Social Network Marketing

By Martin Sach

Social networking is the buzz phrase of the day, and marketing people get very excited about it. Small businesses, though, can take advantage of social networks to promote themselves and not much skill is needed to achieve worthwhile results. Maybe you thought Twitter and Facebook were just for fun? Think again, for these and others are ways to communicate with past, present and future customers… if only you can be interesting.

Twittering tweets

Being interesting is the most difficult part. The technology is mostly easy. Let's take Twitter to begin with. It is a so-called micro-blogging site, that is to say a site that allows people to make short announcements that can be viewed by anyone. In particular they are likely to be viewed by people who have decided to "follow" the person making the announcements. Nobody could read everything on Twitter so users can select contributors of interest. Getting followed is therefore important and you'll only get followed if you make your announcements interesting.

You can be witty, you can be poetic, or you can tell people about something they're already interested in. Your business, for example. Repeat business matters to most hospitality businesses, so what better way to keep in touch with customers than to use Twitter to remind them of an enjoyable stay, keep them up to date and keep your business in their thoughts.

You need to find items of interest to tweet about. Local news, perhaps even the occasional local scandal (though take care not to libel anyone!) are all good for news items as well as the more obvious announcements about the new rose border, sofa, or local sausages. Tweets (your messages) should be a regular drip-feed to attract more interest but never a deluge and whilst special offers are fine, repetition and blatant advertising are likely to get your readers pointing to the "unfollow" button faster than you can tweet 'goodbye'.

Face value

Facebook is the other big name and here you create a business page that is in effect a mini-website on Facebook. There are 30 million Facebook accounts in the UK, so it matters to be where you can do much more than on Twitter, such as posting pictures, videos, links to your website, short and longer notes; and, with a bit more technical skill, creating your own Facebook applications that bring in specially prepared content from your website.

In Facebook you have ‘fans’ not ‘followers’, but the concept is much the same. To be a fan of a page is to ‘like’ that page and is just a matter of clicking a button for the would-be fan. Those nice people who like you are people you had better like as well, not by clicking a button but perhaps but offering them something extra, such as a discount or a box of chocolates on arrival. You want to reward your supporters not just with news but with something tangible too, if you can, so that they'll spread the word.

This is where the ‘social’ bit of networks comes in. People see who their friends and contacts are following or liking. So the word spreads and the more fans you have, the more you'll be able to recruit. Being ‘interesting’ is also vital advice for Facebook. You get a ‘wall’ – a sort of electronic notice board where you can post messages, and places for your pictures and videos to go.

To have a ‘killer’ application designed that will spread across the web promoting your guest house in days is likely to be a pipe-dream. Such things cost thousands to develop and are not guaranteed to achieve anything. Building up a fan-base gradually is more achievable. The local area is probably your best source of interest unless your business is an attraction in itself. Keep your current and potential clients interested in the area and they'll be thinking of you when they decide to come back.

The wider picture

These two very famous social networks are not the only ones. The others are different but still worth making the most of. Qype is primarily a review site. Like other review sites, it is open to everyone to say what they want to, which can be a danger, but you can add your business photographs, reply to reviews if you wish and enlist other users as your ‘friends’. It is also free to use. People can ‘check in’, ie announce their presence to other users.

On a smartphone, Qype becomes a location-based service which may be important if your business takes last-minute walk-in bookings. The would-be guest sees a list of, for example, restaurants or bed and breakfast houses close by, along with the comments of past users. It really works and as smartphones become more popular it will be more and more important to get on sites such as this one.

Foursquare is another social networking site popular in the USA and gaining ground in the UK. It is not a serious review site, rather more of a fun application where users can post their tips about your business (ask for the room at the back – lovely view!). Like Qype, it is location-based and also offers you, as the manager of the business, the chance to promote it with special offers that will appeal to those in the area.

Let nobody tell you that social network marketing is easy, or just about posting a profile. You have to work at it over time. Our crystal balls cannot predict how these networks will affect business in the future, but it is pretty certain that they're here to stay, and increasingly influential. Hopefully this short overview will whet your appetite to get in there early and grasp the opportunities.

Martin Sach is Chief Executive of the English Association of Self Catering Operators. He also runs several websites and social media operations.