightbulb moment! You need to get started with Social media.

We guarantee that a year from now you’ll be glad you started today!

But what exactly is social media?

This is what what Wikipedia has to say … "Social media is information content created by people using highly accessible and scalable publishing technologies. It is intended to facilitate communications, influence interaction between peers and with public audiences. This is typically done via the Internet and mobile communications networks. The term most often refers to activities that integrate technology, telecommunications and social interaction, and the construction of words, pictures, videos and audio. This interaction, and the manner in which information is presented, depends on the varied perspectives and "building" of shared meaning among communities, as people share their stories and experiences. Businesses also refer to social media as user-generated content (UGC) or consumer-generated media (CGM). Social media are distinct from industrial media, such as newspapers, television, and film. While social media are relatively cheap tools that enable anyone (even private individuals) to publish or access information, industrial media generally require significant financial capital to publish information."

 

Need some help making sense of all of this? If the answer is "yes", then carry on reading. You need our new Social Media training course:

Duration: One day course

Suitable for: This course has been designed specifically for the small to medium sized business owner to get to grips with social media for marketing, PR, and business exposure. It will also suit PR professionals, marketing professionals, e-commerce professionals, journalists, academics, brand managers, and any other business professional who is interested in understanding new ways of communicating and spreading messages.

Objectives:

1. Understanding why old methods of marketing are becoming defunct.
2. Understanding that the web is free to use with billions of potential customers who can be reached through social media.
3. To understand the role of social media/bookmarking in marketing, on-line visibility, awareness, reputation, branding, building meaningful business relationships, and building trust on-line.
4. Understanding where your customer can be found in the on-line world.
5. Understanding the value of “contribution currency” and how to participate in networks to achieve maximum exposure of your message.
6. Gain practical knowledge of the best platforms and web tools to use for your particular business and how to use them.
7. How to leverage time spent on social media activities
8. How to monitor your results on social media, using feedback loops to fine-tune your social media campaigns.

You will learn:

• How Barack Obama became the first high profile exponent of social media and how it contributed to his successful Presidential campaign.
• Why social media is vital for businesses or individuals in terms of on-line visibility, reputation, and how it allows you to reach niche markets and customers.
• The importance of “contribution currency” on-line and how you can become an “expert” or “leader”.
• How to “release” yourself and/or your business on-line and the importance of communicating authentically and consistently.
• Which social media platforms are relevant to your business and how to set them up and use them.
• The importance and power of “permission marketing”.
• Why there is growth in transparency, why “Google never forgets” and what this means to your business.
• The impact of having a long “tail”. How and why you need to start now to build a long “tail” of content about your business on-line. (Using tools such as blogs, micro blogs, forums, video, clippings, news book marking etc).
• How to embrace random connections.
• How to understand the distinction between “network” and “contacts” and how to farm them for business.

YOU WILL WALK AWAY FROM THIS COURSE WITH "THE BIG 7" SOCIAL MEDIA SITES SET UP, FUNCTIONING AND READY TO GO!

Course synopsis:

• Introduction to the course:
• What are we going to cover today?
• What brings you here and what do you want to achieve from today?

Introduction to social media:

• Case studies of social media successes: Barack Obama, Burger King, the author Anna Sam.
• The three C’s of social media success: conversation, community, conversion.
• How and why you need to build a long tail on Google (online CV).
• The importance of understanding that “Google never forgets”.
• Creating your brand on the web

Getting started in social media (practical):

• Understanding the vastness of the social media landscape.
• Introduction to the top ten social media sites and why and how you need to use them.
• Setting up your profiles on these sites, including social networks, business networks, video, photographs, blogging, micro-blogging, clipping, online business cards etc.
• Interlinking these sites to spread your messages.
• How to generate authentic content and find your niche expertise.
• Using “permission marketing” to generate sales.
• Representing yourself on-line in a consistent and authentic fashion to build your personal on-line brand.

Please note: this is a “hands on” and practical course and you will be required to bring your lap top. You will be setting up your own profiles and social media platforms and starting to use them on the training day. You will also be sent some homework in advance to prepare for the course. After the course, you will have FREE access to the forum for support and to remain connected with other delegates.

