Monday, October 11, 2010

The Potential of Social Media




Guest post by Margo Smith (see bio at end of article)

The appeal of rags to riches stories is undeniable. It’s not just an adorable, ringleted Shirley Temple who can sell us on the idea from movies like “Glad Rags to Riches,” but a hulking Quinton Aaron who can win our hearts in “The Blind Side” as well. We love a story that helps us hope in the power of our dreams.

While not every Archibald Leach is going to become a dashing Cary Grant, and not every author is the next J.K. Rowling, there is something to be said for attempting the impossible. Wasn’t it Albert Einstein who said that genius is 99 percent perspiration and 1 percent inspiration?  The overnight success stories are dazzling, but the day to day trial and error is more true to life. This is true in any arena of life, and social media is no exception.

Consider the following story of a business that is leveraging the power of social networks. SteelMaster Buildings certainly has no pop-culture appeal like Britney Spears, but they are finding – and filling – a niche in Facebook. Yes, if you look up SteelMaster Buildings on this popular network, you will find them. They are there and they are making the most of it. What is it about Facebook that works? It is the network you have and maintain. This company figured out that getting pictures of their product to their viewers was the best way to increase sales. If people see their buildings, they are more likely to think about how they could solve their particular needs. This is much more powerful than just hearing the company name. So if a picture is good, and a network is good, why not combine the two? They feature contests for top notch photos of satisfied clients using their prefab steel structures. Now that is a successful combination of product and opportunity.

Perhaps you can find a way to reach out to your Facebook friends, or to make new ones. Maybe Twitter will serve your needs as you build a network of people who can relate to the thoughts, events or ramblings you tweet about daily. Whatever you do, be yourself. The audience engaged in these networks is savvy and can spot a phony most of the time. Your genuine voice can be your tool to fill a void that no one else can. Others may do what you do, but no one is uniquely you, so make the most of your individual voice and get your name out there. Who knows just how many good things will come your way?

About the Author

Margo Smith graduated with a B.S. degree from BYU. She draws from her experiences as a modern day children’s governess, her time spent in New England, her years in the corporate world and an author’s perspective on life when compiling articles about a variety of subjects from road maintenance to online classes to media opportunities.

3 comments:

  1. Thank you for the post about my company's use of social media on Facebook. Your comments about our strategy are right on target. We have found that if our customers see our buildings and their many uses, they can envision our structures for their building applications. Facebook provides SteelMaster a platform to highlight photos of steel building projects and customer reviews in an engaging social environment in the effort to attract new potential customers to our company.

    Michelle Wickum
    Marketing Director
    SteelMaster Buildings

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hello,
    My name is Guy Serwin and I am responsible for the website classesandcareers.com. I want to thank you for your link to our site. However, due to Google's recent policy change on backlinks, we are requesting that our link listed below and any others listed on this domain be removed. Please get in touch as soon as possible to confirm that you received the email and have removed the link from this blog page.

    Thank you for understanding and prompt attention in this matter.

    Sincerely,

    Guy C. Serwin
    Classesandcareers.com
    Email: opm@classesandcareers.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hello,

    My name is Guy and I represent classesandcareers.com. This is the second attempt at reaching out to you regarding your link to our site from this blog page.

    It is important that we have you remove this link as Google’s guidelines have changed. While we appreciate the link to our site, it no longer can be part of our link profile. We have to report to Google any link we were unable to remove with reason, why we failed to have a link removed. When Google reviews our list they could point out spam sites for penalizing and we would hate for your site to be affected. Could you please remove our link from this page and any other page on your site?

    Sincerely,

    Guy C. Serwin
    Classesandcareers.com
    Email: opm@classesandcareers.com

    ReplyDelete