Consistency is the key

If you're using social media as a marketing tool one post a week won't cut it!  You need to post regularly in the right places.

What are the right places?  They're where your target audience 'hangs out'.  This means that you need to do some research into where you find the people who are most likely to be interested in what you're offering.  If your product or service is suitable for large organisations, LinkedIn is likely to be a better bet than Facebook.  If you're selling a consumer item then Facebook might be the perfect platform for you.

The secret of success is to get involved in forums and groups where your core audience can be found and be willing to share your knowledge and expertise and help people out.  The more you do this, the more 'brownie points' you will get as someone who knows their stuff.  When they need your services they'll remember you.

Joining a group is not enough, you have to be active.  This doesn't mean spending all day crouching over a hot computer; it just means that you need to schedule some time each week to read and post in your chosen groups.  This might be a 5-10 minute a day activity or a couple of times a week for a bit longer - but it does need to be regular and consistent.

When you're using Twitter that really is a daily activity, however, you can use tools like Hootsuite and Google Alerts teamed with something like TwitterFeed to keep posting, even if you're really busy.  Just ensure that what you share is good quality content that is of real value to your readers, not irrelevant trivia.

It's easy to get sidetracked in the early stages, but if you attach your new posting habits together with your existing email checking habit and you'll soon develop a routine that works.  Whilst there may appear to be lots of work it's really a matter of getting organised and developing a consistent routine.
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Our sister company Lesleywriter is running an online marketing course presented as a webinar for 30 minutes a week over 18 weeks.  You can find out when the next series starts here.

How sticky is your website?

Having a 'sticky' website means that people come to see it - and stay long enough to get your message and take action.  If your stats tell you that people bounce off quickly then they're just not getting it.  That's not their fault - it's up to you to make it sticky!

Web users aren't know for being patient - we're all in a big hurry with zillions of websites available to look at - so don't make them wait for what they want.  A good headline will usually hook people in, providing you've researched your audience well enough to write a headline that will appeal to them.

Web users aren't ready to have to work hard to get the information they want either - and why should they?  Don't blind them with whizzy graphics or lots of options or demand that the only way they get the information is to watch your video.  Get them focused on one point on the landing page and then lead them to where you want them to go.

Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with video content, as long as it's short and the user can easily turn it on and off.  However, you should always have the gist of the message in written form too for those people who aren't interested in watching moving pictures, are surfing quietly in their office and don't want to disturb others, or simply don't have sound right now.

Of course, your site needs to be lively, attractive and have a strong message too, but less is definitely more!

Watch what you say

If you're using social media and other online marketing to promote your business then every word you type matters.  It only takes a few thoughtless words to ruin your profile - and the danger is, it's there for good!

When you post your comments, blogs, articles and web content it's there to stay.  Even content that you have deleted is in a cache somewhere and anything that's published on a public site you can't erase.

It's easy to forget that every tweet you post is on Twitter not just today - but forever.

I know of someone who used to like a glass of wine or two (or three) in the evening and posted something on a social network that he didn't even remember doing the next day.  When asked he said "I remember thinking that, but I didn't actually post it - did I?"  The administrator took his post down, but by that time lots of people had read it and it was the subject of a heated discussion in the forum.  The post has gone, but the discussion remains for posterity.

Today information comes at us all at the speed of light - the information that's available to us in a single day is more than most of our grandparents got in their lifetime.  Everything you say online reaches the furthest locations on the planet - in seconds.

Don't fall into the trap of thinking 'private' forums are a safe place to let off steam; treat everything you say online as in the public domain.  It takes time to build up your image, brand and reputation - and can be demolished in a single tweet, Facebook post or LinkedIn comment.