1. Welcome! Thanks for coming to this morning’s presentation, “Social Media
Basics for Small Businesses.”
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2. Hello! My name is Mikki Burcher and I am the owner of MBurcher Consulting,
a Topeka-based content generation and social media management firm. I have
been in business for a little over a year now, and took the leap of faith into full-
time self-employment in August of 2014. I have always been a writer at heart,
and after taking multiple advertising and marketing classes in college, I
realized I could combine my two loves to serve a need for my clients –
providing high quality written content. Often, that is in the form of social media
posts, but it could also be writing a fundraising letter, a CEO’s bio, content for
a blog or newsletter, or even helping to write content for websites as they are
created or rebranded.
As I said above, my academic background is in strategic communication,
journalism, and creative writing. I hold three degrees from Washburn
University, including a BA in Mass Media, BA in English, and a Master’s in
Liberal Studies.
Other things you might find interesting about me… I love Harry Potter; I’m an
organization junkie; I’m housed in 712 Innovations; glitter makes me happy; I
describe myself as an eternal optimist; Topeka is my passion; and if you want
me to be your best friend forever, all you need to do is bring me a dirty
pumpkin chai latte with almond milk, one shot (the barista will know what that
means, I promise).
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3. The first thing clients usually tell me is, “Mikki, I set up this Facebook page/
Twitter account/Instagram thing and now I have now idea what to do with it.“ In
essence, they are asking me to answer a very simple question, and that
question is, “How do I actually USE social media?” My answer is almost
always the same. I tell them, “Social media isn’t any different than what you’ve
been doing since the day you opened your doors. It’s just on a digital
platform.” Most people nod along, but I can still see that shard of panic in their
eyes, so…
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4. I explain that social media is nothing more than having conversations and
cultivating relationships. Let’s look at these two areas further:
Conversations – Social media allows you to “listen in” on other people’s
conversations. This can help you to generate leads, field complaints, and
discover new trends in your market.
Relationships – Social media is another form of customer service. If a
customer has a question, was particularly pleased with an experience or
product, or had a negative experience with your company or product, they will
reach out to you on social media. You then have a chance to interact with
them and provide great customer service, and great customer service can lead
to loyal customers.
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5. When your business starts its social media journey, there are a few steps that
should be taken to ensure success.
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6. The first step is understanding the 3 types of social media platforms.
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7. The three types of social platforms are publishing platforms, sharing platforms,
and networking platforms.
Publishing platforms (Tumblr, Instagram, Vimeo, SlideShare) allow you to
share your original content with your online communities.
Sharing platforms (Diigo, Delicious, Reddit, Pinterest) allow you to curate
articles that you find interesting and share them with others. These platforms
differ from publishing platforms because you are simply sharing content that
you have found online, not creating the content on your own.
Networking platforms (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter) combine publishing and
sharing features and allow for networking between individuals, companies,
and organizations. Networking platforms allow you to publish your own
content, share content, and interact with other users extensively.
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8. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of different social media platforms.
Many social media sites are considered “niche platforms” because they cater
to an extremely specific audience. Examples of niche social media include
Goodreads, a social site for bibliophiles, 43 Things, a site for goal-setters and
list-makers, and Ravelry, which caters to yarn workers.
In order for you to pick the best platform for your business, there are a few
things you will need to be aware of.
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9. When choosing which platform or platforms your business will have a
presence on, it’s important to keep your own limitations in mind. You will need
to think about the time you or your employee(s) have to dedicate to building
your social media brand, your experience with marketing and advertising, your
knowledge of social media, and the expectations of users on each platform.
For example, it wouldn’t be practical for your business to use Tumblr if you or
your social media manager doesn’t understand how to use or interact on
Tumblr. Similarly, it wouldn’t make sense to set up a Vine account if you aren’t
willing to create videos to post, or to create a blog if you want to send short,
specific messages multiple times a day to the entire platform.
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10. When choosing a platform, you also need to know who your target audience is
and where to find them. We will talk more about this in the next few minutes,
but if you don’t have a clearly defined picture of who your target market is, you
need to figure it out BEFORE you pick your social platforms.
