Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/43031
60 • OCTOBER 2011 • WORLD FENCE NEWS Staying on top of social media trends BY LEA BAILES, CEO, GUIER FENCE If you haven't fully mastered so- cial media by now, you aren't alone. Why? Because social media is con- stantly changing and evolving. New tools and methods are created every day. Let's hit some of the high points of modern social media, and investi- gate ways you can utilize them to the benefit of your business. 1. Video. Video is becoming an amazing tool to get the word out about your products and services and demonstrate your expertise. Do you want to learn how to properly do a "kettlebell swing"? Just search kettle- bell swing in YouTube. Do you want to learn how to do a particular "stitch while knitting"? It's there. The point is that people are looking for informa- tion, and video is a compelling way to present your content. Also, video sites such as Viddler and Vimeo will gain additional momentum in 2011. Do you have a very interesting life? If so, stream it live on JustinTV or Ustream. Find out where your customers are searching, and be there. 2. Text message marketing. Small businesses will continue to market to people through their mobile phones. Companies have already begun lists of mobile phone numbers in order to send marketing messages via texts to con- sumers. New mobile widgets can be added to your site to help collect mo- bile numbers. 3. Review sites. Review sites such as Yelp! will continue their meteoric rise in popularity. Why? People listen to what others have to say about a business. If you have mainly positive reviews on your business, you can ex- pect more customers. If you have mostly negative re- views, I wouldn't expect your business to boom. You will have to allocate time and resources to monitoring conversa- tions about your business online. And, you must have a plan to respond to both positive and negative conversa- tions. The immediacy of your response will be critical to prevent negative in- formation (whether true or not) from spreading about your business. 4. Location-based marketing. It is an interesting phenomenon that people want to let their friends know where they are and what they are doing, but they do. Location-based services such as Facebook Places and FourSquare will continue to increase in popularity. In order for businesses to get the most out of these tools, an emphasis on of- fering discounts, promotions, and giveaways must be made in return for a check-in or other action at your busi- ness. Discounts, promotions, and give- aways will aid not only in the generation of customers loyal to your business, but also in new business when those customers share some- thing of value with their friends. 5. Conversation monitoring. Monitoring what consumers have to say about you and your business has never been easier. Keyword alert serv- ices such as Google Alerts send you e- mails every day when a certain word appears. If you haven't tried this tool yet, sign up at www.google.com/alerts and enter your name as a keyword. Hopefully people have great things to say about you! Other tools such as Hootsuite and TweetDeck enhance the Twitter advanced search function and allow you to search Twitter for key- words related to you and your busi- ness. If you find conversations taking place about you or your business, be sure to include yourself and add value to these conversations. 6. Answering questions. Many searches that take place through Google are actually questions. LinkedIn's platform includes a section for questions and answers. As a LinkedIn user, you can ask questions and have them answered by other pro- fessionals on LinkedIn. Also, you can search for questions that relate to your areas of expertise and answer these questions. Quora.com is a new service that is purely a question and answer forum on topics presented by its users. As a new tool, now is a great time to establish yourself as an expert source on the site. 7. More blogging platforms and plugins. It has never been easier to set up a site and be on the web. Blogger, Wordpress, and Tumblr make this a possibility. More blogging platforms have arisen in 2011 that create niches for certain industries and users. Users of these platforms will continue to de- velop plugins for their own needs and offer them to others. 2011 is becoming another exciting year in social media. If you haven't started using these tools, why not? Lea Bailes is president of the Kansas City, Mo. fence firm Guier Fence and founder of Guier Fence Franchising. Contact him at 800-845- 9839 or visit the company web site at www.guierfence.com.