I’ve scoured the Internet to find you the best, little known tips and tricks for your favorite social media platforms. I even found some tricky things to try on Google+ !

Did I leave out something? Tell us your favorite social media trick in comments below. Happy Networking!

In the wake of Google+, law firms are being forced to rethink their strategy. Attorneys are already growing a decent following on Facebook and Twitter, sharing the latest in legal news (as well as showing themselves as likable people). Small communities are popping up around such topics as accident injury, food poisoning, and toy recalls. The addition of Google+ gives the legal industry something new to think about.

The early adopters of Google+ will have to work hard to gain the trust of the social community and get into their circles. The best way to do this would be by developing and sharing fresh and exciting content, as well as engaging with others in the public stream.

It doesn’t just take great content. Growing a community in social media requires the careful use of ad words, engagement, and thoughtful design. A professional looking page still goes a long way in today’s competitive market. For an attorney, it’s also important to come across as a likeable person and not just another lawyer.  The occasional non-business status update and genuinely responding to others in the stream will make a lawyer seem more personable.

Sharing content across multiple social platforms will also increase a law firm’s chances of landing a client. It’s already been proven that Facebook users aren’t as likely to be Twitter users. Although, the majority of Twitter users are found to be active on Facebook. Through the use of Twitter chats, Facebook polls, blog posts and now Google+ huddles and sparks… attorneys have multiple ways to share what they have to offer, listen to their potential clients needs, and act accordingly.

However, Google+ isn’t for the casual social media user. It seems to have attracted those who are typically early adopters of technology. So if a law firm is looking to expand its reach in the social media community, being a part of the new platform will show they’re forward thinkers. And the upcoming addition of Google+ for businesses will make the social transition even easier.

Here are some new terms coined by Google+:

Circles:

These are groups sorted according to their relationship to the user. Family, Friends, Clients, and even People Who Annoy Me all have their place in Google+ Circles. Status updates and content sharing can be done publicly or can be limited to specific circles. This comes in handy when you’re talking about that crazy weekend in Vegas.

Sparks:

Sparks are content create based on the users interests. This comes in handy when it comes to sharing relevant content.

Huddles:

A huddle is essentially a group chat messenger. It allows you to communicate with users in various circles.

Hangouts:

Just like it sounds… a hangout is a video chat room for groups. Users can participate via video, voice, or text chat. Content such as a YouTube video can also be shared in a Hangout.

Many specialized industries will be jumping into Google+ in the days and weeks to come. Not only would Law Firms benefit from being so technically savvy… but the medical field and financial divisions would also do well by updating their social media strategies. Take my word for it. Better yet… shoot me a message (KellyL@Social2B.com) or a tweet (@Social2B) and I’ll help to train you or your enterprise for the next phase of your social media marketing. *Photo Credit Aaron Wood on Google+*

#OnSocial Twitter Chat Wrap Up: June 20 2011 View more presentations from Social2B. Was your tweet featured in this week’s #OnSocial wrap up? Join us Mondays at 4pm EST and be a part of our growing social media, marketing, and best practices chat!

Was your tweet featured in this week’s #OnSocial wrap up? Join us Mondays at 4pm EST and be a part of our growing social media, marketing, and best practices chat!

I took some time to ask my Twitter audience the following question: Why do you follow your favorite brands on Twitter? It turns out that most of us just want to be informed. Follow on!

You have a Facebook page, a account, a YouTube channel and a blog. You update them regularly and have a growing community on each of the platforms. This community could be much larger if the social profiles were integrated together. Below are some tips on seamlessly integrating your profiles and getting them the readership they deserve.

SEO:

Utilizing relevant search terms isn’t just for blog posts. Using key words tailored for you company are important even in the tweets you put out. Recently, Google announced that it’s search algorythm was adjusted to include social media. Don’t get left behind in the top searches because your company isn’t optimized properly.

Sharing Buttons:

It’s a well known fact that Facebook users aren’t avid Twitter users. By integrating your social profiles, you’re exposing your Facebook and Twitter readers to what’s happening on your blog, website, and YouTube channel. Sharing buttons, links, and portals to your profiles allow your readers to easily share and discover new content.

Press releases and email marketing:

Spread the word about your company and be sure to include all of your social profiles. In all outgoing collateral, include the many ways that your customer can find you online. And… don’t forget email marketing. Looked on by some as “spam”, emarketer recently reported that 95% of 18-25 year olds opt-in to email updates and newsletters.

Social Media Marketing doesn’t exist without some form of integration. Whether you are integrating your social media effort inside of a large organization or an independent marketer, there are a plethora of new tools to help you efficiently integrate social media based on the demands of their clients and partners. If you are a small business or a start up, don’t be left out – many of the tactics and strategies that apply in the Fortune 1000 world can just as easily be implemented by you.

Now get out there and share what you’re made of!

Kelly Loubet is the Director of Social Community Marketing at Social2B. She’s a believer in community building and using social media for good. Kelly is a mom, a writer, and a speaker. Follow her @Social2B and on her personal account @childhood. To read more of her writing, check out EverydayChildhood.com.