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11. Finally, I want you to keep in mind that being able to upload or post something
instantly doesn’t mean you can skimp on quality. Your customers are
expecting professional content, so make sure that you choose a platform
where you can deliver quality content. Just like the jumping little goldfish
above, you want to stand out on whatever platforms you are engaging in, not
just put out the same overused materials that already exist.
Think about the content you have to offer. If you own a clothing store, there
are many opportunities to share visual content; you can post pictures of your
favorite seasonal outfits, a video showing customers 10 ways to tie a scarf, or
pictures of new inventory as it arrives. For a company like this, Pinterest or
Instagram may be a better fit than LinkedIn. But for a business that provides a
service, such as my business, there aren’t as many visual opportunities, so a
focus on Facebook or Twitter would make more sense.
It is important to remember, however, that visual content is necessary on any
platform, so don’t think you’re off the hook. We will talk more about this later.
So now that you know what to keep in mind when choosing a platform, let’s
get to the good stuff. Let’s talk about the major platforms.
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12. Facebook is the most popular social media platform.
It has around 2 billion users worldwide.
Almost three-quarters of the adults in the United States are on Facebook.
Data from the Pew Research Center shows the demographic distribution is
pretty level across the board, however…
Many preteens, teens, and young adults are not active users of Facebook.
They have accounts but have moved to other platforms.
The advertising capabilities of Facebook are incredible and allow highly-
targeted advertising.
It is my recommendation that every business have a Facebook page because
of the sheer volume of users.
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13. Twitter is used by approximately 1 out of 5 adults in the US.
Even though it lacks in user base, Twitter users are loyal. Nearly half log in
every day.
Twitter has a large “silent audience.” A large chunk of Twitter users don’t
engage – they just “listen” to what is going on.
Twitter is very much about being in-the-moment, so if your business is in any
way tied to instant updates/notifications, you should be on Twitter.
Data from the Pew Research Center shows that most Twitter users are urban,
male, between the ages of 18 and 50, are college educated, and make
$50,000+ per year.
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14. 23% of the US adult population uses LinkedIn.
It is the “oldest” platform in terms of demographics, with over three-quarters of
users being age 35 or older.
Data from the Pew Research Center indicated that LinkedIn users are more
likely to be college educated and make $50,000+ per year.
It’s important to note that this platform is used irregularly. Research has shown
that most people sign in sporadically to check up on their profile, answer
messages, etc.
Because of the sporadic use, this platform is relatively low-maintenance.
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15. Data from the Pew Research Center shows that 21% of US adults use
Pinterest, but this platform skews heavily female – almost 85%.
Pinterest users are more likely to make over $50,000 a year.
Almost one-third of Pinterest users have a household income surpassing
$100,000 per year.
By nature, this site is image-heavy, so businesses without a lot of image-based
content will struggle.
A recent report from Piquora found that the average pin has a value of about
78 cents in the real world, making it the most valuable social media post. That
same report found that a pin by a business, on average, leads to two website
visits and six page-views.
If you are interested in using Pinterest for your business, make sure to explore
the option of “rich pins.” (https://business.pinterest.com/en/rich-pins)
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16. Instagram, according to the Pew Research Center, is used by 21% of US
adults.
The platform skews to a younger demographic – ages 18-29.
This is the only platform, according to Pew, where users are more likely to be
Hispanic or African American.
Instagram users are loyal to the platform; it’s second in loyalty only to
Facebook and ahead of Twitter.
In general, content created by individual users gets more interaction than
content generated by business, so it could be hard to break into the market.
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17. Google+ is male-dominated, with 67% of users being men, according to the
Pew Research Center.
The average age of a Google+ user is 28.
Google+ is used heavily by two industries: engineering and technology.
Since Google+ is, obviously, a product of Google, factors from this social
media site play heavily into search engine optimization, so it’s beneficial for
companies to engage on Google+.
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18. Fun facts about YouTube:
Frequently referred to as the “second largest search engine.”
Processes 3 billion searches a month.
Has 1 billion unique visitors monthly.
Over 100 hours of content is uploaded to YouTube every minute.
