Social Media Is Not About You, It's About Everyone But You

I have heard a lot of questions on how one can promote their business. Invariably, the answer always comes up: “sign up for Facebook and Twitter!” So, these business owners typically do. They then broadcast their wares and wonder why they aren’t selling more, don’t have more followers, or it seems that people are uninterested. They’re doing it wrong. We’ve all seen thousands of local businesses do it.

Social media is not about you. It’s about others. It’s about your customers. It’s about everyone but you. Why not actually have a dialogue with your customers, fans, friends, followers? Stop thinking of social media as a one-way broadcast medium. Start thinking of it as a way to inject yourself into conversations, monitor your brand, and to actually care about your customers. Give back. Share. Most importantly, care.

I think Gary Vaynerchuk’s advice on promoting your business really works. Find sites/communities that are in your same industry and inject yourself into conversations. Share your knowledge. Give as much as you can. Care. You may eventually establish yourself as an industry leader. This is exactly what he did to promote Wine Library TV. In the meantime, people will take interest in what you do and may eventually check out your site or products.

How do you use social media for your business?

-JP

If you made it this far, you should follow me on Twitter. Follow @jprichardson

-JP