Social Media is Now a Must!

Unless you have been hiding under a rock, you have seen the explosion of Social Media. The times sure are a changin'! Even in just the last few years. I remember when Twitter came out and everyone thought it was a cute fad, just a couple years ago or so. Now people are talking about it eclipsing Facebook as the medium of choice.

It's also not just a recreational pursuit anymore. A social media presence is essential for business these days. Still, the majority of small businesses are continuing to waste valuable advertising dollars on The Yellow Pages and print advertising which doesn't work anymore!

When was the last time you used The Yellow Pages? We Google everything these days. Google and the other giants online are focusing more and more on local search as well. Plus 50% of the queries are now coming from smart phones and other hand-held devices. Mobile is the new emerging promotional market.

It is essential for all small businesses, including the professional Tarot community, to keep up on the changes and have a solid social media presence. You should at the very least have profiles on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube. YouTube? That's right! Video is quickly becoming the medium of choice. Videos get higher ranking in the search engines and also on Facebook.

Yes, believe it or not, most of your Facebook Followers or "Likes" on your fan page(s) are not seeing all your posts! Most people have their Facebook account set to the default of Top News, and they are only seeing the posts from Friends/Likes that they interact with most or have gained a high ranking due to relevance and other factors. Yes, Facebook has a ranking algorithm like Google. Video gets a higher rank as does posts with interaction, such as Likes and comments. I've toggled my newsfeed to most recent, so I see ALL my Friend's posts.

Here's another tip: whenever possible have a consistent look across all platforms. Choose the same username. You want to maintain consistency, develop a personal brand and also avoid confusing people or making it difficult for them to find you on the different networks. Use www.NameChk.com to check the availability of usernames across all major networks.

Also use the same background images or at a minimum the same color scheme. I also tend to recommend an image of YOU vs a logo. This is because we are social creatures - that's why it's called social media - and we identify with other people better than other images, unless it's a well established brand. The picture of your little dog Snuggles is cute, but it's not helping you establish a memorable personal brand.

You should also have a website or blog, preferably a WordPress one and host it yourself. This is so you have full control and ownership. This medium changes rapidly. Look at all the recent changes with Facebook alone. Your profile and content on a website like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Google, even a site on Yahoo ultimately belongs to them. They can change features, appearance, and terms at will - so you need your own piece of "web real-estate".

Here at The Tarot Guild it's our goal to keep our members informed of the changes and help you navigate the swiftly changing currents of the online technology. In addition to myself, ReeNee Cummins is our Director of Media, Science & Technology and can help you out some as well.

Feeling a bit lost in all of this? That's why Deborah Frueh and I are putting together some classes to help you get established with the technology and social media ...starting with our Social Media Management Class on Saturday, June 25th!