Posted by Sandy Fitzgerald
I got an odd tweet the other day from an acquaintance.
"Hey, I'm in London and I'm stuck. I got mugged."
Now, I don't know why I even responded. After all, I'm a writer and I really don' t know people who can afford to go out for pizza more than once a week, let alone go on a trip to London. So of course, I sent the obligatory "OMG" back, and then this person popped up on my Yahoo Instant Messenger to tell me how she got mugged and she would never be able to pay her hotel and they were going to turn her out on the street.
Could I spare, say, $300? And wire it not to London, but to Wales, which is nearly 
200 miles away?
So I looked this person up on Facebook. Her status made it apparent that she wasn't out of the country, let alone having been mugged. Yes, someone was impersonating her to try to steal money from me and probably others. Now, we all know not to trust everything we read online, but this really brought it all home. And with the increasing popularity of social media sites, this kind of thing is going to happen more and more -- and if you fall prey to every scam that comes through, eventually it could cast doubts on your own Internet marketing efforts, especially if you become the victim of someone who has stolen your name to try the "mugging scam."
So how can you protect yourself?
1. Keep your personal information personal. It's great to use Twitter to market your website or blog. It's not so good when you're giving out your personal details.
2. Watch what you put on Facebook. It's great to create a fan page that will attract others to visit your website. It's not so great when you're sharing personal information and viewpoints that can counteract your product -- or when you're giving out details a spammer can use to steal your identity.
3. Change your social media site passwords frequently. Imagine the damage that can be done to your reputation if someone hacks into your Twitter account and starts posting links to their own adult site under your name!
Social media websites have been an amazing way for many of us to connect with friends and with customers. However, with the joy of immediacy of friendships and contacts that come through on those sites, there are people who can ruin your very best marketing efforts in a very short time.
Posted by Beth Hrusch
While social media is a global phenomenon, it's becoming popular in local circles as well. If you're running a brick and mortar business, chances are you've got quite a few competitiors - even if you live in a small town. By networking both on and offline, you can increase awareness of your goods and services and use social media strategies for free advertising.
One easy strategy for social media advertising is to set up an online coupon at a URL that you only advertise on Twitter. Explain in your Tweets and on the page that followers will receive the coupon by Direct Message after following you on Twitter. Then encourage them to share this information with their friends and family. Everyone loves to get something for free - especially when there is very little effort required.
Another strategy for local advertising is to set up a fan page for your business on Facebook. Doing so allows your customers to interact with you, provide feedback, and share the word about your business with their friends. Each time someone posts on your page, becomes a Fan, or links to you site from their Facebook page, their status is visible to all of their friends. This allows you to reach a huge network of local people quite quickly. Social media strategies like this one allow you to spread your business's influence through word of mouth.
Many offline business have also had success after setting up a blog for their business. Blogs allow your customers to see what's new in your industry, what promotions you're running, and what your business has to offer - all in an easy to read style.
Social media strategies only work when they're applied, so take the time to put one or more of these tips to work for your business today. You'll quickly see the results in the form of increased traffic to your website.
Posted by Beth Hrusch
There is a lot of social media information out there, and that's putting it mildly. The number of social media users has doubled since 2007 and some experts think a billion people could be using social media by 2012, even though two years is an eon in social media terms.
Each one of these users, real or imagined, leaves behind a trail of information as 
they Tweet, update, post, and Digg, to name a few. Hundreds of millions of users means the same number of trails. It's enough to make your head spin.
Using social media information effectively doesn't need to be an arduous process, however. There are some basic things you can do to learn a lot about who is doing what out there. For example, according to a recent study, people spend, on average, seven times as much time on Facebook than on Twitter. Which do you think is more effective for gathering information?
Audience is another consideration. Are there a lot of wealthy, middle-aged doctors and lawyers on Myspace? Probably not. Targeted advertising used to be easy. Men like beer and watch football; women buy soap and watch daytime TV. But no more. Social media is forcing even more intensely segmented markets to emerge.
Google Analytics is one way to use this information. It tells webmasters who's visiting, where they came from, what they did, and how long they stayed. Plus it offers sophisticated information on how money invested is being returned in the form of traffic.
Facebook still stubbornly refuses to let users see who visits their page and how frequently, but the Pages feature that allows people to be "Fans" of products has been successful in offering companies another way to look at their markets.
It's definitely tough to corral all of the social media information out there, but there are efficient ways to use it productively. Starting broadly and working toward specifics with good tools is definitely the way to go.
Posted by Beth Hrusch
Maybe you've been taking Social Media 101-learning the basics of this new social media revolution. Here are five things that you should know before moving on to upper-level courses.
