How to ride the social media wave

2009 March 1

by Guy

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Hi guys,

We have entered the era of the web 2.0 and for those who never really got it, never understood it and decided to ignore it STOP right there!
And stop thinking that way! Embrace this moment because now is the chance for you to emerge in the social media scene. If you miss this opportunity then you’ll be kicking yourself for not starting it sooner. This is your opportunity to get in while it’s still in its infancy, at ground level.

Social media is the hottest area of web development at the moment. It has the highest valuation and is worth a lot of money.

I have recently listened in to a webinar spoken by Perry Belcher, a cracker of a guy (in British terms it means outstanding ;-)) who runs one of many websites called winning at social media. In it, he talks about how social media transcends everything that media stands for today, including the internet and how major advertisement companies are clawing at ways to make social media work for them since they see it as a giant tidal wave waiting to be unleashed but are still unsure of how to use it.

Perry Belcher went on to say that social media is becoming such a powerful force that as an individual it gives you a greater advantage over a lot of companies out there who are looking to spend a lot of money on it. According to statistics only 16% of Americans trust corporate blogs and it seems that the average individual has more power then the conglomerates out there - particularly when it comes to advertising. I guess it’s the case of David beating Goliath once more

That just goes to show that people aren’t sheep any longer and that corporate advertising no longer has the stronghold like it used to have back in the day. The younger and newer generation wants choices, they want it their way. And it looks like they’re getting it through the social media networks because the average consumer spends 4.3 times the amount on social media engines as they do watching TV, listening to radio or reading newspapers… combined!
And this is definitely not going away.

People are beginning to trust other people online, and since word of mouth has always been a powerful advertising tool to relay messages or promote products, it clearly does the same in this instance whereby any individual who seems real enough, friendly enough and creates value on their blog, can be a success on the internet and build a multi media conglomerate around himself.

Perry Belcher also gives an example of how we should all look at social media. He likens it to a party. Like when you go to a party your objective is to meet people. You don’t go to a party to try and sell others stuff do you? Because if you do then you’ll be considered a jerk and no one will have anything to do with you. It works exactly the same in the social media networking scene.
You go to parties (social media networks) and when you meet someone that you really like, you then invite them to your house (your blog) for a visit.
Your blog should be 80% about you and 20% about what you do. Your house (blog) should convey to your friends the type of person that you are by the pictures that you hang on your walls, the sports gear you store in your closet, the DVD collection you have on your shelves and the type of food you store in your fridge (yummy). In other words share with your audience your interests and passions in life. Humanize yourself and allow your visitors to get to know the real you first and foremost.

Once you establish a rapport with your visitors and they get to know you a whole lot better wait for them to ask you what it is that you do. Then and only then you can begin promoting whatever it is you are looking to promote in the first place. Patience is the key to networking wisely.

So now that you are ready to get socially networking it’s time to find out about the next step to riding the social media waves… che-guyvara-small7