In the beginning all you had to know was HTML and basic web design . Then came Ecommerce followed by search engine optimization (SEO). SEO was the “Holy Grail” of Internet Marketing until SMM came along.
SMM stands for Social Media Marketing. As defined in Wikipedia: “Social media marketing is the process of promoting a site, business or brand through social media channels by engaging and interacting with existing consumers or potential consumers. The term most often refers to activities that are used to enable marketers to build links, attention and receive large amounts of traffic for their company or site.”
yoursearchadvisor.com defines SMM as “Utilizing social networking and user-generated content platforms to promote a product, service or content. Often involves creating and participating in a dialog with the target audience, rather than forcing an advertisement upon them. SMM can also include creating and promoting viral content that is meant to be shared by users. Many marketers are not comfortable with the lack of control over social media but when approached properly, social networks can be extremely effective channels for building product evangelism, reputation management or corporate branding.”
The best known examples of social media sites are YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. There are now hundreds of content sharing, networking and blogging sites covering any topic you may think of.
Sure, every business needs a website or at the very least a company Blog. The truth of the matter is you need both PLUS a well planned and executed Social Media Marketing program.
If you are just now putting together your first website, there is much to learn. Hence the dilemma, where do you start, from the beginning or from today forward. If Social Media Marketing isn’t built into your overall Internet Marketing plan TODAY, you may find it very difficult to catch up in the future. I don’t want to be an alarmist, but the current economic crisis is driving thousands of worried individuals to network wherever there is an opportunity to do so. The greatest opportunity is online.
My advice is:
- Claim your brand and/or your name (sign up) in all of the social networking sites that are appropriate for your business. After signing up watch and listen (every single day) to the conversations taking place within these sites. Don’t post anything for at least two weeks unless someone directly asks for your input.
- Read three books: Don’t Make Me Think, The New Rules of PR and Marketing and Tribes.
- If you are not equipped to build a custom website or blog today, at least set up a free blog
- Follow at least ten blogs about these subjects as well as marketing in general. If nothing else you will discover what you don’t know but need to learn. (I will share links to my favorites in upcoming posts)
- Find a mentor or hire an Internet Marketing Consultant and learn everything you can about HTML, SEO and SMM.
The answer to the question “Start with the basics or Be in the Now?” is the basics will always need to be addressed and the basics advance as the technology evolves. What was advanced 2-3 years ago is basic today. You really have to do it all. The sooner you begin the better.
Comments, questions?