A Hot Topic
Using Social Media Marketing to Connect with Customers
and Increase Sales
• Moderator: Glen McCandless President, Focus Marketing; Publisher, SellingToSchools.com
• Panelists– Brandi Heinz Brown Social Media + E-commerce Manager, ETA hand2mind
– Charlene Blohm President, C. Blohm & Associates
– Ileana Rowe Principal, Corporate Growth
– Mitch Weisburgh Managing Partner, Academic Business Advisors, LLC
Our Goal for This Session is to… Meet your expectations based on the
description in the conference program:– Why social media; How to get started.
– What networks to use? How to get best results.– Social media as part of your overall marketing strategy– How social media marketing can be used to attract and
retain more customers– Best practices for K-12 and hi-ed audiences
Audience Poll
Why invest in social media marketing (SMM)?
Convince Me!
What are the benefits of SMM?
According to a survey of marketing managers
Which SM networks do we use to engage various stakeholders?
Choices, choices, choices …
Twitter, Google+, or Plurk• Educators often raise their problems
• Educators look for good information or links
• You can connect if you can offer advice or links that helps them in their jobs and lives
• If you connect, you increased your brand recognition
Potential Users Users Thought Leaders
#Edchat and other chats
• Expands your network of contacts
• Find out what mindshare leaders are talking about
• If you contribute valuably, connectors are more likely to share your information
Potential Users Users Thought Leaders
EduPln, Classroom 2.0, and other Ning Communities
• These members are often the technology leaders, and you can connect with them
• Many tech savvy teachers go to these sites, and if they see your name, you have increased your brand recognition
Thought Leaders Potential Users
EdWeb, WeAreTeachers, and other proprietary communities
• You can be a sponsor to directly reach their members– Run a contest– Run webinars– Advertise
Potential Users
Reading & Commenting on Blogs• Blog writers are often thought leaders:
market research
• Potential buyers & users read these blogs
• Blog article links are often valuable to Tweet to other educators, while also connecting you to the blog writer if you site them
Thought Leaders
Writing Blogs• Places you as an expert or thought leader if your
blog content if valuable to educators• Tweet to hashtags to make entries better known• When potential buyers look for you, they will find
your blog articles• Method of staying in touch with potential users
and buyers who subscribe
Potential DMsProspects Customers Thought Leaders Users
• Industry groups, but not many educators
• Post job openings and look for jobs
• Become known within the industry by responding to group posts
Thought LeadersEducation Community
Facebook• I’ve yet to see a well used education
business page
• Follow some groups of educators to expand your network
• Contribute links and advice to groups to be perceived as helpful and a thought leader
Potential UsersUsers
Diigo, LiveBinders, and other social bookmarking
• Keep track and tag links that will be helpful
• Recall links when they are relevant to a question that was raised
Potential Users Users Thought Leaders
How to get started:
What do you really need?
• Overall strategy and messaging
• Implementation and development
• Ongoing content creation and management
• Tracking campaign results and ROI
Resource: How To Spend Money on Social Media, http://socialfresh.com/social-media-is-an-investment/
Vendor options, costs, required resources
How much are you willing to pay for it?
• Social Media isn’t FREE!
• Remember your goals need to be aligned with your available resources
• No budget for SMM? If you’re already allocating marketing dollars to print, TV, radio or directory listings, evaluate the ROI with hard data. Can you reallocate?
Costs Infographic
Resource: http://www.scribbal.com/2011/05/infographic-how-much-does-social-media-really-cost/
How to get it done
• Full-service agency
• Consultant
• Full-time hire
• Training (for current staff)
• Free online resources
• A blended approach
Effectiveness vs. Effort and Use of SMM
There are many channel options! Expect to apply more effort (resources) to get better results or to expand SMM channels
The Steps1. Use Your Network – ask for referrals2. Expanding Your Search – online directories/investinsocial.com3. Ask, Ask, Ask
– Who will be managing my account?– Will you be implementing recommendations or will I?– What tracking tools do you use?– Which metrics do you actively track and report on?– Once the engagement has ended how will the transition process work?– Which accounts will I have access to and which will I own upon contract
completion?– Can you provide writing samples from any content creators working on my
account?– How will I be updated regarding my campaigns progress? Weekly call?
Email? Monthly report?– How will you recruit new followers and fans?
Putting it all together1) Get your house in order – The Foundation
Website/Blog – usable, strong calls to action, easy to find great content for your target audience, keyword-rich landing pages
2) Research/ListenCreate a listening station for your brand and industry termsSurvey current clientsResearch top industry blogs, tweet chats, hashtags, etc. Find key influencersKeyword researchStudy competitors
Monitoring: Who’s talking about us, and where?
Start with brand mentions, then build out your keywords.Example:
– Started with Follett = Too many results!– Revised to “Follett Software” and “Follett-ken”– Misspellings and abbreviations: “Follet” and “Follett Lib”
Do it with:– Google Alerts– Save Twitter Searches– Did you know you can track links to your website by saving
a search on your website URL?
Monitoring Others:Industry Topics and the CompetitionTopical Hashtags
• #edchat
• #edtech
• #mathchat
• #ntchat
Conference Hashtags
• #etis12
• #iste12
• #ira2012
Keywords
• Relevant to your industry
• ebooks
• Manipulatives
• Math manipulatives
Competitors
• Company names
• Company social accounts
3) Goals/ObjectivesWhat do you want to achieve with social media?Measurable KPI’sRealistic/Time sensitive
4) StrategizeCreate your plan to achieve and measure your goalsDefine target/create personasConcept creationTactics/ToolsContent strategy/Editorial calendar
5) Launch!Create your assets, profiles, blog posts, etc.
6) EvaluateWeekly/Monthly reportingReview of KPI’sTestingTweaking / Optimizing
Reporting
Weekly Dashboard• Exposure
(Reach/Views/Clicks)• Engagement
(Interactions)• Growth• Website Referrals• Highlight posts
edWeb.net at ETA hand2mind
Community PerformanceMembers: 672April Live Webinar Attendees: ~50Total Webinar Viewings: 2,273Average Views/Webinar: 568
Started in January 2012
Keys to success:• Hot Topic• Focused Audience
Pinterest Most popular pins (2 of top 6 are our products!)
Some Examples
The 30-30-40 Rule™
Channel Possible Strategies
Facebook • Service providers: showcase personality for company or brand
• Content providers: credentials/thought leadership, contests and promotions, sales leads
Twitter • Consumer engagement• Media relations• Research• Customer service
Pinterest • Promote products and link back to online catalog• Illustrations and ideas for customer use• Sales leads
SlideShare • Thought leadership • Sales presentation• “How to” and “What to” featuring products or services
YouTube • Showcase faces/voices of leadership team and customers
Google+ • Similar to Twitter and Facebook, plus higher SEO in Google rankings
LinkedIn • Employee or customer recruitment• Credentials/thought leadership and networking
Tying SMM to Online Strategy
Contact Information
• Charlene Blohm [email protected]• Brandi Heinz Brown [email protected]• Ileana Rowe [email protected]• Mitch Weisburgh [email protected]
• Glen McCandless [email protected]
Panelists
Moderator
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