1. User-generated content. It's a buzzword for a reason. Most of everything you see on social media websites is generated by regular people sitting in front of a computer at home. If you learn one thing in Social Media 101, this should be it.
2. It's more than just Facebook and MySpace. Social media comprises not only dozens or even hundreds of other websites, but is also a way of communicating electronically that doesn't resemble anything ever seen in human history, in terms of speed and volume of information that can be shared.
3. Once it's out there, it's out there for good. Assume that every person in the world, from your mother to your religious adviser to your boss, will see everything you do on social media. It's within the realm of possibility that they will.
4. Success takes hard work. Just like everything else. You can't just create a blog and expect to be the next Perez Hilton. Building an audience with any sort of Internet medium takes a ton of work, mainly because there are a ton of people out there.
5. The technology is ubiquitous and continuously evolving. According to Alexa, a web research company, five of the top 11 websites in the world are social media websites, and none existed before 2004. This is important to remember. The next big thing may be right around the corner.
There are many other things to learn in Social Media 101, but these five main points are very important. Study up for the final, and make sure you are prepared before moving on to a higher level
Posted by Beth Hrusch
As blogs and other forms of social media expand, the number of social media articles has correspondingly increased. Many of these articles are written by people trying to come to grips with these new technologies. And some of them are written by a guy in a basement about his dog's toenail fungus.
Despite its near-ubiquity, though, it can be difficult to find good social media articles. For starters, there are many people out there looking to capitalize on the social media bubble who have pretty much no idea what they are talking about. Fortunately, these individuals often have poor command of basic syntax and grammar, so they can be identified and avoided.
From a statistical distribution standpoint, the sheer volume of articles on social media can also make it difficult to find quality. Usually, 5%-10% of them will be good, and so on down. Sometimes it is tough to wade through all of the junk in order to reach the gems.
Even if one has found good articles, consistency of quality is important. It's possible to stumble on an occasional interesting article but upon returning to the same site, finding that it hasn't been updated in weeks or that content has suffered in the meantime. This seems to be a common problem for many bloggers, who have good ideas once in a while but fail to post well or frequently in between.
Over time, it seems likely that social media articles will increase in quality, as ranking systems improve and become more sophisticated, and writers come to better understand their rapidly changing medium. Of course, the bad articles will remain lurking somewhere in the past like a forgotten angelfire.com webpage. But certainly, the good articles are out there for the tenacious reader.
Posted by Beth Hrusch
Harnessing the power of social media websites is often easier said than done. There are several social media mistakes that even savvy web gurus make, and any one of them can severely hurt the overall campaign. Below are four of the most common social media mistakes that people frequently make - which ones are you guilty of?
1.) Spamming. You should never take advantage of your network of social networking friends by sending them tons of emails, no matter how valuable you think the information is. If you start annoying people, they'll either block, ignore or "unfriend" you, lowering your overall exposure. Don't send out more than one email or announcement every week or so, and try to make sure what you're sending out is going to be considered valuable to your potential clients. Consider including coupons, fun facts or tips.
2.) Be nice. This may sound elementary, but it's one of the most common social media mistakes to make. It can be easy to get into a "flame war" with others online and say something that is less than professional. If somebody leaves a negative comment on your page, delete it and remove the person from your contacts, but don't get nasty. Others will inevitably see it, and it may leave a bad impression.
3.) Don't sabotage others - not even your competitors! When it comes to Internet karma, you really do reap what you sow. Continue to follow the golden rule of treating others the way you want to be treated, and you'll get the same amount of respect in return.
4.) Play by the rules! Don't try to get around the rules that social networking pages have set up. Eventually, a moderator will figure out that you're trying to get around the rules, and your page will be deleted. The short-term gain isn't worth the long-term headache.
Posted by Beth Hrusch
The definition of social media has changed a lot in its brief lifespan. If one wants to get technical, social media has existed since the birth of the parent of the Internet, ARPANET. This ancient system, developed in the 60's, allowed flow of ideas, but also of random exchanges, late night metaphysical discussions and Chinese take-out orders.
When Facebook and other social media websites were in their very infancy in the
mid 2000s, the advent of both cable and wireless Internet changed the definition of social media forever. People could now permanently connect, and connect anywhere when on the go.
Unless you were a pioneer college student, you probably jumped on the Facebook bandwagon around 2007, when Facebook went mainstream. One important thing has happened since then.
Everyone uses social media. Or at least most people you want to talk to. It's pretty much ubiquitous. Social networks used to be defined by who was excluded from them. Now, everyone is in-meaning that in theory, marketers can reach pretty much everyone with a computer. Or a phone with the Internet.