You have a new follower on Twitter! Great! You’re expanding your readership and increasing your  online influence. Now what? How do you retain  Twitter followers once they’ve clicked “follow”? Many  new followers click “follow” and that’s the end of  them. There’s no engagement… no involvement  whatsoever.

New followers bring a new relationship and like any new relationship, it will need cultivating. Developing personal relationships with your followers will create a loyal community. Of course having a one on one conversation with each of your followers everyday isn’t feasible, but it is important to set aside a portion of your day each day to converse with some of them.

First, see who’s speaking to you. Check your @’s and respond to them accordingly. Taking time to respond to those who took the time to reach out to you will go a long way in your community building efforts.

Second, be a source of knowledge. Answer questions and be a helpful member of the Twitter community. If you show knowledge on your topic, your followers will continually come to you for answers. Beyond answering questions, share your insight. Sharing insight on your products and services in a helpful way, makes you an expert in your field. I didn’t say “the” expert, but an expert. And there’s something to say for a knowledgeable representative. Use your expertise as a way to educate and your follows will appreciate it.

Give back. Showing that your company is community-minded is a great way to get the backing of your social media followers. Find a like-minded charity and throw your support behind them. Get your followers involved by doing a fundraiser. Perhaps a portion of your sales will go to charity. Design a campaign that fits your brand and implement it as you would any promotion. Giving back will create new cause-minded followers and bring existing followers in closer.

Have a giveaway! I’m not big on giveaways… but doing one every once in a while is a fun and exciting way to keep your followers engaged. The giveaway doesn’t even need to be related to your product or service, but could be the hottest new gadget. A giveaway like this will draw attention. One of the most interesting contests I’ve seen, involved a picture of a jar of coins and bills. Each day, the brand gave a clue as to how much money was in the jar. Followers tweeted in their guesses until finally, someone guessed right on the nose. They won the jar of money (which ended up being a couple thousand dollars). I thought it was such a creative way to keep readers coming back.

Lastly, don’t make it all about you. Share articles and insights from others in related fields. This might sound like you’re shooting yourself in the foot, but really, you’re saying that you respect and agree with the opinions of others. Sharing information from others in your field also shows that you’re up to date on the  latest techniques. A company this isn’t afraid to share information from others will gain the respect of their competitors. It also shows confidence to your readers.

Everyone knows that clicking the “like” button on a company’s Facebook page shows that company is increasing its fan base. But what happens after the click? For me… it’s often just that. A click. I’m sure that I’m not alone. So how do brands turn a simple click into loyal relationship with consumers?

It all starts with engagement. If a brand can engage its audience… they’re on the right track. Being able to excite the fan base and get them to act is key in building a Facebook community. In order to get them to act, there must be an exciting call to action. Contests, polls, and general questions encourage a sense of community. They’ve already acknowledged that they like the brand, now’s their chance to share their opinion.

In addition to a call to action, in order to engage the audience, a brand must also put out worthwhile content. Posts that both inform and entertain readers are a must. So many brands today are just putting out fluff pieces. Sure, these pieces of content keep their page fresh, but audiences want something more. They want something they can relate to. A well written post can be shared again and again across Facebook by loyal community members. Give them something worth sharing.

Finally, loyal community members want to be rewarded. Companies that find a way to give back to their fans have a much more activity on their pages than brands who don’t engage. A simple “thank you” to fans when a certain milestone has been reached can go a long way.

“Thank you to all our readers who helped us reach 10,000. We couldn’t have done it without you and your input.”

A message like this will prompt those who have been around from the beginning to comment and be proud of the community they helped to build. Beyond words of thanks, giveaways are a nice way to show your community you’re happy to have them around. Brands might also consider a charity drive. Giving back always builds a sense of gratitude in people. Nothing builds community more than giving.

These are just some simple ideas that could be easily implemented with a dedicated team. Without a team willing to put the time in to keep the conversations going… it’s not going to work. Facebook is about people. It’s about relationships. No relationship grows without some cultivation. If your brand is looking to step up your Facebook efforts, be sure you have the proper team in place. Soon enough, your Facebook community will be going beyond the “like”.

By Kelly Loubet Social2B Director   Social Community Marketing

We all know that social media impacts the way we do business. It affects the way that consumers shop, the way that brands market, and the way customer service responds. Social media allows customers to give instant feedback on their favorite (or not so favorite brands). It allows regular people to become a part of the branding process.

Being a part of the team at Social2B has given me new perspective on the sheer number of individuals and companies taking advantage of networking tools. If you didn’t think the power of social media was mind blowing before… check out the latest social media statistics:

Facebook:

·  Facebook has more than 500 million “active” users worldwide.

·  People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook.

·  The average Facebook user is connected to 80 community pages, groups and events.

·  More than 30 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, photo albums, etc.) shared each month on Facebook. Your content should be among these!

·  Every month, more than 250 million people engage with Facebook on external websites. I “Like” this!

·  There are more than 200 million active users currently accessing Facebook through their mobile devices. Can your website be viewed on a mobile device? Have you tried viewing it on your own smart phone?