 

 

Why ignoring social media could be the worst business decision you ever made!

• People now communicate more regularly via social networks than they do by email.
• Social networking is not just for teenagers.
• In 2008, 35 – 49 year olds represented the biggest growth segment for the social networking sector. Some people are choosing to ignore Social Media as they think it is "just for kids". It isn’t. Don’t make the same mistake in your business.People spend more time in social networks when they’re online.
• Nielsen Research noted that, here in the UK, one in every six minutes online, was being spent in, or on, the social networking websites making them stand out clearly as the places where more and more people are choosing to connect.
• Social Media can build a community around your business.
• Don’t make the mistake either of thinking that you need to be a corporate to build a community around your business using Social Media. It works brilliantly for small businesses too.
• Despite the recession, most marketers are increasing their spend on Social Media

Some mind-blowing statistics: The time it has taken different products or services to reach a market audience of 50 million is as follows:

• Radio 38 years
• TV 13 years
• Internet 4 years
• iPod 3 years
• Facebook 2 years and growing at the rate of 1000’s per day!
• Twitter 25 million users in 2 years

THAT is why you need social media and you need our training course. Reach a global market of millions of people using free resources and organic content! Start Today … Social media starter package. ONLY £350 + VAT Price includes:

• Refreshments
• Lunch
• Course notes
• Internet Connection
• FREE follow-up and support on the forum
• On purchase, you will be emailed some homework which prepares you for the course, and will enable you to walk away from the course with the BIG 7 platforms up and running and a social media strategy in place specific to your business.

Next event date:

24th June at the Mandolay Hotel, 36-40 London Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 2AE . FULLY BOOKED

14th July at the Mandolay Hotel, 36-40 London Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 2AE .  FULLY BOOKED

13th July at the Mandolay Hotel, 36-40 London Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 2AE . FULLY BOOKED

13th August at the Mandolay Hotel, 36-40 London Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 2AE . Places available

14th September at the Mandolay Hotel, 36-40 London Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 2AE . Places available

13th October at the Mandolay Hotel, 36-40 London Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 2AE . Places available

Next dates TBA

From 8.30 to 18.00. Please note: As this is very "hands on", intensive training day with lots of personal attention, we have to limit the numbers to a maximum of 12 people per course. On purchase you will receive an e-book including some homework, this will allow you to start the training day with ease and "hit the ground running".

There are some useful tips in the book as well.

 

ONLY £350 + VAT

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Click here to register

As many of you are aware, I am a big exponent of social media. I see it as the future of business and marketing.

I attend many different meetings and talk to many different people about this relatively new phenomenom that now accounts for over 15% of all global internet traffic.

One of the most common things people say to me on this subject is: “I don’t have time to engage with social media. I’m too busy!”.

Well, in my book, that’s a bit of a self-defeatist answer. You can find time. Would you find time to go and collect winnings from the lottery?! Of course you would! Would you find time in your busy day if a long-lost friend phoned you for a catch up chat? Yes, you would. Time is far more elastic than most people appreciate. You always make time for the things that matter to you and the things that bring results. That is why you can find time to engage with social media.

In fact, I believe that you must find time to engage with social media. You see, business and the way people communicate is changing at a faster pace than ever before in the history of commerce, and no one knows the new rules of the (business) game … yet. However, those that are engaging in social media are on the pitch, limbering up, ready for the ball to be thrown in. Those of you that are not, are not even on your way to the stadium to watch the match!

I was at a meeting last week, and the discussion was about “time management” and making long lists at the beginning of the day about what you wanted to achieve. Then work through that list, and ignore all distractions including email, phone calls etc. What an out-dated way of thinking! One person even recommended a book called “Do It Tomorrow” which recommends that you put off everything that is not a “priority” until the next day! That in our book is a sure-fire recipe for disaster!

Social media dictates and demands instant results, instant feedback, instant and consistent action to be successful. Whether you like it or not, we are living in an “instant” world, where people expect an instant response. If you do not engage with people quickly, they will take their business elsewhere.

