As an entrepreneur, I’ve realized how cost-effective it can be to promote your business/organizations/brands online.  It goes without saying it takes some time to build your online presence.  But it’s not complicated to start with some basic principles and build on your foundation along the way.  Remember, there is no absolute web 2.0 expert.  The so-called “Gurus” are the people who constantly adapt themselves to new technologies and learn new skills everyday.

In this post, I will briefly cover five ways to promote your own brands using social media.   To not overwhelm you, I will only cover basics here, and introduce you further readings along the way.

1) Facebook

We had news several days ago which says Facebook is now the fourth largest site in the world.  In the past year, it has grown 157 percent, gaining 208 million visitors (ComScore Data).  Imagine all the traffic your business will be exposed to if you implement Facebook advertising strategy.

Personally, I have an entrepreneur group in NYC.  I have used Facebook on numerous occasions to promote my events, such as post events on my wall (feeds), write a note and tag people you want to invite (tagging), or start a group/fan page (Facebook Group).  Using the Big.ly tracking service, I’ve noticed a handsome amount of traffic directly to my site via Facebook.  But it hasn’t cost me a penny implementing these strategies.

2) Twitter

Twitter has received tons of chatter lately.  In a March report by Mashable, Twitter has managed to grow 1,382% year over year by February 2009.  What can you do with all this traffic?  Well, to start, you have to first make sure that you register a Twitter account for each of your businesses.  For example, I have a Twitter account @webstudio13 for my blog.  The purpose of doing so is to ensure that you establish your brand presence while not leaving room for others to register using brand name.  You should tweet at least once a day to stay in touch with your customers.

There is a reason why big corporations tweet, like Whole foods and Starbucks.  Twitter is a tool to maintain and solidify the relationship you have with your customers.  How do I tweet for my business?  Here is a list:

i)  Make sure you tweet all the news and press releases about your brand, products & services;

ii) Retweet all the good words of mouth about your brand.  What do I mean? If a fellow NYEN member happens to be my Twitter follower.  And she says something nice about my last event.  I would retweet the message she sent to me to my own followers.  Real person testimonials  is are worth spreading.

iii) If you blog about the products or services you offer, make sure you tweet every blog post.  Blog is also a powerful tool which we will cover further.

iv) Tweet tips and tools that are related to your area of expertise.  For example, my blog (Web Studio 13) is about social media.  I would make sure I tweet often about social media news and blogging tips.  Over times, this habit will help me establish authority and credibility in my community.

3) Wordpress

I have written a post previously about why you need to blog if you own a small business.  In essence, if business owners don’t blog, they are missing big.  Read why and how here.

Critical: If you want the maximum flexibility on your blog, make sure you register with Wordpress.org, not blogger, not Wordpress.com.  This rule will appear even more important to you if you want to monetize your blog in the future.

4) Linkedin

Unlike Facebook and Twitter, Linkedin is designed solely with business people in mind.  To complete your profile, you would need to fill in your resume info, employment history, etc.  You can even get recommended by a former employer or colleague.  Of course, the more recommendations you get, the better, meaning you have a solid credential.

One great feature I like about Linkedin is the fact that the site lets you join professional groups which appeal to your particular interests.  As a business networker, blogger, and Internet marketer, here is a sample of groups that I have joined:

Manhattan Local Networkers Group

New York City Networking Association

NY/NJ Business Owners, Entrepreneurs and Start-Ups

On Startups – The Community For Entrepreneurs

Professional Bloggers

After you’ve joined the corresponding groups in your field, make sure you actively participate in group discussions, such as post comments, or submit news articles.

Also, you should start a new group using your company’s brand.  Then increase the amount of subscribers.  It may take some time to build up the followers at first, but the reward you will reap from this action is certainly worth all the efforts.

New with Linkedin and don’t know how to start?  No need to panic.  Here is an article that should teach you all the basics – How to Use Your LinkedIn Profile – a Checklist.  To connect with me on Linkedin, go to my profile page.

5) Press Releases

In the Web 2.0 era, if you still spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to hire advertising agencies to do your PR, chances are you’ve missed out some better alternatives that enable you better leverage on the Internet and your money, of course.

Here are just a couple examples to get you started. If you want to publish a video, what should you do? Go to Youtube.  Do you know Susan Boyle’s Youtube video was amassing nearly 100
million views in its first nine days (Wired)?  If you want to write and publish a book to increase your credibility, where should you go?  Lulu.com.  Do you have to find a big publisher first?  Not necessarily.

With all the web 2.0 tools, there rarely are things that you can’t accomplish even with a shoe string budget.  All it takes are skills.  Your  imagination is the only limit.

Conclusion

To sum it up, we’ve seen all the possibilities you can accomplish with social media.  Yes, if you can dream it, you can do it.  So let’s get started by completing your linkedin profile first or simply start a Facebook group for your brand.  Get the ball rolling.

As you start to take action, make your progress measurable.  Remember, information on the Internet is free.  Make a habit of searching on Google often for the questions you have.  And subscribe to our site to make sure you don’t miss our tools and tips.  I will see you at the top!  Any comments?  Please post them below.

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