YouTube reaches more US adults aged 18–34 than any cable network.
For small businesses in particular, YouTube can be the hardest platform to see
success on. Successful videos are generally well-produced and have quality
editing, so producing meaningful, successful content on YouTube can be
challenging. However, it only takes one good video to encourage traffic to your
site, so investing in a high-quality explainer video, case study, tour of your
store, etc. could be worth the investment.
One nice thing about this platform is that it’s ok to set it up and then post only
when you have content and time.
SIDE TIP: Google’s search algorithms focus heavily on video content, so
having a video on your website is a great way to increase SEO.
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19. Of course there are hundreds of other social media outlets available, and
maybe a niche platform such as Behance or Reddit would be a good fit for
you. If you want to know more about a specific platform, please feel free to
shoot me an email and I will do my best to explain it to you.
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20. Once you’ve picked your platforms, you need to register your business name
on those platforms. Your name should be as close to your business name as
possible, and should be easy to spell and remember.
There are two schools of thought when it comes to registering social media
accounts: register everything or register only what you’re using. I tend to
advise registering on as many platforms as possible for two reasons.
1) You don’t want someone else to have control of an account with your
business’s name.
2) Reserve your company’s name for future use and eliminate “squatters.”
No matter which route you choose, make sure to keep a secure log of
usernames and passwords, as well as the emails associated with each
account.
PLEASE REMEMBER: Do not sign up for business accounts by linking to your
personal Facebook account. Your Facebook account is not actually yours.
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21. Before you jump into social media, you need to take some time to learn about
the platforms you are using. I call this time “listening.” How should you do this?
1) Read conversations that pertain to your product and service.
2) Observe the types of content others in your arena are producing and
sharing, and the reactions the content receives.
3) Research various hash tags to make sure you know what they mean, and
make a list of a few your company could use regularly.
4) See who the big influencers are in your target market and in your industry.
5) Learn how the platform works and, again, research what the expectations
are of that platform’s users.
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22. Sit down and create a social media strategy. There are samples of different
kinds of social media strategies online, so look at a few different types to find a
format that will fit your needs. As with any strategy document, it’s critical that
your social media strategy is actually usable. A two-page usable strategy is
better than a 20-page document you never look at again.
At the very least, write down what platforms you’re using, why you’re using
them (the purpose), a goal or goals for each platform, how often you are going
to post, and a short list of content ideas.
If you are working for a company and are in charge of proving ROI, this stage
is more important, because this is where you will set your benchmarks and
make SMART goals, which you can then show improvement on with data.
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23. Now that you have researched different platforms, registered your profiles,
“listened” to the online communities you will be participating in, and have
created a simple, workable strategy, it’s time to start creating content!
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24. But what in the world should I create? What should I post?
There are a number of ways to come up with content.
1) Brainstorm. Really. Don’t underestimate the power of your own creativity.
2) Look for ideas from industry leaders, competitors, and businesses you
want to be like.
3) Make a list. Not of ideas, but a list your consumer can use.
4) Look at your website for nuggets of content.
5) Share your company culture or behind-the-scenes content.
6) Aggregate, aggregate, aggregate.
7) Ask a question!
8) Look for relevant content not specific to your business.
9) Use writing prompts or an idea generator to inspire you, like portent.com.
10) Rethink content. It doesn’t have to be written!
Here are a few other important things to keep in mind while crafting your
content.
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25. Humans are highly visual creatures. We are so visual that specific images will
come to mind when you are asked about high-profile events. Some images
even become iconic, and are known across the world and across generations,
such as this Abbey Road picture.
Because of this, your posts should include visual content whenever possible,
even on platforms that don’t rely on images. This doesn’t just mean a picture –
you can (and should) use varied visual components, including videos, pictures,
infographics, animated pictures, etc. Posts on Facebook and Twitter
specifically are more likely to engage a viewer if they include a visual of some
sort.
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26. One of the most important tips I can give you is that it is perfectly ok to recycle
content. If you are in a creative slump and absolutely cannot write another
Facebook post, it’s ok to repost something you posted 3 months ago. In fact, I
encourage this practice. When you post to a social media platform, not every
person who has liked or followed you will see your content. When you recycle
content, it increases the visibility of that content to your fan base. It also
encourages more interactions and can drive more traffic back to your page if it
is linked in the post.
