Social Media - You Had Better Learn to Love It!

Contractors and remodelers could do much the same thing by giving topical daily remodeling advice or tips.  I use Twitter to post the upcoming guests on my radio program and even encourage feedback and questions. You could use one of the online survey sites to create your own customer poll and direct your followers to it via Twitter.

Editor's Note: Check out ForConstructionPros.com on Twitter

Once you're signed up - let all your customers know you post daily tips and specials on Twitter and watch your followers and customer base grow. By the way if you have a blog - you do have one don't you? - you can direct your Twitter account to scroll on your blog. People that find you online via your blog will then see your tweets too and in real time. (You can see an example of this at work on my blog. Simply go to http://www.exploitthemedia.blogspot.com)

Last let's take a look at LinkedIn. LinkedIn makes no bones about it - "we're here to do business". This platform is very similar to Facebook but is all about locating business contacts. While your customers can find more information about you here, this site is more about locating other business people, whether in your industry or not, that can help you find a variety of services, vendors, capital, training programs etc.

Colleagues can leave recommendations about you - as a matter of fact it's wise to seek these out. You can post Power Point Slide shows, join industry groups, locate the power brokers in your industry or town and seek an introduction. There is a whole host of opportunities.
   
On LinkedIn the people that you know ask for permission to link to you. If you accept they become your first level contacts. But now you have access to their first level contacts. This exponential component to LinkedIn can allow you to put your name in front of literally millions of people in a matter of weeks.

While most puritan LinkedIn users preach only allowing people you know to link to you, you can grow your list very swiftly by joining groups such as Top Linked to explode your data base. It too is free. Check it out at http://www.TopLinked.com

As you can see the opportunities are mindboggling and growing daily. It's easy to get confused by the best thing you can do is just to jump on in. In time it will all make sense.     

 Michael Hart is a speaker, author, talk radio host and shameless publicity hound. His marketing and publicity strategies have been featured in numerous magazines including: Selling, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Sales and Marketing Executive Report and many others. He is the host the Michael Hart Radio Show which can be heard on several stations across the US. He can be reached at (866) 238 5294 or michael@MichaelHartSpeaks.com.