·  Being mobile-compatible is important because people that use Facebook on their mobile devices are twice as active on Facebook than non-mobile users!

·  And here’s an interesting fact… About 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States. Is your business global?

Twitter:

·  eMarketer estimates 20.6 million US adults will access a Twitter account at least monthly this year.

·  There are 200 million Twitter users around the world.

·  Twitter now comes in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish.

·  95M tweets are written per day (Sept. 2010)

Linked In:

·  LinkedIn has crossed the 100 million user milestone.

·  LinkedIn said that it is adding 1 million new members every week, which equates to one new member every second. This is astounding to me!

·  LinkedIn now has presence in 200 countries and territories around the world, with 56 million of the 100 million users being from outside the US. Another reason to make sure your business is part of the global market!

·  On LinkedIn, there are 997,000 teachers, 1,030 chocolatiers, 74 Elvis tribute artists and 1 Martini Whisperer.

Wikipedia:

·  Over 18 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers.

·  Wikipedia ranks seventh among all websites on Alexa and having 365 million readers.

·  For the first time in January 2011, Wikipedia cracked the top ten list of the most popular websites in the United States, according to comScore Networks Inc. With 42.9 million unique visitors and rank #9, Wikipedia surpassed New York Times (#10) and Apple Inc. (#11).

You Tube:

·  35 hours of video are uploaded every minute.

·  70% of YouTube traffic comes from outside the US.

·  YouTube is localized in 25 countries across 43 languages.

·  YouTube’s demographic is broad: 18-54 years old.

·  YouTube reached over 700 billion playbacks in 2010.

·  Over 4 million people are connected and auto-sharing to at least one social network.

Aren’t these social media statistics amazing? Is your business social?

By Marina Shapiro

‘Out with the old, and in with the new.’  The industry of Social Media Marketing is maturing and we are predicting a new dawn for the Social Media revolution. So, what will it mean to be ‘social’ in 2011?  What aspects of Social Media will be integral to the way businesses develop and grow?  How will this impact the technology? Who will ‘win’ at Social Media this year? We’ve compiled top 11 predictions for the world of ‘social’ in 2011.

1. “…next year is really going to be about paring down to the essentials based on proven successes and strong metrics.” http://mashable.com/2010/12/21/small-business-predictions/ 2. “Outsourcing social media such as blogs, writing e-mails, answering customer service inquiries, writing web copy, social media, ghostwritten blogs, tweets. People don’t always have the availability to write, tweet, research and post their own content.” http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/2011-big-ideas-for-small-businesses-0835/ 3. “All signs are pointing toward a multicultural Web. By 2015, a billion people in BRIC countries [Brazil, Russia, India and China] will be using PCs. Thus, 2011 will mark the year that businesses either adapt to these changes or get left woefully behind.” http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/2011-big-ideas-for-small-businesses-0835/ 4. “If you don’t have a mobile version of your site today, you are already behind.” http://www.clickz.com/clickz/column/1934793/21-social-media-predictions-trends-2011 5. “B2B companies will catch up to B2C companies in using social media.”           http://www.clickz.com/clickz/column/1934793/21-social-media-predictions-trends-2011 6. “The Rise of the Marketing Technologist – Marketers for the last few years have been closet techno geeks and it’s time for them to rise up – companies need digitally fluent marketers who can apply technologies to help make marketing more measurable and scientific. Then we can really change the dynamic from marketing as a cost center to marketing as a profit center!” http://socialmediatoday.com/pauldunay/250079/11-b2b-marketing-predictions-2011 7. “Marketing and sales alignment continues to be the #1 issue impeding marketing’s ability to be perceived as a major driver of B2B business value.” http://www.b2bmarketinginsider.com/strategy/b2b-marketing-predictions-for-2011 8. “Consumers’ increasing concerns over noise and privacy will decrease the relatively open access marketers have enjoyed in social channels. The easiest tactics will be the least effective, forcing marketers to bring the same kind of creativity, audience differentiation, and strategy that they bring in other channels. www.forrester.com/rb/Research/2011_now_social_media_marketing_gets_tough/q/id/57771/t/2?cm_mmc=Forrester-_-Blogs-_-Related%20Research-_-5583 9. “Social media measurement will mature rapidly now that there is real money being spent by marketers in the social realm. http://marketingmeasurementtoday.blogspot.com/2011/01/predictions-for-social-media-metrics.html 10.  “Commerce happens in communities of interest — not social networks. First, I’d like to distinguish between a social network and a community of interest, though the terms are often used interchangeably. Social networks or, more aptly, social networking is how we connect with people.” http://adage.com/digitalnext/post?article_id=147897 11.  “In 2011, those brands that truly embrace “social content generation” will build themselves a kingdom. The connections between brand, art or skill and visual communications in a socially connected world can create powerfully authentic appeal for brands.”  http://www.fastcompany.com/1712634/2011-back-to-the-future So there you have it- the 11 ‘social’ pointers set to make big news in 2011.  All of which tell us that the future of Social Media is changing and evolving into a force that no business large or small can afford to ignore.   The future is bright. The future is Social (albeit a new hybrid of ‘social’). Are you ready for it?