If you have a wide customer base, you can recycle content to meet the needs
of potential customers in different time zones. Guy Kawasaki, a well-known
entrepreneur and author, receives a lot of attention for his quadruple-tweets,
where he tweets the exact same thing four times throughout the day. He says
he does this in order to reach followers in different time zones.
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27. To round things off, I wanted to share with you what I call “the fast five.” This is
a short list of best practices that I share with anyone and everyone I meet,
because they are the basic foundations to social media success.
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28. Don’t be a robot. Be human. Have a human voice. What do I mean by this?
Have an authentic voice. The way I “speak” online for my business mimics my
own voice. It’s ok to show your real self.
Don’t speak in jargon. Ask yourself: Would a real person say this out loud?
Don’t automate all your posts. A robot cannot build relationships – but a
human can.
Approach social media as you would a face-to-face conversation – it’s not all
about you.
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29. Like almost any other aspect of your life, success on social media requires a
full and functioning toolbox. Coming today is just one more thing to add to your
social media tool kit, but there are many other tools you can add to your
toolbox on your own.
Take a small chunk of time each week to seek out information about social
media. You’d be surprised by how much you can learn in half an hour! Set
aside 30 minutes regularly each week to read up on the newest developments,
learn more about new platforms, etc.
There are multiple social media management tools that allow you to schedule
multiple posts/tweets in advance. Many will provide analytics on your content
and profile. Some tools are platform specific, such as CoTweet, and only
manage or analyze a specific platform. Facebook has well-developed in-
platform management tools. There are also tools that allow you to manage
multiple accounts across multiple platforms, such as Hootsuite, Sprout Social,
and Buffer.
But the best tool to have in your social media toolbox is an editorial calendar.
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30. An editorial calendar will help you to manage and plan your content in relation
to your strategy and will ensure you never sit down at your computer without a
plan of action. This calendar is where you will lay out your content for a week,
month, or year at a time. Editorial calendars are especially good at outlining
seasonal content, holiday specials, yearly events, and series, such as a 31-
day challenge or a contest.
Editorial calendars can take many forms, both digital and on paper. I have
seen regular calendars, spreadsheets, Google calendars, whiteboards, and
paper planners used as editorial calendars. There are even editorial calendar
programs and apps for sale. If you are interested in blogging as a form of
social engagement, there are tons of free “blog planners” available with a
quick search on Pinterest.
Again, there are tons of examples online, so do a little research, find a method
that works for your learning style and company, and just do it.
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31. When producing content, especially on platforms where there is such a large
flow of information (such as Twitter), the line that marks pushing your product
or business too much can get blurred. A great way to keep your engagement
and promotional activities in check is to follow the 411 rule. For every 6 posts
you make on a platform, 4 should be aggregated content pertaining to your
customers and your industry, at least 1 should be engaging with someone
else’s content, and 1 should be a hard promotion.
Of course, this isn’t a hard and fast rule, but it’s a good rule to keep in mind as
it ensures the conversation never becomes too focused on your business.
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32. If a customer had a bad experience in your store, venue, or with a service you
provided, it’s likely to end up on social media somewhere since negative
experiences are shared 2:1 over positive experiences. So figure out how you
will deal with negative comments or complaints. As a general rule:
-If a complaint is made, you want to respond to it before it becomes an even
more negative experience. It takes 12 positive experiences to overcome a
negative experience.
-Don’t delete negative comments unless they are profane, outright lies, or
totally outrageous.
-Answer complaints on the platform if it is a simple fix, or respond publicly that
you will be contacting the poster shortly and then move the conversation out of
the public.
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33. Thanks for coming this morning! If you have any questions, feel free to contact
me with the information here.
If you want to follow my adventures, feel free to follow my business on
Facebook and Twitter, @mburcher1. You can connect with me professionally
on LinkedIn, and if you have any interest in what I do daily or the random
thoughts that run through my head, feel free to follow my personal accounts on
Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
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