Example: I sent an email to my solicitor instructing them to start conveyancing on a new property transaction. I did not receive a reply straight away. I then began to wonder if the person had been made redundant, or had left the company. Meanwhile, I sent another email to another solicitor who answered straight away, so I instructed them instead.

In business, you can and should act with imperfect information. Start the ball rolling immediately. Even if it’s just a quick email to acknowledge the communication and say you will revert back later. Remember: everything starts with a conversation. So, the sooner you start a dialogue with someone, the better the business outcome for you.

It’s also vital to embrace the random-ness of social media. I like to say that I didn’t know that I wanted to marry Vanessa before I met her! You have no idea what a conversation can lead to, so don’t close your mind to it. A closed mind is the most expensive thing you will ever own! Be open to everyone and everything. It is the people furthest from you in your network, who will have the greatest influence on your success! We have people that we have never met recommending us to others! How amazing is that? And it’s all thanks to social media.

Taking that off-line, I regularly get emails from people asking me if it is “worth” them turning up to our networking event. How could I possibly answer that? It depends who turns up on the day, and who they engage with. The famous actor Woody Allen once said “80% of success is showing up”. So true! If you are not even in the room, how could you know that there are people there who would love to know about the service you offer or who could share with you a nugget of information that saved you money, or who could connect you to someone who you could JV with?

This is why Twitter is so effective. Twitter is like being at a world-wide cocktail party. You’re in the virtual room, engaging with all sorts of people who can influence or contribute to your business success. So dive in and join the conversation! Who knows where it might lead. Places that you never imagined is my bet.

So when is the best time to start a conversation? The answer is NOW. Successful people take sustained and consistent action. That is the key to making social media work for you.

Three years ago, I started writing his blog . At first, only two people read it. Then 4, then 8, then 24, then 50, then 100. Now, nearly three years later, he has over 30,000 readers. But he had to start. His today was nearly three years ago.

The brilliant American marketeer, Seth Godin, recently wrote:

“This is my 3,000th blog post. (In a row).

Within a week of starting this blog, I had a feeling I wouldn’t be giving it up any time soon. It’s a difficult habit to develop, but an even harder one to break.

The impact of having one’s own personal long tail is huge. It’s not about googlefu (at least it shouldn’t be) but your footprint expands nonetheless. Do a google search on seersucker suit and there I am, listed third, with a vaguely relevant post. Do one on advice for authors and there I am again. Drip, drip, drip, it adds up. The hard part, as you can guess, is the first 2,500 posts. After that, momentum really starts to build.

Of course, given the lack of ads here, traffic isn’t the goal, spreading ideas is. With that in mind, if you’d like to celebrate this milestone (there won’t be another like it for three years or so) please go ahead and start a blog. If you already have a blog, please go ahead and post something really interesting today”.

Seth is spot on, as usual! Do a search on Google for “Ikea in Cyprus” and you will find my blog in the top ten on the FRONT page. This is something he wrote nearly three years ago, and yet it reaches a top spot in the natural listings. Pure, organic content. Not paid for. There in perpetuity. Drip, drip, drip … it all mounts up to a long “tail” on Google that leads back to you and your business.

Ironically, it was almost to the day five years ago, that Vanessa and I were a couple of property green-horns attending a property seminar to learn how to buy our first BTL investment. The rest as they say is history ….

So, please do not put anything off until tomorrow. The only time any of us have is NOW, as tomorrow never comes.

• Write your first blog. (typepad.com) It’s free to use.
• Join Twitter. (twitter.com). It’s free to use.
• Use Google calender to schedule the next three months of networking events you want to attend. Free to use
• Set up a Facebook account. Free to use.
• Join ecademy. Free to join.
• Join and contribute to our forum propertytribes.ning.com. Free to join.
• Set up a Google Reader as your “content filter”. Free to join
• Join my “geek” forum at nicktadd.ning.com to learn more about social media. Free to join

But do it TODAY. In a year from now, you’ll be glad you did.

Nick

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