How to Use Social Media as a

Business Development Tool

What you’ll learn:

What is social media and why should you care?

How CPAs can use social media effectively

How to build a smart social media strategy

How to protect your reputation online

http://www.issnaf.org/web/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=41&Itemid=83&limitstart=56

http://www.butterflypublisher.com/

Monologue vs Dialogue

Why should you care?

Reason #1: Shear volume of conversations

Facebook tops Google for weekly traffic in the US

If Facebook were a country it would be the third largest

Twitter’s search engine gets 600 million queries every day

YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world

There are over 200,000 blogs

25% of search results for the world’s largest brands are links to user-generated content

Statistics from social media revolution 2 & website-monitoring.com

Online communities have formed that talk about challenges you can help with and the kinds of services you offer

Opinion leaders within these communities influence others

Their thoughts and opinions are amplified online, where they areEasily indexed by search engines Easily shared.

Reason #2: Ability of online communities to shape opinion

Reason #3: It’s effectiveness can be measured

Improves your SEO

Use analytics to Track and analyze dataUnderstand the efforts that are most effective and maximize themAct on insights

How can CPAs use social media effectively?

Businesses as publishers

http://www.elliance.com/

Litmus test: Do you have valuable content to share?

Position yourself as subject matter expert and thought leader Share your insights and analysis Promote the insights of others Encourage and engage commentary

Litmus test: Would this person be a good professional contact or referral source?

Client acquisition and relationship management tool Your online rolodex

Features Company profile Ability to post events, presentations, tweets, your

blog, etc. Groups and answers

Litmus test: Do you deliver presentations?

Position yourself as subject matter expert and thought leader Share PPT decks, Word files and pdfs

Features Post to your site, blog, LinkedIn

Litmus test: Do you have valuable content to share?

Client acquisition and relationship management tool Share industry updates Post industry insights Promote others’ analysis Boost SEO

Features Lists

Litmus test: Do you have stories to tell that would be better told with video?

Client acquisition and relationship management tool Position yourself as subject matter expert and

thought leader Give people of sense of your personality and what it

would be like to work with you Boost SEO

Features Channels

Litmus test: Would you have a beer with this person?

Relationship management tool Reconnect Stay in touch Build relationships

Features Group friends by category Messaging Promote events

Litmus test: Would you like to access communities of prospects who could use your services?

Client acquisition tool Identify groups discussing services likes yours Activate those communities Reach influencers within those communities

Communities of interest

How to build a smart social media strategy

Three important questions to ask yourself

Who are my target audience(s)?

What are my goals?

How do I define success?

Putting a strategy together

Identify the tactics that best match your audiences and goals

Integrate online and offline efforts

Be realistic about the demands on your time

Get organized: create a calendar

Evaluate effectiveness regularly

Be patient

How to protect your reputation online

What is a social media policy?

• Think communications guidelines, not just social media

• Permission-based not restrictive-based

• Empower your employees to be brand ambassadors

• Supports a sound strategy

Tenets of a sound social media policy

• Value

• Confidentiality

• Privacy

• Disclaimers

• Common sense

Share your expertise

• Show your passion

• Help others succeed

• Help colleagues, clients, prospects, partners increase performance and solve business challenges

• Expand understanding of important topics

• Promote important industry events

• Connect people and build relationships

Don’t share confidential information

• Ask permission before you write about any work-related information—you never know what might be confidential or proprietary

• Don’t comment on your company’s business performance

• Mind copyright and fair use laws

Respect others’ privacy

• Don’t mention specific colleagues, clients, vendors or partners without their approval

• General descriptions of an engagement or project are ok but don’t include specific identifying details

• Mind your own privacy

Speak only for yourself

• Identify yourself and your role at the company if you are discussing anything company-related

• Write in the first person, use your own voice if you’re discussing your personal opinions

• If you write about the company make it clear the views are your own

• Be mindful of how you’re presenting yourself online

Be nice and play fair

• Respect the views and values of others: Nothing inflammatory, no obscene language, no ethnic or sexual slurs.

• Don’t pick fights

• Own up to your mistakes

• Use good judgment and accept responsibility

• Work always comes first

Free reputation monitoring tools

Google alerts

http://socialmention.com/

Tweetdeck and Hootsuite

To sum up

Social media is about building relationships: sharing something of value and engaging others

These networks are important because of their influence

Select networks to participate in based on your goals and the audiences you’re trying to reach

Measure your efforts

Be smart online

Questions?

Leigh George

Senior Digital Marketing Strategist at R2Integrated

410.327.0007 x1211

lgeorge@r2integrated.com

Connect with me:

Twitter: @leighgeorge

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/leighgeorge