Other sites have seen experience similar explosions in use. The average person seems to have about 2.3 blogs; You Tube has over a billion video views per day; you may have heard of a research source called "Wikipedia."
This proliferation of use has certainly changed the definition of social media. It went from being a fun thing to do on the side or a way to waste a little time to a way to reach most of the developed world. The implications of this seem self-evident; in theory, the possibilities of social media are unlimited, as long as they meet the bare-bones criteria of connecting two or more people. Undoubtedly, the definition will continue to change.
Posted by Beth Hrusch
Getting the social media help you want can sometimes be difficult, especially if you 
don't know any experts in the field. For those with their own businesses to promote but without the necessary skills to become a social media superstar right away, here are some common questions that beginners have when they first get started. Hopefully, this blog will give you the social media help you need!
Q: What's the best way to get friends on social networking sites?
A: Genuinely try to make a connection with the people you friend - don't just accumulate numbers. People will be more likely to turn to your business if they value your friendship. On the other hand, if people think you're a spammer, they'll be less likely to use your service or product.
Q: Which social networking sites are the best?
A: You should definitely focus on the websites with the most users, as it maximizes your exposure. Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are great places to start, but if there are networking sites specifically for your type of business, join those as well.
Q: I need social media help! My networking page just got deleted by moderators. What happened?!
A: You probably didn't follow the rules of the website. For example, Facebook doesn't let businesses have the same type of pages as individuals. If a moderator finds out that you somehow got around the system and created a "personal" page for your business, your account may be deleted and the email address could even be banned from creating a new page. Make sure you read the rules when you sign up, and follow them to the letter!
Q: Nobody ever links to my blog. What gives?
A: Make sure your content is unique and valuable. Also, try networking with similar blogs. Offer to link to somebody else's blog if they link to yours - most bloggers will take that kind of deal in a heartbeat!
Q: My blog sends out newsletters - how many should I send out each week?
A: You shouldn't send out more than one newsletter every two weeks or so. If you send out more newsletters, instead of giving you the social media help you need, they'll hurt you. Nobody likes to be spammed!
Posted by Beth Hrusch
Knowing how to use social media for marketing can be a daunting challenge. Though this is not an exhaustive list by any means, here are some social media tips to help you navigate through the difficult world of social media marketing.
- Update your site or page frequently. Nothing looks worse than a website that hasn't been updated in months. Keep your look fresh! Upload pictures and articles. Be creative. There are many ways to update frequently, and it's not difficult to do.
- Be search engine optimized. If you aren't pulling in traffic from search engines, you are missing out on site visitors. SEO helps guide random users from cyberspace to your site, and hopefully to a beneficial relationship with you.
- Proofread! No matter what you do, make sure that anything you put up on the Internet has been carefully examined for errors by at least one other pair of eyes. Mistakes look really bad on the Internet.
- Go easy on the goods. Your product or service may not be best served by Internet sales, but with few exceptions, social media is a great place to either drive traffic to your site or educate people about your business. With education, you're investing in future sales.
- Track your traffic. This is the most important of social media tips. If you have established a social media presence, you need to know what it is doing for you. Google Analytics make it easy to do a wide range of complicated analytics on your website, including tracking where your traffic came from and what it did when it arrived. The importance of this tip cannot be overstated.
Hopefully these social media tips will provide a good starting place for you, or refresh your strategy if you've stalled out.
Posted by Beth Hrusch
Using social media for businesses can be one of the easiest ways to increase your return on investment (ROI). For one, signing up for most social media pages is absolutely free - it just takes some time and "know how" to get started and make your social networking pages a valuable asset.
How to Use Social Media for Businesses
It's important to understand that personal social networking pages on websites like Twitter, Facebook and MySpace are significantly different than those used for commercial purposes. There are different rules that you need to abide by, and breaking these rules can lead to getting banned from the sites.
So, before you get started, carefully read the Terms of Use for each site and make sure you follow them to the letter. Otherwise, if and when you're found out, the page will be deleted and your hard work will all be in vain.
Getting Friends, Fans and Followers
After you've set up your social media for business pages, the next step is to start acquiring friends, fans and followers. You want to get as many of these as you can to maximize your company's exposure to potential clients.
The key to getting as many friends, fans and followers as possible is to make sure the things that you're Tweeting or putting on your social media pages have value. Whether that means putting coupon codes on your pages (something to the effect of "mention you're a Facebook fan and get 10 percent off of your next purchase) or sending out helpful tips and hints is entirely up to you.
Typically speaking, using social media for businesses is a process of trial and error. Keep toying around with your pages until you find something that people respond to - that's when you'll know that you're on the right track.